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Emily Mangan
October 31, 2013
Dr. D Gregory Griffith
Understanding Religious Intolerance
Identifying the Misrepresentations
Every man, woman, and child in America is very aware of what happened in our country
on September 11
th
, 2001. It is very easily the most notable act of terrorism in the US, and the
actions and responses in the 12 years that have since passed have made it a historic day and
one that changed America for good. On 9/11, four planes were hijacked by Muslim terrorists.
Two hit the World Trade Center towers in New York City, one the Pentagon in Washington, D.C,
and the fourth was derailed by passengers and crash landed in Pennsylvania. These are the
facts that any person in America would tell you. They would then go on to tell you the tragedy
of that day: the people in the Twin Towers whose world turned upside down, the brave
passengers on those flights who made one last phone call home, the firefighters and emergency
responders who lost their lives running to help. And then they will get angry, saying how
America had to unite after that attack, had to fight back in Iraq and Afghanistan to defend our
loved ones who died that day. And then they might say something about Muslims. How the
Islamic faith is evil and wicked or how the extremist religion caused terrorist acts.
September 11
th
was a terrible day. The actions of individuals changed nations and religious
groups into enemies, and it sparked one of the largest examples of religious intolerance
America has ever seen. We will never get back the precious lives we lost that day. But we will
also never get back a country that didnt have prejudice against the word Muslim.
Islam is the second largest religion in the world, after Christianity. Islamic faith is rooted
in the 7
th
century teachings of the prophet Muhammad, and it centers on the idea of one God
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(Allah) with prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and the search for salvation. The Islamic sacred
scripture is the Quran, and in our study of the Quran we discussed how the book is often
misinterpreted as intolerant. Many people bring prejudice with them when they approach the
text, as with most things Muslim-related. At their core, Muslims believe in worshipping God to
the best of your ability and doing good deeds that practice your moral beliefs. Verse 3:64 of the
Quran: Say: O People of the Book! Come to common terms as between us and you: That we
worship none but Allah. The verse speaks to the Abrahamic religions and asks them to realize
that we share a common faith in one God, and that faith should bring us together, not cause
conflict between us.
Like Catholics, Muslims stress the importance of human dignity and of converting of
your own accord rather than through coercion. While Islam does not preach war or offensive
measures, it does allow retaliation in defense of Allah. So how does this theoretically peaceful
religion inspire such extremist actions such as 9/11? How do Saddam Hussein or Osama bin
Laden justify their violent acts against humanity as being done for the grace of God? I think it is
incredibly important to remember that these people are exactly what their names imply
extreme. They are the exception, not the rule. Muslims in America face discrimination,
prejudice, and hate crimes every day because of the extreme acts done by members of the
Islamic faith. I think what Americans who are intolerant of Muslims are forgetting is that just
like the Westboro Baptist Church or the Ku Klux Klan are not representative of Christianity, bin
Laden and the 9/11 suicide pilots are not representative of Islam. The acts of intolerance that
Muslim Americans have faced in the last 12 years are painful to read about and while the
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reasoning is not difficult to understand, that makes it no more acceptable than flying a plane
into a building.
One of the most common acts of intolerance that have arisen since 9/11 has been the
burning of mosques. Recently and quite famously, the Islamic Center in Joplin, Missouri was
burned to the ground on August 6
th
, 2012 by an unnamed arsonist. That was the second act of
arson on this specific building; one month previously on July 4
th
, 2012, the same act was
attempted by an arsonist who was caught on camera but never identified or arrested. Imam
Lahmuddin, who led the Islamic Center for many years, was interviewed shortly after the fire.
He shared that there were about 40-50 Muslim families in the Joplin community, and that this
was not the first time they or their place of worship had been attacked:
Sometimes we hear people in their vehicles passing by and yell at the kids, and sometimes
it happens when youre outside the building. And in 2008, the [mosque] sign was burned,
and we replaced it a year ago with a completely new sign that said the Islamic Society of
Joplin with our address on it. We found that somebody shot an [air] gun on the signwe
saw the ball of the bullet. (Lahmuddin)
While it is clear that the Islamic community in Joplin is no stranger to intolerance and
discrimination, Lahmuddin remained positive about their situation. When asked about how the
arson speaks for the climate in America for all Muslims, he simply says There are good people
and bad peoplethis is a test from God. In a local newspaper article following the incident the
editor called it a tragedy not just for the Muslims. Its a tragedy for the people of Joplin
(Mondoweiss). Although the reaction from both the Muslim community and the general
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community of Joplin has been one of forgiveness and unity, the act was still one rooted in
religious intolerance and hate.
