{"id":2370,"date":"2010-09-08T11:27:14","date_gmt":"2010-09-08T11:27:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/news\/2010\/09\/muslims-wary-of-closeness-betw.php"},"modified":"2010-09-08T11:27:14","modified_gmt":"2010-09-08T11:27:14","slug":"muslims-wary-of-closeness-betw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/2010\/09\/muslims-wary-of-closeness-betw","title":{"rendered":"Muslims Wary of Closeness Between Holiday and 9\/11"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Omar Sacirbey
\nc. 2010 Religion News Service
\n(RNS) For this year’s Eid al-Fitr, the Islamic holiday that concludes
\nthe holy month of Ramadan, Nakia Jackson received an unusual present
\nfrom a Jewish friend: cab fare.
\n“She doesn’t want me taking the bus,” said Jackson, of Wichita,
\nKan., whose headscarf clearly identifies her as a Muslim. “She recalls
\nnot only violence against black churches during the civil rights era,
\nbut the security that synagogues have needed for decades.”
\nWhile most American Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Fitr on Friday
\n(Sept. 10), in this time of inflamed tensions and rampant anti-Muslim
\nsentiment, some are worried that outsiders might mistake the holiday
\nfestivities for celebrations of the 9\/11 attacks, and see it as a
\nprovocation.
\nIn most Muslim-majority countries, Eid al-Fitr lasts a few days and
\nvirtually consumes society.
\nIn America, Islam’s minority status means festivities are less
\npronounced, with work and school responsibilities limiting time for
\ncelebration.
\nStill, in many cities, Eid observances are easy to spot. Muslims don
\ntheir best clothes, from traditional ethnic garb to three-piece suits,
\nand fill mosques and rented ballrooms beyond capacity. To contend with
\ntraffic, many municipalities dispatch extra police officers to direct.
\nPrayers are followed by visits with friends and families.
\nWhile this is the first time that a major Muslim holiday and 9\/11
\nhave overlapped since the 2001 terrorist attacks, similar
\nmisunderstandings have occurred. Last year, Sajid Master, a perfume
\nstore owner in Houston, posted a flier on his door announcing he would
\nbe closed on Sept. 11 to observe the death of Imam Ali, a revered figure
\nin Shia Islam.
\nSomeone took a picture of the flier and sent it around the Internet
\nclaiming that Imam Ali was one of the 9\/11 terrorists. In fact, none of
\nthe 9\/11 terrorists was named Ali, but Master received angry phone calls
\nand death threats.
\nMore recently, the proposed construction of an Islamic cultural
\ncenter two blocks north of Ground Zero has sparked vitriolic opposition,
\ndrawing mosques — and Muslims — around the country into similar
\nconflicts.
\nIndeed, the list of Islamophobic acts is long and getting longer. In
\nAugust, a mosque construction site in Tennessee was torched and shot at,
\nas was a small-town mosque in western New York. Also in August, a Muslim
\nNew York City cab driver was knifed in what police are calling a hate
\ncrime. A Florida church plans to burn Qurans on Sept. 11.
\nIt’s no surprise, then, that Muslim American advocacy groups are
\nurging caution this year.
\n“I don’t think anybody is suggesting prayers be moved, but social
\ngatherings and other community events probably shouldn’t be held on
\n9\/11,” said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on
\nAmerican-Islamic Relations.
\nThe Muslim Public Affairs Council has alerted police departments and
\nthe FBI about the overlap.
\n“The recent spike in hate crimes against Muslims has underscored the
\ndangers,” said Alejandro Beutel, the council’s government affairs
\nofficer, adding that law enforcement is taking seriously the potential
\nfor violence.
\nThe Islamic Society of North America is urging Muslims to clean up
\nparks, volunteer at soup kitchens, and do similar charitable acts on
\n9\/11.
\n“On Sept. 11, let’s show that we can rise above prejudice and hatred
\nand be the kind of conscientious citizens who give back to our country
\nthrough a national `Muslim Serve’ campaign,” the organization said in an
\nannouncement.
\nAnd the New York-based Islamic Circle of America is telling local
\nchapters not to schedule annual “Muslim Family Days,” traditionally held
\nat Six Flags Amusement Parks on Eid weekends, on 9\/11. Instead, Muslim
\nFamily Day will be held later.
\nMuslims are divided on whether to make the adjustments.
\nOn ICNA’s website, many Muslims accused the group of being weak and
\nencouraging people to mute Eid celebrations. Some observed that many
\nAmericans will be at weddings, birthday parties, and college football
\ngames on the ninth memorial of the attacks.
\n“Do you think Americans will be absent from Six Flags on 9\/11?”
\nasked one commentator, who called himself “Asif.”
\nBut “Suzanne” disagreed: “9\/11 represents the worst
\nmisinterpretation of Islam imaginable. If you agree, then we have to act
\nin ways in the U.S. that separate us from the terrorists,” she wrote.
\n“Pray, enjoy your family … but public amusement-park festivals on
\n9\/11? Are you nuts?”
\n
\nCopyright 2010 Religion News Service. All rights reserved. No part of
\nthis transmission may be distributed or reproduced without written
\npermission.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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