We Muslims need to step up and so does America's democracy.

[kpete]

A Muslim View
Josh Marshall | July 27, 2010, 9:57AM

TPM Reader SR, a Muslim, addresses yesterday's conversation ...

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As a Muslim American, I've paid attention to this issue for a while. What I've seen is an ebb and flow and right now there is a peak because it's election season and so many tea partiers are on the ballot. Right wing politicians, their followers, and their media outlets are latching onto this issue because the ground zero mosque gave them an opening. It's an effective one-two fear punch along with 'black obama administration officials are coming to get you white people'.

I think after the election, you might not hear so much about it again until the Cordoba House advances further or until Andrew Breitbart doctors a video of a Muslim making a speech or until some other event happens that makes Islamaphobia more effective than the other tactics. In my eyes, this is just another version of the right wing mad lib: Gays/blacks/muslims/liberals are coming to kill/recruit/steal/convert/destroy your kids/women/church/property.

However, I don't want to dismiss all Islamaphobia as a temporary fear mongering tactic. I do believe that some very right wing evangelicals have a strong fear of a Muslim takeover of the world and have an end of days and/or crusade mindset. The media or politicians who are using Islamaphobia as a political strategy may not believe it (Tancredo does believe it), but the sheep that they are guiding do and will continue to in many cases. This is disconcerting for many reasons and hopefully America as a whole can refudiate this trend.

For me, the people who really matter are the non-right wing Americans who may have some concerns about Islam and Muslims. I don't think they're necessarily afraid of Islam, but they do wonder and they do have some feelings of discomfort. This requires leadership from the media, politicians, and Muslims themselves. To that end, I say thanks to TPM for objectively and soberly highlighting this issue in recent weeks and to Mayor Bloomberg for forcefully defending our constitutional rights. Also, the Cordoba House when built (inshAllah), will be a beacon of true Islam: tolerance, community, spiritual development, and advancement of knowledge.

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http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2010/07/a_muslim_view.php#more?ref=fpblg

[msongs]

1. when two sets of sheep collide, what will be the outcome? stay tuned nt