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Islamaphobia is still ticking

When isn’t a clock just a clock? Well, that depends on who is holding it.

One of the biggest changes that 9/11 caused within our culture is the widespread proliferation of Islamophobia.

Many Americans have little knowledge of the Muslim religion and this ignorance can cause them to make sweeping generalizations about Islam, usually based on the terrorist acts committed by extremist radicals.

One example of this Islamophobia, occurred last Monday in Irving, Texas.

A 14-year-old Muslim boy named Ahmed Mohamed, brought a homemade clock to school to impress one of his teachers, but instead of receiving the praise and admiration he sought, Ahmed was met with skepticism and handcuffs.

Ahmed’s English teacher reported the ninth grader for building what she thought was a bomb and police officers proceeded to take him to the police station where they interrogated him. Mohamed was held without legal representation and was not allowed to make a call to his parents.

Although police eventually dropped the charges against him, they refused to apologize and Ahmed still had to serve a three-day school suspension.

For building a clock.

This incident highlights the Islamophobia that is rampant in American culture today; it is highly doubtful that a white student in this same situation would have received the same treatment.

Even though radical Muslims have committed horrible acts, these extremists do not define the religion as a whole. Americans are so quick to forget the horrors that have occurred in the name of Christianity, yet the religion has not been defined by these acts. So why should it be any different for Islam?

Islam and Christianity are more alike than they are different.

A survey completed by The Economist in February showed that over 50 percent of Americans believe that the religion of Islam encourages violence among its believers.

The Quran does not promote violence any more so than the Bible does. Although Muslims follow this text, both religions regard the Old and New Testament of the bible as sacred texts. Islam and Christianity promote morality and the following of the Ten Commandments; both believe in the same God, both recognize Jesus and the other prophets (Noah, Abraham, Moses, etc.) they both condemn Satan; and the list of similarities between them goes on.

It is unfortunate that there have been so many extremist Muslims who have misinterpreted what is the will of God, but many Americans like to conveniently forget that Christians are just as guilty as Muslims, in this aspect.

The Crusades, slavery and the genocide resulting in displacement of the Native Americans were sanctioned or justified by Christianity. These three events have resulted in pain, suffering, discrimination and millions of deaths.

There are numerous Christian terrorist groups, such as The Army of God, The Covenant, The Sword, The Arm of the Lord, Phineas Priests and many more.

The Ku Klux Klan, arguably the most prominent hate group in America, was ironically founded upon Christian beliefs.

But every religion has its bad apples.

It is unfair for any religion, Islam included, to be defined by the evil extremists that commit acts of terror.

The American media and culture so often promotes Islamophobia while completely ignoring the hateful acts that are committed by Christians. This is a huge injustice to Muslims because it leads to prejudice, discrimination and hate crimes. This injustice committed by our culture leads to incidents like a 14-year-old Muslim boy getting arresting and suspended from school for trying to impress his teacher with a homemade clock.

Americans, and the whole world for that matter, need to realize that Muslims do not deserve to be treated or viewed any differently than followers of other religions.

2 Comments

  1. Avatar
    John Broadway

    My heart goes out to all the victims but I stand by what I wrote.

    http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/16/world/not-in-my-name-muslims-speak-out/index.html

  2. Avatar

    I hope you feel stupid today, John while watching Paris.

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