CUYAHOGA FALLS: Every time Sarah Shendy sees an American flag, she pledges allegiance.
She proudly wears an American flag pin next to the badge on her Copley police uniform and flies the American flag in front of her home.
“Every day I wake up, I am thankful to be in a country where my safety and security isn't threatened 24/7. A country that encompasses diversity, equality and freedom of religion and speech,” Shendy said. “For me, the flag represents liberation, independence, democracy, justice and equality. I am overwhelmed when I see a flag because of what it stands for.”
Shendy, like many Muslims, is feeling a need to affirm her patriotism amid the anti-Muslim sentiments, rhetoric and actions spurred by last week’s deadly Paris attacks that left 129 people dead and 350 wounded. For U.S. citizens and residents of the Islamic faith, the backlash wasn’t surprising — in fact, it was expected.
“We felt it after 9/11 and ever since, whenever some terrorist has carried out a heinous attack and been identified as Muslim,” said Dr. Ishan Ul Haque, a local cardiologist. “The public is primed to think of Muslims as volatile, violent and not tolerant. So, when something like Paris happens, no matter what we do, it’s never enough. We explain that our faith is a faith of peace, but people think we’re lying and look at us as if we’re some kind of sleeper cell. Still, no matter how much negativity is thrown our way, we must continue to dialogue in the public square.”
Political rhetoric
Haque said he and others believe an accumulation of anti-Muslim rhetoric, stirred by the media and reflected by some Republican presidential candidates (including Ohio Gov. John Kasich) and others speaking out in opposition to the U.S. accepting Syrian refugees, has led to an increase in anti-Muslim incidents.
According to the FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics Report, anti-Muslim attacks are on the rise. It shows that anti-Muslim hate crimes increased by 14 percent last year (from 135 in 2013 to 154 in 2014), although the number of hate crimes throughout the nation decreased (from 5,928 hate crimes in 2013 and 5,479 in 2014).
The backlash — vandalism to mosques and Islamic centers, hate-filled phone calls and online messages and threats of violence — began within hours of the Paris attacks and spread. Local leaders at the Islamic Society of Akron and Kent (ISAK) said they are thankful that their mosques, masjids and community members have reported no attacks. They attribute that to relationship building within the local community.
“We have always lived peacefully with our neighbors and consider ourselves fortunate to be in a place where other faith communities and the community at large understand that we stand on common ground when it comes to terrorism,” said Imam Nader Taha, spiritual leader at the Islamic Community Center. “Thanks to God, we have not gone through any serious backlash and believe that is the fruit of building strong bridges with our neighbors, the police, churches, and synagogues that support us.”
Attacks condemned
On Friday, Taha stood before the congregation during the afternoon prayer service and said that it is time to go beyond the typical response when terrorist attacks occur. Each time, he said, the Islamic community finds itself explaining and justifying its faith. He urged those in attendance to continue “being Muslim” by living a life that reflects the peace of their faith and by not allowing people who spread hatred to shake their hope and trust in God.
“All of us condemn these crimes as terrorist acts. It has nothing to do with religion, No religion, no human can justify these crimes,” Taha said. “If we want to end this violence, we are going to have to go beyond treating the symptoms and get to the root of the problem.
“Every time there is a school shooting or some other horrendous mass shooting, the politicians immediately start talking about gun control, instead of the reasons behind that criminal mind that pulled the trigger,” Taha said. “The same thing is true about terrorism. We need to determine how that mind has been filled with such hatred that it wants to lash out and hurt other people. We can’t just treat the symptoms. We’ve got to get rid of the disease.”
After the Paris attacks, local Islamic leaders issued a statement: “The Islamic Society of Akron & Kent extends our deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims in the latest attacks in Paris. We also extend our thoughts and prayers out to the victims of recent and ongoing attacks in Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey. We strongly condemn these attacks and we hope that the perpetrators be found and quickly brought to justice. No belief, cause, or grievance justifies such senseless acts of violence. We affirm and uphold the sanctity of all human life, the taking of which is among the gravest of all sins.”
ISAK President Faheem Shaikh and chairman of the board of trustees Shameem Ahmed said the Islamic community will continue to work toward building bridges to prevent disenfranchisement. While they will continue to condemn terrorist acts and anti-Muslim rhetoric and actions, they will highlight positive steps being made, such as the 18 governors who said they will continue accepting Syrian refugees and the integration of Muslims into the larger community.
“I am an Arab-American,” Shendy said. “A proud and patriotic citizen of the U.S. and I am also Muslim. My religion teaches me to be tolerant, patient, respectful, loving, and stresses charity and giving back. It forbids violence, gossiping, and other negative behaviors that become a liability as a habit.
“Sadly, that is not how some in America view Islam. The world’s fastest growing religion has been dragged through the mud and dirt because of several extremists that have attempted to ruin our image … As an American Muslim, I am saddened and concerned. International and domestic terrorists do not represent me or my religion. They represent a corrupt and psychopathic mindset that’s out to cause violence and havoc — the exact opposite of what Islam preaches.”
Colette Jenkins can be reached at 330-996-3731 or cjenkins@thebeaconjournal.com. She can be followed at www.twitter.com/ColetteMJenkins.