Breaking Down Stereotypes

1. "All Muslims are terrorists or sympathizers."

2. The source of this stereotype in America and generally in the rest of the Western World:

"The religion of Islam is not a religion of hatred and violence, but a religion of respect for all humans and God. This is the true Islam, the religion of equality, morality, and faith. The two major branches in Islam are the Sunni branch and the Shi’a. The Sunni Muslims make up a total of 80% of the Muslim population and they do adhere to the rules and regulations that have been explained. The Shi’a Muslims are a minority and the more radical branch of Islam. Unlike Sunni’s, Shi’a Muslims put much priority on jihad (to struggle and fight through and for Islam). Their interpretation of jihad permits them to be violent and sometimes harmful towards non-Muslims and some Muslims. Martyrs are also very much honored by Shi’a Muslims, mostly because Shi’as have a strong support for Ali, who was a martyr and Muhammad’s son-in-law. This strong belief in fighting for religion promotes much of the radicalism among Shi’a Muslims. Though they are a minority, Shi'a Muslims change other people's understanding of Sunni Muslims. Muslim immigration into America began in the 1960’s with a small population and became more evident as more Muslims immigrated to the U.S. Many Muslims immigrated for economic opportunities, education, and to escape wars, civil wars, and revolutions in the Islamic world. Non-Muslims were very welcoming towards the new Muslims and accepted their culture and way of life. Muslims had also added more diversity and culture to the American society and lived successfully in their new lives. Mosques and Islamic schools were opened, and Islam began to be an integral part of American life. However events like Jimmy Carter’s failure with Iran in 1979 and September 11th, 2001 have portrayed Islam negatively. Many non-Muslims began to wonder if Islam was truly a religion of peace. ...These minor misunderstanding slowly turned into serious hate crimes towards Muslims. Mosques and Islamic centers had been attacked and even torn down by angry non-Muslims. Muslims in the western world were persecuted physically and mentally because of the portrayal of Islam as a corrupt and antagonistic belief. Muslims have been usually considered as top suspects for terrorism in the western world. An example of this would be the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995 (Encyclopedia Britannica). Before investigators discovered that Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols were responsible for the attack, it was initially believed that the attack was organized by a group of Muslim terrorists. This information was displayed on several national television networks. Eventually, it was proven that the terrorist group was not involved with the bombings. Islam teaches Muslims to not support any Islamic terrorist in any way.Islam does not permit the murder of innocent people." (Hossain, Religious Tolerance).

Also, it is stated in the Quran, 

"Fight in the cause of God against those who fight you, but do not transgress limits. God does not love transgressors."

3. Science cannot prove this stereotype; there is no scientific proof that even remotely makes sense. Logically, if people were to look at the facts and actually attempt to understand Islam as a religion instead of basing it off of stereotypes, word of mouth etc. then this stereotype would probably not be as present as it currently is today in the United States and many other countries. The stereotype can be broken down into a component of a misunderstanding of culture and history; it is based off of a past of warfare and one more radical group of Islam, the Shi’a Muslims, have been generalized as "all of Islam". 

4. My direct experience proves to me the fictitiousness of this stereotype. To assume that all Muslims are terrorists or sympathizers is an uneducated, unfair thing to do, and I have countless personal experiences and I have met amazing people who are Muslims who have even further proved this to me.

5. All Muslims are not terrorists, nor are they all sympathizers. 

Citation

Hossain, Semonti. "Islam Behind the Stereotypes." Religious Tolerance. 25 July 2004.

"Oklahoma City Bombing." Encyclopedia Britannica. 2003 edition. Web. 20 Sept. 2011.