Young Muslim Woman: "American Muslims Ache, Too" After Terror Attacks

July 20, 2005

Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

http://www.jsonline.com/news/editorials/jul05/342111.asp

On July 20, 2005 the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ran an opinion piece by Farha Tahir, a 2005 graduate of Divine Savior Holy Angels High School in Milwaukee who will be attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the fall. Tahir writes, "...[W]e are the Muslims no one ever hears about. The Muslims who contribute positively to our societies every day but whose efforts are often overshadowed by a radical political faction twisting our religion to justify atrocities committed for nationalistic political motives.

Every day, we turn on our televisions and read our newspapers only to see that the strides we have made no longer matter. And what seems like every day, we are forced to start at square one because of people who cannot understand the dignity of each human life... People often fail to recognize that we were crying alongside our fellow Americans because the attacks on 9-11 were an attack on our ideals, the ideals we cherish as Americans...

This is the country we were raised in, the country we call home. When America hurts, all Americans hurt, including American Muslims. Though we may differ on world issues, never would we, the mainstream, consider the use of force to bring about change."