For Muslim posters only: Do you fear for your safety?

Public Poll?
Cleverly disguised thread to expose all of the Muslims on the BBS.

 

I am not a Muslim but a Judo student of mine is and he has said on a few occasions that he does fear for his safety. His name is Ahmed and he did a public Martial Arts demonstration a few weeks ago and he asked that I not refer to him by his name just in case it might cause a backlash.

I thought that was overly alarmist but based upon comments that I have seen recently both on this board and off he might not have been overreacting.

 

I dont fear for my safety personally, but I do fear for the safety of my family. We all have brown skin and look muslim. I never worried before that anything would or could happen just because we are muslim, but lately I have been having thoughts that maybe someone might decide to verbally or physically abuse someone in my family just because of what is being shown in the media with all this anti-islam stuff.

 

cleverly disguised "get a list of the Muslims" thread.

 

Don't live there, but have been extra cautious when I travel these days and I definitely get more hateful looks than before.

I even went to Lebanon recently and I didn't feel safe there.

I definitely wouldn't feel safe in Park 51, at least for a few years.

 

I have never been accused of looking Arabic or Muslim, so it is probably easier for me to blend in and therefore not as big a deal. However, I do worry about assembling with or going to the various venues where Muslims commonly mix and congregate. It is not enough to stop me from going to prayers or to cultural events, but it is past enough to make me very much conscious of where I am and what I am doing.

There is a general feeling among American Muslims that they are under siege. Government scrutiny is much more tolerable than being worried about a random idiot planting a pipe bomb on a mosque, or being verbally and physically assaulted by someone looking to make a point.

I am to the point now where I strongly encourage every mosque to hire an off-duty cop during events and friday prayers or their own private security. Perhaps each mosque needs a couple of individuals carrying concealed weapons just in case some random violence breaks out. I am almost positive that a major act of terrorism against a mosque or some other Muslim event will take place in the not so distant future. It has already been attempted, fortunately the bomb did not go off.

 

I'm almost certain if a Muslim going to the Friday prayers brought a gun for protection and something DOES happen and he pulls it out. That's only going to make matters much, much worse in the public eye. The off duty cop does make sense though. Do all mosques have enough money to pay them?

 

Where was this?

 

In my personal case, like I said in another post, I was born and bread in America. My family intact has been here for over 30 years, so even my parents have spent the better part of their years here in the states and actually right here in Texas. We also would consider ourselves devout Muslims along with proud patriots who since my parents were immigrants we truly realize just how lucky and blessed we are here in the states.

When 9/11 happened, I was simply outraged. I realized these groups the Al-quaeda and even the Taliban(which is not established internationally, but seeing the way they view women so on, keep in mind, we have studied the quran and can clearly point towards equality in the genders and the respect towards women) not only were against me as an American, but just as much, I was against them as a Muslim. Because just like they were against my views as an American, they began to deface everything I know and love of Islam and along with that plane, they hijacked my religion it seems. So I had seen it very much as it us vs them thing where these extremist are on the other side of this line against all of us. In line of recent events, it seems that I have turned around only to see a line drawn behind me, and there were people just grouping me with them and they grouped me with them. Its been truly disheartening experience and I hope it doesn't stand.

On a side note the reasons I am for the mosque because I think the terrorist of 9/11 would be the most offended and against this sort of mosque. While they paint a picture that Islam and the west can not coexist, while they say the west won't have a place for Islam in their community. This mosque says we are American, it is for Americans(not just American Muslims) that we will not dignify the terrorists message. That we are integrated and do have a place in society, and it is close to 9/11 for a reason ,just as their is a church right around the corner, because as an American I want to visit and pay my respects to those who passed, and then be able to walk to my prayer hall and pray for their souls and pray for my country.

 

just reread, and don't know how to edit it, so please excuse the few spelling/grammar errors, I hope its still readable.

