The recent wave of hostility towards Arab Americans is very sad. The nation needs to band together. This backlash towards Muslims, I feel, is out of fear. The Muslim community needs to show Americans that they are just as American as anyone else. It needs to be visible. Muslims in America should not isolate themselves from mainstream society. Many Americans that are not of Islamic faith tend to know very little. As Americans we may associate third world nations, terrorism, violence and rigidity with Arabs and Muslims. It is always the case that a few ruin it for the bunch. The Islamic community has to show that they are just as compassionate and loving as any other religion. It must inform Americans on a regular basis what Islam believes. What are the negative aspects as well as the positive? It must teach which groups exploit the Quran. I have provided a link to what the term jihad means. This word is very popular among extremest Muslims. Many people might not know what it means. I've provided a link so that people who say they are follower of Islam do not deny that there is a negative to Islam. Who exploits the verses on jihad? Why? Is this what fuels the hatred towards Americans from the East? Where do some Islamic sects get followers that are willing to kill themselves and other innocent people for the sake of Allah? What can be done about it? Once Americans realize that there is a difference between sects. Is updated on the Who's who of Islam, then there can be understanding. Not every Muslim hopefully will be clumped with the terrorist.

What is Islam?

Islam started around 622 A.D by the prophet Muhammed. The word Islam means "submission." The Quran is their holy book or "bible" of Islam. They also use stories called Hadith's. These are stories that help interpret the Quran. They are like the stories of Aesop's fables only they focus on the prophet Muhammed and shed light on Quranic verses. Muslims consider the Quran to be the Word of God verbatim.

The Five Pillars of Islam

To declare or bear witness that there is no god except God and Muhammed is His messenger.

Establishing regular worship.

The Paying of alms to the poor and needy (my personal favorite pillar of Islam)

To fast during the month of Ramadan (Ramadan was the month in which Muhammed received the Quran).

To perform a pilgrimage to Mecca (at least once in a lifetime)

In theory if one were to follow just these precepts alone, I believe one would be a semi-decent citizen. It doesn't have anything to do with violence, rigidity, or other negative qualities that religions portray. The problem comes when in the interpretation of the Quran and Hadiths. The Shi'ites interpret things differently than the Sunnis do. Militant Islam is its own creation. It defies logic. It focuses on a handful of verses. I really can't say if they are Sunni or Shi'ite. They are equivalent to Christian fundamentalism. The Taleban is likened to Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell if they had guns. Completely intolerant and full of hate. Claiming to know God while bashing every type of person (democrat, liberal, women...) who aren't like them.

Modern Islam has a very ugly image in Europe and America. I believe Islam has another set of "pillars" that eat at the heart of Islam.

The Five Destructive Pillars of Islam

Intolerance

Oppression of Women

War

Hypocracy

Violence

Considering the Taliban and Saudi Arabia one can see the oppression of women on an obcene scale. Why must one cover up a woman. If you really believe that your woman will cheat or is flirting with another man, then why marry her? By veiling women, Islam is basically saying that either men or women lack self-control. The Taliban has destroyed ancient Buddhist statues, imprisoned christians, hate Americans etc.... The Taliban and Saudi Arabia beieve that violence is a solution to "policies" of other countries. When the UN made Israel (a British owned colony at the time) a Jewish AND Arab state, the Muslims of the region moved the Palestinians out of Israel and declared a "jihad" against the Jews. Basically they kicked out their own teeth and blamed the world. The Palestinians have been throwing rocks ever since. Muslims were not able to see that genocide was evil so they decided to "declare a holy war, my Moslem brothers! Murder the Jews! Murder them all!" (Yes that's a real quote) themselves. Modern Islam in this case has shown itself to be uncaring, uncreative, narrow-minded and well ... unIslamic. If Islam is peace, then why the hatred and war on such a universal scale. Every other day some Muslim country burns the American flag in protest. Modern Islam is hypocritical if it claims it is peace and violent every time a terrorist decides to react to something they don't agree with. When Opec gets together and hikes up oil prices or when a Christian gets arrested, does Europe or America use terror to persuade? Muslim nations need to wake up. They need to deal with their problems. If a Muslim nation were a super power, what would they do? I whole heartedly believe that they would kill everyone who wasn't Islamic (and then kill themselves since there is apparently such a huge difference between being Sunni or Shi'ite that it deserves death). Luckily, it takes a rational society to become a super power. Modern Islam has turned itself into a destructive, unrealistic and irrational political force. I singled out Saudi Arabia and the Taliban because they are the epitomy of an Islamic government. Apparently it is OK, in Suadi eyes, that the Taliban kill people their own indiscriminately. Suadi Arabia won't allow the US their bases to launch an attack on criminals. Ohh, what moral fiber!!! That is the insanity that pervades modern Islam. I am not trying to bash Islam. It is just what the Muslim says Islam is and what they do are two very different things. Islam has turned itself into a religion of evil. Unfortunately, this is an internal issue within the Islam that has spilled over into the rest of the world. If I'm wrong, simply saying so won't disprove anything. Islam must show peace before it is considered a religion of peace. There will always be extremists and idiots who take things out of context. The problem is this isn't just a few people. Nations hate America or at least feel we got what we deserved. I don't laugh or feel they got what they deserved when a natural disaster hits Bangladesh ( or anyone for that matter). It's sad. What is happening in Islam is sad. What happened to NY was very sad. Not all Muslims believe the above, thankfully. Hopefully the internal struggle within Islam will yield positive results.

I hope I've shed some light on the subject. There isn't much else I can say. The study of Islam is difficult. Please let me know if I have made any errors. I wouldn't want any of you Muslims to bomb my house. Just kidding, lighten up.

Bibliography

Oxtoby, Willard G. Ed. World Religions: Western Traditions. Oxford University press:Oxford NY 1996