Originally Published in Patheos on February 26th, 2018 There was an article recently by a friend on how a representative of the Council of American Islamic Relations (CAIR) supported a hate rally in Virginia recently; a reader commented that American Muslims need a better mainstream representative. The problem is that despite most American Muslims being good people, there’s no real unity between...
Originally published in The Baltimore Sun Black History month is an important time to commemorate the accomplishments of blacks around the world; it is also a time to remember and address the unresolved issues in our society dealing with race. Last year highlighted several issues which, despite the successes of the Civil Rights movement, still plague our society. They include the disproportionate...
Originally published in The Baltimore Sun Recently, three Muslim youth were murdered in North Carolina by an extremist atheist (“Police investigate hate crime theory after 3 slain in N.C.,” Feb. 12). But I won’t ever read about this in the mainstream media due to a troubling double standard. Whenever a Muslim murders someone, the media immediately associates his faith, and all...
Originally published in The Baltimore Sun As an Ahmad Muslim, I believe Islam condemns terrorism and that there is no room for any violence in the name of blasphemy. The Qur’an constantly exhorts people to think while also telling Muslims to ignore the ignorant and provocative, not harm them. The Holy Prophet Muhammad faced insults and ridicule throughout his life yet never punished anyone...
Originally published in Baltimore Sun The recent killing of two New York City Police officers is tragic, but it should not be used as an excuse to ignore the issues that have led to it (“Hundreds of Maryland police attend NYPD officer’s funeral Dec. 27). Our country faces a rising problem of police abuse of power, much of which is racially skewed. Consequently, protests have...
Originally published in The Washington Times A young man was fatally shot in front of his shop a few days ago in Nawabshah, Pakistan. Imtiaz Ahmad was an Ahmadi Muslim and the youth leader of his local chapter of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. He leaves behind his wife, three sons and father. It was only a month-and-a-half ago that another Ahmadi Muslim, Dr. Mehdi Ali, who was there from the...
Originally Published on Thebaltimoresun.com There are a growing number of conflicts worldwide, fighting in Syria, unrest in Egypt, and increasing tension in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict among them. As more and more countries become involved, a real possibility exists that things can get worse for everyone. This holiday season, I believe it is important for countries to stop and think...
Originally published in The BaltimoreSun.com Originally published in The BaltimoreSun.com As a Muslim, I am appalled by the Taliban’s recent attack on the Pakistani teenager Malala Yousefzai, a blogger and female education rights activist (“Outspoken teen shot,” Oct. 10). Islam is not only opposed to such senseless violence but obligates all believers to acquire knowledge. The...