The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks by remembering the men, women and children who were murdered by Al-Qaeda, calling on American leaders to renew the spirit of unity that existed immediately after the attacks, and speaking out against renewed attempts to exploit the memory of 9/11 to create hate and division.
CAIR also honored the memories of the 60 American Muslims and Muslim immigrants who were killed on 9/11, including paramedic and NYPD cadet Mohammad Salman Hamdani and New Jersey Muslim community pioneer Tariq Amanullah.
In its statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:
“In the immediate aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attack on our nation 25 years ago, Americans united like we never had before and like we rarely have since then.
“We gave billions in charity. We donated massive amounts of blood. We stood with impacted families and survivors. We put aside our political infighting. And contrary to what many assume, most people did not countenance hatred against American Muslims.
“President Bush visited the historic mosque inaugurated by President Eisenhower and denounced hate crimes against Muslims and people perceived to be Muslim, including a Sikh man killed by a white supremacist days after the attack. Many other Americans also visited mosques to build bridges, ask questions, and learn about Islam directly from their Muslim neighbors. American Muslims made it clear that Al-Qaeda did not represent Islam any more than the KKK represented Christianity, and that no political grievance with American foreign policy or warped interpretation of Islam could justify these horrific acts of terrorism.
“In the years since 9/11, the spirit of unity our nation experienced has dissipated. The trauma we all felt after the attacks was exploited to erode civil liberties, justify torture, normalize illegal discrimination, empower hate groups and launch forever wars across the Middle East that killed thousands of American soldiers and hundreds of thousands of men, women and children in numerous countries.
“Today, bad actors are once again exploiting the 9/11 attacks to score political points, incite discrimination, and justify forever wars overseas. We cannot let these resurgent voices of division, hate and violence succeed. We must instead embrace the spirit of unity that bonded all of us together 25 years ago and stand up for the universal value of human life, anywhere and everywhere.
“On this 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, we remember the 2,977 men, women and children who were murdered by Al-Qaeda on that day. We remember the first responders, volunteers, and others who were injured while saving lives that day. We remember the over 5,000 people who have lost their lives to cancer and other health-related illnesses since that day. We remember Sikh-American Balbir Singh Sodhi and others who were injured or murdered in hate crimes in the wake of that day. And we remember the untold number of civilians in countries around the world whose lives were stolen in the months and years after that terrible day.
“May God comfort the families of those we lost on and after September 11th, 2001, and may God bless our nation and the world with peace and justice.”
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, [email protected]; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, [email protected]