To What Standard Do We Hold Muslims in Our Society?

At 5 pm on March 24th, 2019, the Islamic Society of Frederick held a vigil for the 50+ victims of a white supremacist shooter who targeted multiple masjids (what we know as mosques) in Christchurch, New Zealand. The death toll could have been worse if this man’s co-conspirators had been successful in detonating a number of homemade IEDs. Thankfully they failed to detonate, but the death toll was still unacceptable. One life taken by a hate-filled white supremacist monster, whether because of the victim’s religion or their ethnicity, is unacceptable.

Representatives from various Jewish and Christian organizations came to speak, as well as numerous political figures including the mayor, representatives for David Trone and Jamie Raskin, and other local figures. But if I’m being honest, the vigil seemed…performative, as if it was centered on the important people who came, not the victims. I find this important because I am concerned that American culture is still anti-Muslim. I think that too many Americans still view Muslims as hostile invaders, and not equals.

News outlets and journalists reported that after 9/11, mob violence against Arab Americans, Indians, Bangladeshis, and even Burundi Africans rose sharply, with some reporting the rise by as much as 800% more than pre-9/11, in what I would personally describe as a mass reactionary cultural lynching effort. I believe that America wanted revenge for 9/11, in a very similar way to how the Klan wanted revenge against Black Americans, once they were made legal citizens after the Civil War and the passing of the 13th Amendment. The reasons for this violence may be complex, spurred by a number of economic, social, and governmental factors, including the state of the stock market, or fears over cultural change due to an increase in immigration. But given that many in the government, military, media, and religious figures have pointed to radical Islam as a unique terrorism threat, American society has responded with a fear, distrust, or even an outward hatred of Muslims.

Following 9/11, this increase in abuse and attacks towards people perceived to be either Arab or Muslim would suggest a rise in this kind of sentiment. In an academic paper entitled “Islam in America: Separate but Unequal”, author Geneive Abdo writes that a growing number of: “…Young Muslims born or raised in the United States are often more observant of conservative Islamic practice than their parents.” (Abdo, 2010, p. 7). This can be seen as a reason to right wing racists, a sort of “gotcha” to prove them right, to justify racist hatred. If such discrimination is justified via the argument that Muslims will become radicalized, academic studies counter this.

I saw religious leaders giving heartfelt prayers, which I’m sure were well-meant; one such pastor I know personally, and he is a good man. I don’t remember seeing many people coming up to a Muslim during the vigil, comforting them, hugging them, making some attempt to soothe their grief…why not? Why don’t I remember seeing the mayor apologizing to them personally, saying this attack was an attack on them? Why was there an awkward national anthem singing there, which felt like a weird mandatory display of patriotism?

When I arrived, a man helped me up the steep hill from the street to the masjid. They offered me a chair so that I could sit, and they offered me food and drink. They were kinder than I thought they might be in their grief, and I shook hands with as many as I could, and offered condolences. I tried to be a good representative of my community, but when I saw the official people shaking hands, they seemed to mostly be shaking hands with other official people; see the problem?

The title of this is, “To What Standard Do We Hold Muslims in Our Society?”. I have never sought to hide myself; I am very much on the left wing, and I hold no shame in my honest views that capitalism and white supremacy are giant obstacles to human progress. In my desire to combat white supremacy and capitalism in this country, in this county, and in my city, I have seen the horrible treatment that our society does to the national population of Muslims, Arabs, and others of various black and brown ethnicities. So why are we treating them differently, less; why is it always about how we feel about Muslims, how we mourn 9/11, how we fear them, and not about building bridges with them?

We need to listen to them, hear them, and seek to understand them. Why don’t our community organizations reach out to the ISF and offer to speak to them, to listen to them…what’s wrong with just hugging a Muslim and apologizing to them, showing them compassion? Why do we show them hostility and fear instead of humanity? I find this egocentric; if we want to prove that we care about Muslims, that we see them as equals, then we need to show it.

Why did the Muslims in Frederick need to prove their allegiance to the US, to our culture, even in their grief? Why are they assumed to be criminals, terrorists, even as victims? This fear, this hatred, needs to end. We as a culture and country need to grow up, to stop being angry at the world, to stop thinking we run it, and get a reality check.