CAIRO — The 9/11 terrorist attacks spelled trouble for America’s Muslims and charities, yet it also offered a chance for many of them to speak about their faith and set the record straight.
“We’re more in the limelight now,” Anees Masood, a 66-yar-old resident of New York’s downtown area of Rochester, told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle on Thursday, February 28.
Seven or eight years ago, Masood, who came to the US from Pakistan with her cardiologist husband more than 45 years ago, was just another Rochester resident.
After the terrorist 9/11 attacks, her colorful saris, head coverings and prayer became the center of attention.
Like millions of American Muslims, she found herself in the role of educator, explaining her faith in a predominantly Christian community.
“But I’m happy for that in one aspect: There have been so many invitations to talk about Islam.”
The experience is shared by many of Rochester’s 19,000-strong Muslim population.
Mosques and Islamic centers in the area now regularly host classes and panel discussions on Islam, attracting a large number of curious people.
In Brighton High, one of the area’s schools, the Muslim Student Association is providing additional material on Islam for the teachers to use in class.
Fatima Bawany, 15, says she is now used to questions over her hijab and the pants she wears under her shorts when she competes in track.
“I’ve learned more about my religion and am able to stand up for it,” said the Brighton High student.
“I explain it to them, and it builds up my confidence…It’s definitely shaped my character.”
Unwanted Attention
But in many cases the special attention was not quite a boon.
Many Rochester Muslims were detained, questioned or harassed because of their faith, imam Mohammad Shafiq of the Islamic Center of Rochester, told the paper.
His own son was handcuffed and kept for two hours at the borders last December as he was coming home.
Yusuf Sharif, an imam at Masjid Sabiqun, has a similar experience.
Sharif, who embraced Islam in the late 1990s, was recently stopped on his way back into New York.
Officers went through all papers and notes from the religious conference he attended before letting him go.
Sharif says he became used to that kind of “attention”.
“I tell them, ‘Thanks for the special attention,’” he said with a laugh.
Six years after 9/11, many American Muslims complain that they continue to face stereotyping because of their Islamic attires or identities.
The US Senate Office of Research has admitted that Muslims, estimated between six to seven million, have taken the brunt of federal powers applied after 9/11.
Imam Sharif says it saddens him to see people in his community so desperate to ovoid undesirable attention that they shun using any language that could distinguished them as Muslims, such as as-salamu `alaykum, an Arabic greeting translating as peace be upon you.
“Some of my brothers and sisters are afraid to give the greetings. They shouldn’t be afraid.”
0 Responses to “Positive 9/11 Nightmare”