The Missouri mosque was not the only one to burn. A mosque in Murfreesboro, TN was
destroyed in 2007, and was brought back to national attention this past June when it was
mentioned at an outreach forum organized by the American Muslim Advisory Council (AMAC).
The forum was designed to educate the Tennessee community about anti-segregation and fear,
after a local county commissioner posted an Anti-Muslim picture on his Facebook page. A group
of protesters organized by the American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI) a group founded
by leading Islamophobe Pamela Gellerderailed the event with their heckles and anti-Muslim
posters and chants. When Sabina Mohyuddin mentioned the burning of the Murfreesboro
mosque, the protesters cheered in response. The protesters also called the high rate of Muslim
citizenship in America an infiltration and one was quoted saying Islam is evil. The AFDI is the
organization behind many Anti-Muslim advertisements in main transit stations in New York City
and Washington, D.C. One advertisement in NYC shows a picture of the World Trade Center
engulfed in flames, accompanied by a quote from the Quran: Soon we shall cast terror into
the hearts of the unbelievers. Another calls Muslims savages by saying: In any war between
the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man.
The Anti-Muslim movement is one that is rooted in fear. Americans are fearful of what
happened on 9/11, and for many it is easy to blame an entire religious group. Non-Muslims are
not the only ones who are unhappy with the extremists. Many Muslims have condemned
extremism and have spoken out since 9/11 in support of their religion. Muslims face
segregation in America. For example, they are often singled out in airport security lines for
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more in depth screening. But one Muslim, Hussein Khalifa, says that hes okay with the
precaution:
What happened in America 10 years ago was big. We happened to be associated with it
whether we agree or not. In front of American eyes, some people from that region did
something horrendous to America. And America has the right to take precautions to
prevent any harm. (Gorski)
Much of the prejudice against Muslims has less to do with their religious beliefs
and more to do with their ethnic identity. The terrorist attacks by Muslims have led our
country to be suspicious of anyone who looks like that stereotype. I think however, that
when that prejudice leads to the burning of places of worship, it becomes about
religion. It is one thing to be cautious in an airport checkpoint, it is another entirely to
commit a hate crime against someones religious affiliation. The Anti-Muslim sentiments
in America have led to an ethnic divide, and the hate and anger that has resulted draws
a peaceful religion to the forefront of violence. The Muslim population in America is
projected to increase by 139.5% by 2030, from 2,595,000 in 2010 to 6,216,000. With the
wars in Iraq and Afghanistan slowly coming to an end and the Muslim American
population on the rise, it seems like this should be a time of renewal. This fall we
honored the 12
th
anniversary of the attacks of September 11
th
. As a nation we will never
forget the heinous crime that rocked our country and projected us into this time of war
and unrest. But I dont think that the remembrance of September 11
th
should be
focused on the Islamic faith. Yes, the terrorists claimed to be following orders of Allah
and identified as Muslim. But they are an example of extremist members of a faith
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community, and do not accurately represent the Islamic faith, which promotes the
belief in God and the moral compass that all should follow. Thou canst not compel
them to believe Quran 88:22.















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Works Cited
Brown, Hayes. "Hecklers Cheer Burning of Tennessee Mosque at Muslim Outreach
Forum." Think Progress. (2013): n. page. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.
<http://thinkprogress.org/security/2013/06/13/2150841/hecklers-cheer-burning-of
-tennessee-mosque/>.
Gorski, Eric. "10 Years Later: A Changing World for Muslims." Denver Post. (2011): n. page. Web.
31 Oct. 2013. <http://www.denverpost.com/islam/ci_18692208>.
Kane, Alex. "Missouri Mosque Burning." Mondoweiss. (2012): n. page. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.
<http://mondoweiss.net/2012/08/missouri-mosque-burning-imam-says-tragedy-will-
not-stop-us.html>.