Maha Gawad was out for groceries one day when a woman came up and pulled off her hijab. The woman told Gawad that it is no longer allowed and suggested she hang herself with it around her neck rather than on her head. Maha did nothing to provoke or deserve this inappropriate act of ignorance. This was not her first racist encounter and most likely will not be her last.

 People of the Islamic faith are often unfairly stereotyped. Muslims have killed less than 0.0002% of Americans since September 11, 2001. People need to educate themselves on the difference between Muslims and terrorists; yes, there is a difference. A terrorist is a person that uses violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims. A Muslim is simply a follower of the religion of Islam. These two nouns have no relation to each other.

 Sophomores Griffin Jefferies and Ryan Burkey had very interesting responses to the topic. They were caught by surprise when asked “Are all Muslims terrorists?” Ryan responded, “You can’t make that assumption. Sure a lot are in terrorist groups, but not all Muslims are terrorists.” Griffin explained his stance to me using a simile, “Say you have ten berries. Two are poisonous; you don’t eat those because you don’t want to take the chance of endangering yourself. Just like we don’t want to take the chance of endangering our entire country.”

 The Muslim community has been especially fearful after the final results of the presidential election. With a president that does not speak out against any kind of discrimination comes followers that feel justified to express their opinions in such a derogatory manner. Our president thinks it is necessary that Muslims carry identification cards, noting their faith, at all times. This sets America back so many years. We do not want to repeat the  tragedy of the Jews in Nazi Germany. There has been an inexcusable number of hate crimes and outburst against Muslims. Trump has done nothing to end this discrimination.

 Some Muslim Americans are so concerned for their safety that they have stopped wearing their hijabs. As American citizens, we should be ashamed. We have pushed some of our own citizens so far that they are scared to admit their own religion. The fact that Muslims are scared to be seen in something that identifies their religion is appalling.
 It takes a special kind of bigot to harass an entire religion based off the actions of a few Muslim. America is known as a melting pot for a reason. For centuries we have accepted immigrants into our country. Over time we have melted into one big cultural pot. So, why are we discriminating against our Muslim brothers and sisters?

 They are respectful of our varying beliefs and customs. They deserve the same respect from us. Muslims should be proud to embrace their religion. Stop the religious slurs, stop the prejudice, and stop the inequality. Not all Muslims are terrorists.