With the Name Allah, the Merciful Benefactor, the

Merciful Redeemer, Peace Be Upon You All.

I stand before you as a member of the Muslim
Community of Plainfield and especially that of
Masjidullah, the oldest Muslim community in
Plainfield, established in 1970.
To the families of those innocent souls senselessly
murdered in Orlando, Florida, we offer and extend our
deepest and most sincere condolences and prayers
that Allah, who we know as G-D, will grant you relief of
your pain, your suffering and your grief.
To those victims that were injured in that insane act,
and to their families, we pray for your full and
complete recovery.
To those innocent souls that were murdered, we offer
our prayers that Allah forgive them of their sins and
grant them His Paradise or Heaven.
Not only is June the Month of LGBT Pride for the LGBT
Community, it is also the Month of Ramadan Fasting
for the worlds 1.6 Billion Muslims . . . a month of
charity, introspection and self-purification.
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As Muslims, who live in the 21st century, we stand for a

respectful, merciful and inclusive interpretation of AlIslam. We are in a battle for the soul of Al-Islam, and
an Islamic renewal must defeat the ideology of
Islamism or politicized Islam. We seek to reclaim the
progressive spirit with which Islam was born in the 7th
century to fast forward it into the 21st century. We
support the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
which was adopted by the United Nations member
states in 1948.
We reject interpretations of Al-Islam that call for any
violence, social injustice and politicized Islam. We
invite our fellow Muslims and neighbors to join us.
We reject bigotry, oppression and violence against all
people based on any prejudice, including ethnicity,
gender, language, belief, religion, sexual orientation
and gender expression. As the Prophet Mohammed
told us in his last sermon,
. . . All of mankind is from Adam and Eve, an
Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a
non-Arab over an Arab; also a White has no
superiority over a Black nor a Black over a
White except by piety and good action.
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All human beings are born free and equal in dignity

and rights. Muslims dont have an exclusive right or
monopoly to Heaven.
Our Ummahour communityis not just Muslims,
but all of humanity.
The religion of Al-Islam is against terrorism and does
not condone or provide any justification, whatsoever,
for such despicable acts. There is no cause or injustice
done to anyone that can ever justify killing innocent
human beings.
The Orlando shooter, Omar Mateen, was a lone wolf
shooter, who does not represent Islam or Muslims in
any sense. He was a mentally unstable person
conflicted by his own sexual identification. That
mental instability led to his horrific acts of violence
against an LGBT community of innocent victims.
The criminal acts done in the name of Islam to terrify a
person or group of people are an affront to the core
beliefs of Islam we American Muslims hold in high
regard. I am compelled to state that it is an egregious
offence against the culture and laws of America as
well as Al-Islams to place collective guilt on an
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entire community for the sins of individuals. No soul

bears the sins of another, says the Quran. As Muslims
living under the Constitution of these United States,
we respect all the rights granted to us and our
neighbors living here in America regardless of their
creed, nationality or sexual identity. This is how the
majority of Muslims in America live our faith, not
denying any other citizen of this nation. This is how
we vow to live as long as we are citizens in this
beloved nation.
That being said, Im also a retired sworn law
enforcement officer of this great city of Plainfield,
having served for thirty years retiring as a Captain.
Im also an Instructor at the John Stamler Police
Academy. As such I am fully aware of how both law
enforcement and the media have a tendency to label
criminal acts for public support and media ratings.
The same goes for some of our national politicians
who have consistently called for any criminal act of
murder by a so-called Muslim to be labeled as an act
of Islamic Terrorism.

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The FBI's understanding of what constitutes

"terrorism" has much less to do with how it views the
circumstances of an attack and much more to do with
whether or not the facts of the case meet the very
specific legal criteria used to prosecute someone on
terrorism charges
Politicians, however, often apply the word
"terrorism" to the actions of individuals and groups
they see as opponents and enemies in order to
delegitimize and demonize them, to incite fear and
convince a population to support controversial
government actions, and to garner support by
promoting an Us-versus-Them narrative.
So in closing let me cite some facts about mass
shootings in the United States in 2015:
There were 53,030 gun violence incidents; of
them, 330 were mass shootings; their causations were:
96 Bar/Club/Party incidents
83 Gang/Drive by shootings
68 Domestic Disputes
54 Lone Wolf/Unknown Motive
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12 Armed Robberies/Home Invasions

11 Drugs Related
6 Terrorist/Hate Crimes
2 Perpetrated by Islamic Terrorist
Let me say again, there is no cause or injustice done to
anyone that can ever justify killing innocent human
beings. However, the media likes to keep score, so
USA Today used misinformation for political
purposes, labeling the Orlando shooting as the
deadliest in US History. Well, here are the facts:
US Top Ten since 1984:
2013 Navy Yard, Washington, DC
12 Killed/3 Injured
2012 Aurora, CO

12 Killed/70 Injured

2009 Binghamton, NY

13 Killed/4 Injured

2009 Ft. Hood, TX

13 Killed/32 Injured

1986 Edmond, OK

14 Killed/6 Injured

2015 San Bernardino

14 Killed/21 Injured

1984 San Ysidro, CA

21 Killed/19 Injured
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2012 Newtown, Conn

27 Killed/1 Injured

2007 Blacksburg, VA

32 Killed/17 Injured

2016 Orlando, FL

50 Killed/53 Injured

1995 Oklahoma City

168 Killed (Including 19

Children)

If the media really told the truth, these would be at the

top: Lets Not Forget . . .
East St. Louis Massacre 1917

200-700 Killed

Arkansas Massacre 1919

854 Killed

Tulsa Massacre 1921

300-3000 Killed

Rosewood Massacre 1923

150 Killed

These people were not killed by a mentally sick lone

wolf or Islamic Terrorist. And they were not LGBT.
They were African Americans.
Again, the Muslims in Plainfield extend our
condolences to the families of those murdered in cold
blood. We Muslims who recognize the law of these
United States and its Constitution vow to work in the
best interest of this nation and its entire people.
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In a prayer that is said 17 times a day by 1.6 billion

Muslims daily, for a total of 27,200,000,000 times . . .
SURA 1. Fatiha, or the Opening Chapter
1. In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
2. Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds;
3. Most Gracious, Most Merciful;
4. Master of the Day of Judgment.
5. Thee do we worship, and Thine aid we seek.
6. Show us the straight way,
7. The way of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy Grace,
those whose [portion] is not wrath, and who go not astray.

May Allah keep this Nation safe, and its citizens, and to
protect the Muslims and LGBT Communities of
Orlando and throughout America from any harm by
Allahs permission.
Ameen.

Sources:
ICNA Joint Muslim Statement; www.icna.org/
Ahmed Burhani Statement; www.facebook.com/jerseymuslims?fref=ts
NJ.COM: NJ Muslim leaders strongly condemn
terrorists attacks in Paris, November 17,
2015; www.nj.com/middlesex/
Muslim Reform Movement Statement December 6,
2015; www.gatestoneinstitute.org.
www.islamicity.com/mosque/lastserm.htm
https://scontent.fewr1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/

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