Ripples--article I wrote a few months ago for my journalism class

From sea to shining sea, the words of God according to the Prophet Mohammad are uttered. Scattered amongst the nation’s mountains and valleys are over 2000 Islamic centers, schools, and mosques—places where the Quran, the Holy Book of Islam, is read and studied each day by the estimated seven million Muslims living in the United States.
They work, pray, raise families, live, and die here. They are, in all senses of the word, American. But as the war in the Middle East rages on, so too does the battle here on the home front for acceptance and understanding.
“No one has any right to discriminate because of race, religion, or color,” said Atef Hamed, Imam at the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh located on Bigelow Boulevard in Oakland.
“Even God doesn’t look at your face; he looks into your heart,”Hamed continued.
Unfortunately, however, not all people share this reasoning. Hamed stated that while he is optimistic and sees a lot of improvement in the sentiment toward Muslims, he still experiences prejudice in his daily life.
“If I dress in American-style clothes, many people will smile to my face. But when I dress like an Arab, I get bad looks from the very same people,” he said.
He went on to say that when travelling, he is a frequent selectee for “random,” (said with a scoff) checks of passengers at American airports.
Sultan Ghuman, member of the University of Pittsburgh’s Muslim Student Association, says that he does not feel discriminated against by Pitt students or the University as a whole. However, he does feel that there are many misconceptions amongst non-Muslims about his religion.
“With the way the media hammers Islam by associating every negative piece of news with it, and especially because so many people don’t read but just watch television…I’m not really surprised,” he said.
An informal survey of fifteen Pitt students supported Ghuman’s claim. Of all fifteen students, only five could state three basic facts about the religion of Islam, and only five could identify Mohammed as the prophet of Islam.
Upon being asked to rate their knowledge of the religion on a scale of one to ten, with ten being the most knowledgeable, nine students ranked their knowledge at a two, and only one student chose a rating above four.
Milica Bakic-Hayden, professor of Religious Studies here at Pitt, said: “Only education can help overcome the standard prejudice regarding Muslims. People here in America are not aware of the diversity of the Muslim world.”
Hamed, too, feels that the lack of a basic understanding about Islam, even amongst the educated, is the main cause of the prejudices against Muslims that still prevail. He said that the best way to improve attitudes toward Muslims, then, is for people to educate themselves.
“People know who Britney Spears is, but not Mohammed. Who is more important to history?” Hamed said.
The reasons for the lack of information could be endlessly speculated upon, but some potential explanations surfaced in the aforementioned informal survey.
Of fifteen students, only four said that they had either a friend or family member who considered themselves Muslims, and four students said they had done any independent reading or research about Islam. Only one student said that he had learned any information about the religion in a class taken here at Pitt.
Whatever the cause of the rift, many non-Muslim students feel that there is still a ways to go before it is truly healed.
“There is still some racism,” said Jessica Stillman, School of Arts and Sciences student. “Even though not all Muslims are extremists, people still feel hatred towards them.”
Undergraduate student, Amanda Feris, said: “Fixed opinions exist. People have a hard time looking at extremists versus the religion itself and distinguishing the two.”
“As Americans, we sometimes say that if you’re not us, you’re them,” said English Writing major, Sergei Feldman.
Feldman went on to say that things are getting better, with most of the negative feelings being directed toward extremists, in his opinion.
However, those who practice Islam as the peaceful and tolerant religion that most Muslims define it to be are unfortunately still targets of hatred.
According to Imam Hamed, a little over three months ago, during the time of the Gaza conflict, members of the Islamic Center arrived one morning for their 6 a.m. prayers to find the front entrance stairs of the building covered in red paint.
“How could somebody do that in the house of God?” Hamed said of the vandalism, remembering the stunned and hurt feelings he and the other members shared that day.
The Islamic Center never discovered the perpetrator’s identity, but has since picked up the pieces, cleaned up the paint, and moved on with their mission.
“If whoever did it doesn’t agree with what we do—helping kids, raising money—that’s his problem,” said Hemad.
About a month later, just this past February, another incident occurred at Gateway High School in Monroeville.
Two students, Mohammad Al-Abbasi and Ahmad Al-Sadi were told that they were no longer permitted to wear the headscarves traditional to their Arab heritage to school, according to a February 18 article written by Sadie Gurman for the Post Gazette.
The school’s dress code clearly states that “Any headgear worn due to religious beliefs is acceptable.”
According to a Tribune Review article by Karen Zapf published February 19, a group of Jewish students at the school signed a petition expressing their discomfort with the Arab scarves.
The article went on to say that, at Gateway High School, the “tensions between Jewish and Muslim students have been growing for months, and the administration's actions haven't diffused the situation.”
While many non-Muslims are yet to accept Islam and those who practice it fully, steps are being taken every day by organizations and individuals to combat prejudice and reach a level of harmony between Muslims and non-Muslims.
The MSA here at Pitt engages its members in many activities to increase understanding about Islam.
“We host an Islamic Awareness Week on Forbes Avenue Lawn where we provide information with games to overcome misconceptions,” said Melek Yazici, president of the MSA. “We are also thinking of collaborating with Habitat for Humanity for a community project next semester.”
The group tries to promote acceptance right down to its very make-up, according to Yazici. “Anyone can become a member of the Association; being Muslim is not a prerequisite. We welcome people from any religion or background, as we believe diversity is a vital part of our organization.”
Pitt is also becoming more accommodating to diversity, as the University has recently allowed the MSA to create a prayer room, which is located in room 301 of the William Pitt Union.
The room is very useful to Muslims due to their obligatory daily prayers, said Yazici, but is not limited to Muslim usage.
“We welcome every student on campus to use the room if they are looking for a quiet place to meditate or pray,” she said.
The Islamic Center is also playing a large part in educating the community about Islam and bringing diverse groups of people together. It serves not only as a mosque for Muslim individuals, but as a place of learning for all.
Recently, the Center has started a class about Islam that it will offer weekly, according to Hamed. The class focuses on the history of Islam and its teachings, and also attempts to answer any questions that students may have about the religion in general, said Hamed.
He said that the first class proved to be encouraging, adding that there were about 7-10 students present, only one of whom was Muslim.
“We feel like it’s our duty to educate people,” he said, adding that oftentimes, internet research can be misleading and generally unhelpful to those who want to learn more about Islam.
He went on to say that perhaps the most important function of the Islamic Center, in addition to educating the public, is teaching people to hold on to their Islamic heritage and instill in their children the teachings of the faith.
“This place is very different from a mosque in, say, Egypt, because here, Muslims face a lot of challenges in maintaining their Islamic identity.”
Professor Hayden stressed that although challenges are plentiful for Muslims in America, it is important to remember that misconceptions are a mutual problem.
“In many Muslim countries, they have a simplistic and often distorted picture of ‘Americans’, who are seen through films and other popular media, or judged by the politics of their leaders,” said Hayden.
For those Muslims in America who do want to work toward a better relationship with non-Muslims, however, hope abounds for the future.
Feris said “I guess this is kind of idealistic, but I hope to see people accepting others for who they are instead of basing opinions on the actions of a small group.”
Hemad stressed that while he feels more accepted in Pittsburgh than he did in the suburb where he once lived, the prejudices and misconceptions that he continues to see are very frustrating.
“One fifth of the world’s population is Muslim—we have got to learn to coexist,” Hamed said. “I’m not here to kill anyone.”