An entire generation has grown up under the shadow of the 9/11 attacks, and many American Muslims have faced hostility and even doubts about their Americanness.
Nihad Awad, cofounder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) can be seen on the right side of a photo standing next to President George W. Bush when he visited the Islamic Center of Washington in Northwest D.C. That visit occurred just six days after the 9/11 attacks.
Courtesy of CAIR.
In his speech, the president condemned Islamophobia, saying American Muslims loved this country as much as he did.
“America counts millions of Muslims amongst our citizens, and Muslims make an incredibly valuable contribution to our country. Muslims are doctors, lawyers, law professors, members of the military, entrepreneurs, shopkeepers, moms and dads. And they need to be treated with respect. In our anger and emotion, our fellow Americans must treat each other with respect,” Bush said on Sept. 17, 2001.
“I stood shoulder by shoulder with the president of the United States denouncing what happened and calling for unity,” Awad said.
A 2021 Associated Press poll found that more than half of those polled have unfavorable views toward Islam — an assessment, Awad said, that has likely not improved in recent years under a president who speaks of Muslims in a very different manner than Bush did in his 2001 speech.
“Today we are living under an administration that has been thriving on division and pitting Americans against each other,” Awad said.
But he noted that, through the hostility and suspicion, Muslims in the U.S. have found ways forward and ways to fight back against bias.
More than 255 American Muslims currently hold state, local and national elected offices.
“But today, I can also say that American Muslims are deeply civically engaged. American Muslims refuse to be defined by guilt by association,” Awad said. “We love America. This is our home, and it’s going to be our home for hundreds of years for our children and grandchildren.”
More than 60 Muslims died as a result of the 9/11 attacks, including office workers, restaurant employees and first responders who worked in and around the World Trade Center.
