Proud to Be An [Mulsim?] American

So November 11, or yesterday, was Veteran's Day. Veteran's Day equals a day off from school, grand parades around town, and great food and of course honoring members in our armed forces  but this holiday is a little more complex for Muslim Americans.

Nashiha Alam, a junior at Loyola University Chicago, was sitting in a coffee shop right outside campus when she was confronted by a mangled man. Nashiha, a Bangladeshi American who wears a hijab, was a target of derogatory remarks by a man who allegedly claimed he was a veteran by uttering that he "served to long for this sh*t." According to Nashiha via Facebook post, the man caressed her headscarf to which she winced at the violation. To make matters worse, Nashiha reports that no one in the coffee shop intervened or tried defending her. The desensitization of those around her shook her to the core, and was the perfect reminder of the War on Terror.

I'm writing this as my heart is still racing, and my emotions are still raw. I just felt the need to write it all out...
Posted by Nash on Sunday, November 8, 2015

The War on Terror is a phrase has been tossed around for over a decade. At first glance it seems like a cause to rally behind-- the United States in fighting terrorists to end terrorism for everyone, all around the world. But in reality, it has helped cause a spike in radical extremism both by the Islamic militants in the Middle East and the Evangelical far right in America. It has resulted in the torture of many Americans simply for their association and belief in Islam, unlawful detainments, spying on Muslims across the world, and a constant stream of hate crimes against Muslims.  While it is shocking to some, several veterans-- who served in the Middle East-- are aware of the hysteria that comes with the War on Terror and share similar sentiments as Nashiha and wars of the desensitizing effects of wartime propaganda.

As we head into the 2016 presidential election, the way we handle Veteran's Day should be approached from a different angle and do a better job of protecting young U.S. soldiers by pressuring lawmakers to scale back our country's involvement abroad. Then these incidents like the interaction with Nashiha can become less frequent, and we can begin to focus more on healing our service members and citizens-- all of them, including Muslim Americans.