Originally published in The Huffington Post This October, anti-Islam extremists are planning roughly twenty anti-Muslim protests in front of mosques in America. Some of those protests will be armed with loaded and deadly weapons. Those supporting these armed protests claim they do so in the name of “free speech” to maintain justice and the Constitution. I’ve seen this excuse...
Originally published in The Sacramento Bee Re “Clock clash gets student invited to White House” (Page 10A, Sept. 17): I remember ninth grade very well. I was called a terrorist practically every day. When Osama bin Laden was killed, two kids gave me their condolences by shouting, “Sorry about your grandpa!” But I cannot imagine those Islamophobic sentiments being acted upon by teachers. Ninth...
Originally published in USA Today Over the past few days, we have seen a barrage of insensitive comments come from Republican Party candidates in regard to Islam. The most recent came from Ben Carson who said: “I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that.” He fails to realize the irony of his statement. His views seem to be...
Originally published in The Longview News Journal Welcome, Francis Catholics in the United States have awaited the arrival of Pope Francis for his first visit. As a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, I welcome the pontiff. We applaud his efforts to bridge gaps between faiths and ethnicities and this is in line with the true teaching of Islam, which the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community...
Originally Published in San Jose Mercury News As a Muslim, I condemn the horrific attack that occurred in Paris as inhumane and un-Islamic. I express my heartfelt condolences and prayers to the families of the victims. It is very troubling that there has been a rise of such horrific acts being carried out in the name of God and Islam. There is no room in Islamic teaching for such violence. The...
Originally published in The San Antonio Express As a moderate American Muslim, it is painful to watch my faith be hijacked on a daily basis and see the damage that groups like ISIS are doing. As Japan weeps for Haruna Yukawaand Kenji Goto, and Jordan grieves for Muath al-Kaseasbeh, so do I. I condemn any and every action of ISIS in the strongest possible words. ISIS is an enemy of humanity...
Originally published in The Eagle The violence continues and more blood has been shed; ISIS has beheaded two Japanese hostages Huruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto and released a video of the Jordanian pilot, Moaz Kasabeh, being burned alive. [We just learned that American aid worker Kayla Mueller has been killed buy ISIS.] This self-proclaimed “Islamic State” continues to show the world its...
Originally published in The Sacramento Bee The merciless murders of three Americans at Chapel Hill, N.C., are troubling. Wait, three Americans? Yes, they were Americans, born and raised, who happened to be Muslim. Whether this brutality was a villainous hate crime, a response to a petty parking dispute or both remains undetermined, but it has sparked a necessary discussion on the intensifying...
Originally published in Erie The Islamic State militant group committed yet another gruesome act by burning a Jordanian pilot alive, and then publishing the horrific video online. This act is completely outside the teachings of Islam. The life history of Prophet Muhammad tells us a different story. When the Meccans attacked the Muslims in Medina, they incurred a horrible defeat and many of...
Originally published in The Nation Chapel Hill massacre in North Carolina, where three young students were shot to death on Tuesday was a horrendous incident. To say that they were Muslim,the news would have some weight of discrimination, but the truth is they were. However, the question is has media given the news due coverage? The answer would be a no. I would like to know why? As a member of...