For US Muslims, Osama bin Laden death a 'relief.' Next: 'Kill the ideology.

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American Muslims say they hope that the death of Osama bin Laden will 'lower the
temperature' and end the association of Islam with terrorism.
Temp Headline Image
American Muslims respond to the death of Osama bin Laden at the offices of CAIR
(Council on American-Islamic Relations) in Southfield, Mich., on Monday, May 2.
From left: Abdullah Bey El-Amin, an imam; Victor Begg, spokesman for the Council
of Islamic Organizations of Michigan; Dawud Walid, executive director of CAIR M
ichigan; Imam Abdullatif Azom; Imam Mohammad Mardini.
(David Coates / The Detroit News / AP)
By Mark Guarino, Staff writer
posted May 2, 2011 at 3:22 pm EDT
Chicago
American Muslims, like their non-Muslim peers, are welcoming the news that Osama
bin Laden was killed Sunday. Many Muslims add that even though the death of the
Al Qaeda leader is a positive step in fighting global terrorism, the greater ch
allenge is ending the hateful dogma Mr. bin Laden represented – a dogma that many
saw as a gross distortion of their faith.
Bin Laden’s ideologies created “an albatross around the practitioners of Islam, incl
uding American Muslims,” which is why his death prompts a collective "sigh of reli
ef,” says Madhi Bray, spokesperson for the Muslim American Society, a civil libert
ies organization based in Washington, DC.
“You have the kill to ideology that has supported Al Qaeda. That’s going to be the g
reat mission, to fight intolerance and the lack of sensitivity among people,” Mr.
Bray says.
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American Muslims feel under attack
Since 9/11, Muslims living in the US have faced bigotry on many levels, includin
g having to justify their religious faith to non-believers. Many recount the day
s before Al Qaeda and bin Laden became household names, when Muslims could pract
ice their faith quietly and mosques could open without protest.
But since the escalation of the war on terrorism, American Muslims continue to f
ace what they say amounts to discrimination, ranging from a proposed ban on prac
ticing sharia – currently moving through the Tennessee legislature and passed last
year in Oklahoma – to what Ihsan Bagby, a professor of Islamic studies at the Uni
versity of Kentucky in Lexington, describes as “hateful looks.”
“Muslims in America feel under attack,” says Professor Bagby, who hopes that bin Lad
en s death “will help lower the temperature and allow people to think more rationa
lly and to understand that Muslims in general are unfairly being associated with
terrorism.”
In his speech late Sunday that announced bin Laden’s death, President Obama paused
to reiterate a point made repeatedly by President Bush in the wake of 9/11: “The
United States is not, and never will be, at war with Islam.” Mr. Obama called bin
Laden “a mass murder of Muslims” and “not a Muslim leader,” adding, “his demise should be
welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.”
Osama bin Laden never represented Muslims
The distinction was reiterated by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAI
R), a Muslim advocacy organization in Washington, DC, which said early Monday it
joined American Muslims “in welcoming the announcement” that bin Laden “has been elim
inated as a threat to our nation and the world.”
“As we have stated repeatedly since the 9/11 terror attacks, bin Laden never repre
sented Muslims or Islam. In fact, in addition to the killing of thousands of Ame
ricans, he and Al Qaeda caused the deaths of countless Muslims worldwide,” said CA
IR in a statement.
Bin Laden’s actions were so vilified by American Muslim organizations that many di
d not even consider him a member of their faith. “I personally would not consider
him a Muslim,” said Victor Begg, spokesman for the Council of Islamic Organization
s of Michigan, located in Warren.
In a news conference held early Monday, Mr. Begg referred to bin Laden as “a murde
rer” whose directives and philosophies “were not Islamic.”
Some American Muslims say the successful end to the 10-year manhunt should serve
as a wake-up call to followers who might consider taking up bin Laden s fight.
“We are hopeful that the message was heard loud and clear, that if any Americans o
r allies are targeted by terrorism, our country will hunt you down and bring you
to justice – no matter how long it takes,” says Najee Ali, director of Project Isla
mic HOPE (Helping Oppressed People Everywhere), an advocacy organization in Los
Angeles.
Bambade Shakoor-Abdullah, director of the Chicago Metropolitan Educational Cente
r for Community Advancement, says bin Laden’s plan for the 9/11 attacks – and the ac
tions of his followers that day – violated several core components of Islamic law,
or sharia. That pits the terrorists fundamentally in opposition to Islam – much a
s the Ku Klux Klan would never represent Christianity, despite borrowing Christi
an symbolism like the cross.
Bin Laden and Al Qaeda "need to be seen as who they are,” says Ms. Shakoor-Abdulla
h, adding that she hopes his death will help close the perceived divide between
American Muslims and their non-believer peers.
“We want justice to be served so we can begin to be healed as a nation,” she says. “Be
cause we are one nation.”
With Dan Wood reporting from Los Angeles.
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