Originally Published in the Duluth News Tribune We talked about Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Ordean East Middle School. Half a century ago, Dr. King devoted his life to one dream. He wanted black people to live equally with white people. In his time, white people were considered superior to blacks, and he wanted to change that. As an American Muslim, I think this is an example of the true Jihad...
Originally published in The Patriot News I am an American Muslim, and I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. I congratulate President Obama and pray for the success of our nation. It is uplifting to witness another peaceful election, something many other nations struggle to achieve. Deadly coup détats and riots. Violent uprisings and revolts. For much of the...
Originally published on statesman.com The democratic process is the election of a representative by a people. As a Muslim American, I support the peaceful democratic process of our recent election. Electing a leader, or voting for one, is the responsibility of every citizen. After the election, however, this responsibility shifts to the shoulders of the elected. In this light, President...
Originally Published in the Northwest Herald In Taft, Calif., we are yet again faced with yet another school shooting less than a month after the tragic events at Sandy Hook Elementary. Fortunately, this time, I don’t need to write to the victims’ families to offer my prayers for their loss. However, it only solidifies the fact that now is the time to talk about gun control. I’m not suggesting...
Originally Published in the The News Star As an American Muslim, I support the democratic process and congratulate President Barack Obama on winning re-election. I extend my best wishes that President Obama can help keep his campaign promises. The president has a challenging job which comes with immense responsibility. He must uphold the rule of law, adhere to justice, and promote global peace...
Originally Published in the Dailyherald.com Living in this beautiful country grants us freedom. But unfortunately, the land of the free isn’t free of horrific tragedies. The senseless and brutal killings of innocent people at the elementary school in Connecticut has shocked and saddened the entire nation. The lone gunman took his own life after taking 26 others, that included 20...
Originally published in MyCentralJersey The thought that I could have been at that New York City subway station on Dec. 30 terrifies me. I am a 15-year-old Pakistani-American, just the reason I could have been dead. I love this country in every way. Lately, I have been noticing that a lot of people have been expressing their hate for other American communities and nothing is being done to...
Originally Published in The Patriot News As I walked into the New York subway, I read an ad on the wall that quoted the Quran “Soon shall We cast terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers” with a picture of the Twin Towers burning beside it. Had the Al-Qaeda taken over? No, rather, this was an Islamophobic hate ad. America was founded on religious freedom for all, yet recently in a...
Originally Published in Montgomery News and Phillyburbs.com What is the best way to achieve world peace? With President Obama’s inauguration ceremony right around the corner, scholars will propose what the president should do, indirectly answering the question above. As a Muslim-American, I want to first congratulate the president on his re-election and pray that he will lead the nation...
Originally published in The Syracuse Post-Standard An innocent Hindu man was pushed in front of a subway because he was mistaken to be a Muslim (the alleged assailant presumably did this because she blamed all ”brown” people for 9/11). It is unfortunate that people still believe a Hindu, a Muslim or a Middle Easterner are all held responsible for the 9/11 attack just because they have...