U.S. Muslims Should Tolerate the Stares

Now that a little time has passed since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that stunned our nation (and, indeed, the entire world), people are examining some of the issues created in the aftermath of the attacks. One such issue concerns what is perceived to be a growing sense of suspicion and hostility directed at American Muslims.

In the press and on television, many American Muslims have expressed concern that they are now the targets of everything from dirty looks on the street to unfair treatment on airplanes.

I am a Muslim. My parents were immigrants from Chad who came to this country with little money but big dreams. They got work where they could. My dad was a master woodworker; he found a job building furniture. My mother went to night school and studied English until she could speak it flawlessly; she got a job as a secretary. I was born into a comfortable middle-class existence.

When my dad passed away several years ago, his funeral was standing-room-only. This immigrant from Chad had made friends everywhere he went. I am proud of my parents and proud to be a Muslim.

That being said, I am not eager to join in the cries of victimization being made by many Muslim Americans these days.

Am I upset that ordinary Muslims are being looked at with suspicion and hostility? Of course. Should we do all we can to stem intolerance toward any religious or ethnic group? Of course.

But the bulk of my anger is directed at the Islamic extremists who perpetrated the atrocities of Sept. 11.

Think of it like this: If you found out that a criminal was pretending to be you while committing murder in your community, who would you be most angry with? The victimized people in your community? Or the man using your identity to commit the murders?

These Muslim terrorists entered the country posing as average, decent, hard-working Muslim immigrants. They took advantage of the goodwill that was created in America by people like my parents, and all other Muslims who came to this country to start a new life.

We know for a fact that Osama bin Laden publishes a handbook on how his terrorists can “blend in” by pretending to be average Muslim immigrants. They’re instructed on how to make friends, talk sports, get work, all in the name of fooling the community into thinking they’re someone they’re not. The terrorists who got into this country, boarded those planes and killed thousands basically did so by pretending to be my father, and that makes me mad, very mad.

I don’t begrudge non-Muslims their suspicions right now. How can they tell if that friendly Muslim sitting next to them on the plane is for real or not? Yes, suspicious gazes can cause hurt feelings, but American Muslims should temper their anger with the understanding that hurt feelings mend, but the thousands of lives lost in the Sept. 11 attacks are gone for good.

We American Muslims must retain perspective. Who are the real villains? The frightened, victimized American public, or the terrorists who are murdering innocent people in our name, and in the name of our God?

The terrorists are deceivers and traitors. They are the enemies of all law-abiding Muslims everywhere. They have perverted our faith; they have appropriated our identities; they murder in our name. They are the true enemy. Hostile stares from strangers should be returned with feelings of empathy and mercy. We have all been traumatized by a common foe.