Originally Published in USA Today President Trump’s travel ban bothers me to my core. But what bothers me more is the false sympathy that’s present because of it. Whether it’s a 40-year-old hijabi woman like my mother or a 15-year-old high school student like myself, any Muslim American can share her experience with veiled Islamophobia since 9/11. This ban lifts the veil. Sadly, we’ve learned to...
Originally Published in The Huffington Post Like many other Americans, I am struck with disbelief over the new executive order by President Trump restricting Muslim refugees. I have a personal reason to be outraged. I am a Muslim refugee myself. I was born in Pakistan and raised by devout Muslim parents. In 1974 and 1984, through a constitutional amendment and presidential ordinance...
Originally Published in the Australian Broadcasting Corportation by Tayyib Rashid In 1987, 30 years ago, I emigrated to the United States from Pakistan, the land of my birth. A short time later, I became a naturalized citizen. In January 1997, almost 20 years ago to the day, I left for boot camp. I spent the next twelve weeks fully immersed in the training to become a United States Marine. Known...
Originally Published in Time I’m an immigrant, an American Muslim and I have family overseas. A Muslim ban would materially impact me — but I can’t help but thank President Trump. I thank him, but not because I think the ban is a necessary — it’s not. Our immigration and refugee process is already one of the most thorough on Earth. Since 9/11, refugees have committed a statistically insignificant...
Originally Published in The Baltimore Sun On Friday, our nation stood united to inaugurate Donald Trump (“Donald Trump sworn in as 45th president of the United States of America,” Jan. 20). As an American and Ahmadi Muslim, I value the democratic transition of power and appreciate the fact that we live in a country that gives us our inalienable rights of religious freedom and...
Originally published in The Cleveland Plain Dealer Some reports from Trump and his surrogates point to a database that will include Muslims, even those who are U.S. citizens. If Trump decides to create such a database, he risks not only alienating Muslims in general but also innocent Americans who have no connection to extremism and are actually fighting the extremists elements. Developing this...
Originally published in The Mooresville Tribune Although most Muslims believe that defensive wars are permissible in Islam, this man realized that the only way to really defend Islam in this day and age is simply through dialogue and that this was the “Jihad of the age.” This man’s name is Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian and he was recognized as the Messiah by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. Many...
Originally uploaded in Dawn A month ago, an 81-year-old Muslim bookseller in New York was caught with a copy of the Holy Quran. The FBI arrested him promptly, and just two days back, an anti-terrorism court in Washington DC sentenced him to eight years in prison with a hefty fine. Christian leaders across the US are congratulating the government for protecting the soul of Christianity by...
Originally published in Patheos One of the most prominent stories of 2015 has been the circus of the Donald Trump campaign. It seems Donald Trump will say just about anything to be the center of attention and has been more than willing to cross any line when it comes to violating the American ideal of religious freedom. We have seen an escalating pattern of anti-Muslim rhetoric from Trump and...
Originally Published in The Roanoke Times As an American Muslim, I am obligated to serve my country. Thus it is an obligation for me to make it known that Donald Trump will not “make America great again,” as he promises. Rather, he will make us weaker than we have ever been. While he likes to quote the great past leaders in this country, it appears he has forgotten that Franklin...