Originally Published in The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Washington Times I am deeply saddened by Sunday’s tragic events at the Sikh temple in Wisconsin (“Assault on Sikh temple kills six,” Monday), a place of worship with the purpose of developing people into better human beings. As a Muslim, I know that Sikhs face similar discrimination, often due to their attire and...
Originally Published in The Chicago Tribune The shooting at a local Sikh temple outside Milwaukee is extremism in its worst form. It was an attack on all places of worship and on religious freedom. My heart aches for my Sikh brothers who have lost loved ones in this tragic incident; my faith (Islam) teaches me that all places of worship are precious and should be protected. The First Amendment of...
Originally Published in The Huffington Post Sunday’s mass shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin carried a depressing familiarity. Every few weeks in America, people somewhere are shot en masse, a gunman is captured or killed, and the debate over gun control flourishes on opinion pages. But this shooting was different. It posed a question to the core American values: Do we stand up for the...
Originally Posted on The Huffington Post I was attending a LIVE online conference this morning when a friend’s email instantly brought tears to my eyes. He broke the news of the tragic shooting at a Sikh temple near Milwaukee. I was racked with pain. My first reaction was to pray to God to ease the suffering of those directly affected by the tragedy and then to contact my friends at the Sikh...
Originally Posted on The Huffington Post I was fasting but had to fight the incessant urge to vomit, as my Twitter feed spiked with tweets about a shooting at a Sikh Gurdwara. Hoping against hope it was a mistake, my heart began to race and my teeth clenched as several news reports confirmed the incident. Another terrorist attack against innocent souls, this time just south of Milwaukee, but an...
Originally Published in The Dallas Morning News Senator Michele Bachmann’s recent accusations of Muslim Brotherhood infiltration of the United States government is McCarthy-esque fear-mongering for the 21st century. Her baseless accusations that top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Huma Abedin, is an agent of the Muslim Brotherhood sent to infiltrate the U.S. Government is not...
Originally Published in The Express-Times, Lehigh Valley Edition This weekend I attended an annual youth convention in Milwaukee with the theme, “For the sake of my country, faith and nation.” Participants took part in workshops and various educational and sports competitions. It was an atmosphere of real brotherhood, positively impacting the lives of our youth. The event was not organized by the...
Originally Published in The Duluth News Tribune and The Star Tribune. At a time characterized by an alleged increase in the radicalization of Muslim youth, I attended a national Muslim youth convention with the theme, “Love and loyalty for one’s homeland.” The national convention — organized by America’s leading Muslim youth organization, MKA USA — sought to educate and cultivate loyalty...
Originally Published in The Huffington Post “As a Jew, I am offended to my core. Muslims have no right to invoke Moses and Abraham. This is a delegitimization of Judaism. It is offensive and vile. And while Jesus is not my guy, the same thing goes for him. It is a delegitimization of Christianity. These are not Muslim prophets.” This typical quote from Pamela Geller perfectly...
Originally Published in The Contra Costa Times Probably more than any other community, July 4 gives Muslim-Americans a strong reason to celebrate. July 4 marks the independence of the American colonies from Great Britain — an independence spurred by the need for freedom of religion. Similarly, many Muslims come to the United States to flee persecution they face in their lands. Such is the...