 

Like Hydhypedplaya said, I do not fear for my own safety but I do for my family. Just a little, though. Maybe because I personally have never experienced any hatred or had racist comments spewed towards me when I'm out. So, that makes me feel like the Houston area has pretty tolerant people.

There was this one incident where my mom came out of a store and in the parking lot some "old white lady" had some racist comments for my mom (she wears the hijab and abaya, not the niqab). My mom defended herself pretty well and did verbally own that lady (I think it had something to do with the Iraq War). But I have cousins and in laws who I don't think could handle those kind of situations like my mom can.

Currently, I do live in Carbondale, IL. It's an ok sized college town in southern Illinois. Mostly white and black people, but not once have I been mistreated or judged or given any sort of look by anyone here. So, I've lived in cities on two opposite ends of the spectrum and have not found the need to fear for my safety. I think America is still pretty good.

 

Wow, small world. I've actually been to the mosque in Carbondale several times (I have family in nearby Herrin,IL).

 

yea to add on to this, I don't know if I am particularly in fear in light of the obvious muslim slandering and islamaphobia that seems to be on non stop in light of the mosque being built in NY. Yet however, I actually live in the city most of the year and I have already been to ground zero to pay my respects a couple times before and I think if I were to go now, I would certainly be cautious even if it is just to pay respects as if those rally folks see someone who looks arabic or south asian or actually just 'muslim' than I can imagine being called some things or so on.

It just makes me wonder to elaborate on my initial post given that I was born and raised here, when did I go from being part of 'us' to being part of 'them' to these people, when some guy from thousands of miles away that I have nothing to do with, that I have no agreements, that would probably want to kill me as much as anyone, when these guys did what they did. Is that when I went over in these people's eyes in to that same light?

I wonder, I don't comfortably say I share the same faith as those terrorists, its not just a view or different interpretation. We are talking about a book where it says any murder of an innocent in any condition is one of the greatest possible sins, it talks about men and women being equal and women must be treated with fairness and equality, it talks of judaism and christanity not as infidels, but as people of the book who share the same god and have their own path to salvation, it is not a legislative book of rules, it is a book of your connection with god exoteric and esoteric. What I just listed is all in Quran, and thus I only see one 'infidel', and that would be the alquaeda and taliban, yet these are the people the guys in the media and at these rallies is 'pure islam'?

 

next we'll get a poll from aroundtheworld asking "christians, do you fear for your safety"?

 

I fear for my safety in general from any ignorants who take to crime and violence easily. Unfortunately, al qaeda seems to have ample supply of these folks to die for their cause. I'm sure we have Americans who will do the same.

It would not surprise me in the least that, if this new mosque gets built near ground zero, that some ignorant(s) will try to attack it or it sparks attacks somewhere.

Most ignorant Americans are harmless, however. They will be the ones who yell at you on the street telling you to "go home!" after 9/11 thinking you are Muslim when you probably are not. Or, they think Ob(s)ama is a Muslim. They can't help themselves...because they are ignorant. Educated folks tend to have better things to do with their time, hold regular jobs, and don't stoop to these levels.

 

Hydhypedplaya, Mathloom, penda45, showtang043,
arif1127, Azadre, BrownBeast99, OGKashMoney, Pete Chilcutt, Showtizzle2642, sLaNd B a L L a, trustme,shastarocket

 

Dude, no one is safe in Lebanon these days.

DD

 

I'm not one of those people who find this thread title copying joke too funny (like the current three threads in the feedback forum ("posting of superfluous threads/images/..."), which is why I do not do that.

Needless to say that it would be despicable if people were in some way harmed or threatened because of their religion or the color of their skin. But I find the self-victimization of some Muslims on this board remarkable.

 

Out of that list, the ones one can definitely have an educated and respectful conversation with, from the top of my head, are Azadre, BrownBeast99, showtang043, slandballa. Not saying you cannot with the others, but two or three of these others have made some pretty outlandish statements already.