University students gathered last night to discuss the Islamic religion and its stance on the war against terrorism.
The meeting, organized by the Muslim Student Association (MSA), featured Mohammad Alo, a graduate student at the Medical College of Ohio (MCO). Alo addressed the beliefs of Muslims throughout the world in regard to the events surrounding the tragedy of Sept. 11.
Alo said Islam, the fastest growing religion in the world, condemns violence and the tactics of Bin Laden’s jihad, or holy war. The term jihad “actually means struggl.” There are an abundant number of rules involving the execution of a jihad and a definite purpose must be presented. Alo said, “Bin Laden’s claims that this is a jihad against the United States and goes against all of these rules.”
On Sept. 11, Alo was attending classes at MCO when he noticed that everyone was watching televisions all over campus. He said that his first reaction in regard to who was responsible was “I hope it’s not Muslims.”
Muslim groups “seem to be blamed immediately” for acts such as these, Alo said. He said that Muslims had to apologize and condemn the attacks because they were “afraid of a backlash.” He said that there was a concentrated effort on the part of the Muslim world to “contain the problem as much as possible.”
In response to student questioning about an increase in racial profiling, Alo cited the works of David Harris, a professor at the University of Toledo. Harris writes that racial profiling can divert attention away from people doing suspicious things to those that merely look suspicious.
Racial profiling is “one of the biggest concerns for minorities as a result of the attacks” Alo said. While Alo provided no thoughts on additional actions which could be taken by the military, he said, “This administration (presidential) has been very supportive, much more so than any previous administration.”
The Muslim community in the United States consists of roughly seven to ten million people and now is more active, Alo said. He said that the initiation of this increase was so that “Muslims didn’t have to keep defending themselves.”
Alo encouraged students who wish to promote a positive outlook on the Islamic faith to become involved on a city level by giving tours of mosques, or becoming involved in MSA.
