The date was September 11, 2001. It was the first week of high school, and I was in ninth grade. The days leading up to this were filled with wonder, fear, and nervousness. I had no idea what high school had in store for me. I was a blooming adolescent, and was looking for some sort of support system or a constant reassurance that would help me through this transforming time.
On this morning, I was in my social studies class. The room was filled with students like myself who wanted nothing more than to find someone they knew in the room so they wouldn't have to deal with all the questions and uncertainties on their own.
News from the class room down the hall urged my teacher to turn on the television. In the next few moments we all sat witness to a crime so heinous we knew the world would never be the same. Rumors already began to spread that the attacks were committed by Muslims - Middle-Eastern Muslims. I instantly froze. The room around me begin to spin and close in. I was no longer just one of the newbies, but I was singled out amongst that group of youth as a foreigner, and as a threat.
It only took a few minutes, and the hate towards my people, and my religion began to take form. A student rose from his seat, and angrily asked for the Muslims to leave the class, the building, and head home - because they were not welcome there. I ducked my head down in fear, in confusion, and in distress.
Not too soon later we heard that another attack was taken against the Pentagon in Washington D.C., not too far from where my mother worked. Would she be okay? At that time we had no idea if the attacks would continue, where they were coming from, and why they were happening. We all had so many questions - and no one to answer them. And I say, "we," because I felt just as much threatened as the students sitting next to me. I may share the same religion as the persons conducting the attack, but I was in no way a supporter of their cause.
I was only thirteen years old - but I knew my life, the lives of my family, and the lives of the Islamic community would no longer be the same. The so-called, "Muslims," that hi-jacked those planes on that day, also hi-jacked my religion. They took my Islam, so near and dear to my heart, and managed to bastardize it to a point beyond recognition. They made claims that held no validity in Islamic teaching or in the Quran.
It took me a couple days to gather the strength to go back to school after that. News began to spread of attacks against Muslims all over America. I did not want to be one of those few who were harassed. Muslim women began to remove the head scarf because they did not want to be recognized as Muslims. We went into hiding - we were treated like demon aliens, and I resented it.
I decided to create a response group for people who were being singled out and abused. People who weren't even Muslim - Sikh's because they wore a turban were also being attacked. I went to a large high school (my graduating class was 800 students alone) - and was able to find many victims who needed somewhere to go, and wanted to share their stories. Students who had garbage and stones thrown at them, students who's homes were vandalized, and students who received verbal attacks on a regular basis. After some time the anger subsided and the harassment became less and less. But the scars from that period would always remain. I would never feel 100% accepted into American society again. I knew that I was now the new favorite minority to be attacked of our time - just as the Native Americans were, the Japanese were, and the African Americans were. American history shows that we need to have someone to single out and treat as a lesser people.
I have not stopped paying for the crimes of a group of people who carried the name of my religion and my family's religion. I think its time that the rest of America opens their eyes and realizes that Islam is not to blame for the attacks, and American Muslims should not be treated as third class citizens in their own country. I come from a family that works hard for a decent lifestyle, just as many other American citizens do. We vote during the elections, we support our local fire fighters, and always give donations to local food pantries and clothing drives. We are an active part of our immediate and surrounding community.
Today Americans cannot accept the construction of the Cordoba House near Ground Zero in New York. I ask why not? What are you afraid of? That group of Muslims has been in that area for years - and no one has ever complained. The new interfaith center and mosque would bring revitalization to that area. It would be a place of acceptance, unity, and growth. For Muslims to back down now - would be admittance to guilt, which would imply that Islam is responsible for the attacks on September 11. I would have to argue that these attacks are not to be blamed on the religion - and therefore Islam should not be targeted as an enemy. Once we can get past the false and skewed image that has been formed of Islam - I believe we can all realize that Muslims are an important part of our society today.
Islam speaks of acceptance of other faiths, kindness towards your neighbor, and completely condemns attacks towards innocent peoples. So shame on people like Reverend Jones in Gainesville, FL, shame on the people who cannot accept new mosques all across America, and shame on people who attack fellow Muslim Americans like the cab driver in New York on August 25, 2010. I hope we can all come to a peaceful resolution, and work together as the diverse community we were taught to strive to be.
"Verily! Those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians, and Sabians, whoever believes in God and the last day and does righteous good deeds sha'll have their reward with their lord, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve." - The Holy Quran, Surat Al- Baqara, 62
