BLIND HATRED INJURES THE INNOCENT - A MUSLIM GIRL'S COURAGE

Barry Goldstein shared Marwa Balkar's photo.

After 9-11 it was important for our leaders to make a point about the importance of treating Muslims fairly and respectfully. This woman explains it so well for those politicians who instead seek to exploit hate and fear to divide our country and steal our values.

Marwa Balkar

November 20 

Dear @realdonaldtrump, My name is Marwa, and I am a Muslim. I heard you wanted us the start wearing ID badges, so I decided to choose one for myself. I am not easily identifiable as a ‪#‎Muslim‬ just by looking at me, so my new badge will let me display proudly who I am. I chose the peace sign because it represents my ‪#‎Islam‬. The one that taught me to oppose ‪#‎injustice‬ and yearn for ‪#‎unity‬. The one that taught me that killing one innocent life is equivalent to killing humanity. I heard you want to track us as well. Great! You can come with me on my Cancer Awareness walks at the local middle school, or you can follow me to work where it's my job to create happiness. You can also see how my local mosque makes PB&J sandwiches for the homeless and hosts interfaith dinners where everyone is welcome. Maybe then you'll see that me being Muslim doesn't make me any less American than you are. Maybe if you walk in my footsteps, you can see that I am not any less human than you are. Salaamu alaikum 

✌🏼 ‪#‎NOTINMYNAME‬

Phyllis Carter -  Marwa, I have Muslim friends who have helped me when I most needed a friend. It is tragic that the terrorists have absconded with the Prophet's name and brought darkness and danger to Muslim people who have nothing to do with their madness. I congratulate you for your courage. There will always be haters like Donald Trump. There will always be fools who put their trust in haters. There will always be people who are afraid and blame everyone for the actions of the few. It is hard for us to know who, among Muslim people, are just PEOPLE, and who presents a danger to life and limb. What can we do? How can we sort out the dilemma without allowing danger to come into our sphere? I am glad to see Muslim people speaking out against the terrorists. It helps.