Monday, November 9, 2009
Ft. Hood Victim's Family Speaks Out Against Anti-Muslim Sentiment
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Huffington Post | Gazelle Emami
Army chief of staff Gen. George Casey said this weekend that he is concerned that the deadly shooting at Ft. Hood last week could "cause a backlash against some of our Muslim soldiers."
"I've asked our Army leaders to be on the lookout for that," Gen. Casey told CNN on Sunday, stating that "as great a tragedy as this was, it would be a shame if our diversity became a casualty as well."
On Monday, the family of one of the victims offered a hand of support to the Muslim community. Michael Cahill, a physician's assistant at the base, was the only civilian to be killed in the attacks, and his family spoke to CBS News to denounce the scapegoating of Muslims.
"You can't blanket a whole group of people. There's extremists in every religion, and there's extremists all over the world," said Cahill's daughter, Kerry. "And I don't think that we can blanket a whole group of people when this man obviously was ill, I think."
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Fort Hood tragedy
Army Lt. Col. Charles Keller, his wife, Sylvie, and their children, Amber and Michael, arrive early for a candlelight prayer vigil Nov. 6, 2009, inside Hood Stadium at Fort Hood, Texas.
U.S. Army photo by Michael Heckman
My take on Fort Hood tragedy:
People in the U.S and in the world need to understand that there are close to 6 and 7 million American Muslims in the United States who regard America as their beloved homeland and would do nothing to harm their fellow citizens. The tragedy at Fort Hood was a single criminal act conducted by a mentally disturbed soldier who happened to be Muslim. He could've been of any other faith, like the guy who shot multiple people in Orlando just a few days back but no one is talking about his faith affiliation. We need to understand that in order for the United States to remain as the most diverse and the most open society in the world where most Muslims have more freedoms to practice their faith unlike any other so called Muslim country; we need to dissect religion from criminal acts. We need to treat criminal acts and behavior on their own merits and let the law decide the crime and produce appropriate punishments. I urge the citizens not to jump to conclusions and let the law take the necessary action instead of the citizens taking the law in their own hands by being too judgmental and ending up exactly like that murderer who took many innocent lives at Fort Hood. As a Muslim in America, I strongly condemn the heinous crimes that have been allegedly committed by Nidal Malik Hasan at Fort Hood in Texas and I urge everyone to pray for the fallen soldiers, may they rest in heaven and for their families who are going through one of the most difficult period of their life. May God give them strength, patience and perseverance.
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To learn more about peace loving and hard working American Muslims living in America please visit http://www.muslimsamerica.com and check out the 2nd season.
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Imran Siddiqui is a broadcast Journalist based out of Washington DC reporting for VOA News Urdu TV.
Nur Ali p2 seg5 English
Muslims America Season 2 - Nur Ali Driving Diversity part2 - Nur Ali is a Pakistani- American race car driver from Dallas Fort Worth in Texas. Nur is the first Asian American driver to compete on a national as well as a global scale. From Skip barber dodge southern series to ARCA Remax Series and to NASCAR, Nur is not only living his dream but is also an inspiration to young minority race car drivers in the U.S. In this 2nd part, we spoke to Nur about his family, his inspiration and his diverse team and also went to see him race in a local Formula 1 series in Decatur Texas where he had a terrible accident and his hundred thousand dollar race car totally burned down. Luckily, Nur came out of the accident unhurt but despite the obstacle, Nur is persistent to continue racing toward NASCARs victory lane.
Nur Ali p2 seg4 English
Muslims America Season 2 - Nur Ali Driving Diversity part2 - Nur Ali is a Pakistani- American race car driver from Dallas Fort Worth in Texas. Nur is the first Asian American driver to compete on a national as well as a global scale. From Skip barber dodge southern series to ARCA Remax Series and to NASCAR, Nur is not only living his dream but is also an inspiration to young minority race car drivers in the U.S. In this 2nd part, we spoke to Nur about his family, his inspiration and his diverse team and also went to see him race in a local Formula 1 series in Decatur Texas where he had a terrible accident and his hundred thousand dollar race car totally burned down. Luckily, Nur came out of the accident unhurt but despite the obstacle, Nur is persistent to continue racing toward NASCARs victory lane.
Nur Ali p2 Seg3 Urdu
آج کا یہ خصوصی شو مسلمز امریکا پر مشتمل ہے جِس میں ہم آپ کے لیےامریکہ میں رہنے والے مسلمانوں کا تعارفی خاکہ پیش کرتے رہے ہیں۔ پچھلے ہفتے ہم نے مسلمز امریکا کے سیزن 2 کی پہلی قسط میں آپ کی ملاقات کروائی نور علی سے ۔ایک پاکستانی امیریکن مسلمان ۔ جو ایک ریس کار ڈرائیور ہیں اور ان کے بقول امریکن ڈریم کو جی رہے ہیں۔۔۔۔۔ اور ہم نے یہ جاننے کی کوشش کی کے نور علی کا خواب کیا ہے اور نور علی اس کو حقیقت میں کیسے بدل رہے ہیں۔
آج کی قسط میں ہم نور علی سے مزید بات کریں گے کہ انھوں نے گاڑیوں کی ریس جیسا پر خطر کام ہی کیوں چنا اور ان کے والدین کا ردعمل کیا تھا اس بات پر ۔ بات کریں گے نور کے والدین اور بھائی سے کہ وہ نور کو کہاں دیکھتے ہیں اور خود نور اپنے مستقبل کے بارے میں کیا کہتے ہیں۔ اور وہ ان تمام نوجوانوں کو کیا پیغام دینا چاہتے ہیں جو انھیں دیکھ رہے ہیں۔
اس کے علاوہ ہم آپ کو لے چلیں گے نور علی کے ساتھ ان کے ریس ٹریک پر جہاں آپ دیکھ سکیں گے نور کس طرح اپنی جان کی بازی لگا کر اپنے خواب کو جی رہے ہیں۔
Nur Ali p2 seg3 English
Muslims America Season 2 - Nur Ali Driving Diversity part2 - Nur Ali is a Pakistani- American race car driver from Dallas Fort Worth in Texas. Nur is the first Asian American driver to compete on a national as well as a global scale. From Skip barber dodge southern series to ARCA Remax Series and to NASCAR, Nur is not only living his dream but is also an inspiration to young minority race car drivers in the U.S. In this 2nd part, we spoke to Nur about his family, his inspiration and his diverse team and also went to see him race in a local Formula 1 series in Decatur Texas where he had a terrible accident and his hundred thousand dollar race car totally burned down. Luckily, Nur came out of the accident unhurt but despite the obstacle, Nur is persistent to continue racing toward NASCARs victory lane.
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