Source: The Buffalo News

On October 14, 2002 The Buffalo News reported that "Maj. Abdul-Rasheed Muhammad -- the first Islamic chaplain affirmed into the U.S. Armed Forces -- spoke to about 100 people at a meeting of the American Muslim Council Sunday evening in Lackawanna, where the spotlight on Islam has shined brightest since the arrest last month of six Muslims of Yemeni descent accused of supporting terrorists. Muhammad, who grew up in Buffalo, encouraged people to study Islamic history. He reminded them how Muslims of previous eras got through hard times that Muslims in America are facing today."