Source: The Washington Post

On September 20, 2001, The Washington Post reported on incidents of backlash on college campuses. At George Washington University, there have been threatening emails, "basically telling these students to watch their backs... some of [the recipients] are actually Indian or South Asian, and they're not even Muslim. All [the writers] are going on is appearance or the sound of the name." The article quoted a student, orginally from Afghanistan: "'All of the sudden, when you walk through school, life has changed,' she said. 'All of the sudden, I feel insecure about my ethnic background. I don't want to say "Afghan" out loud.'"