June 1995, Pages 16, 119

Special Report

Lessons From the Muslims' Trial by Fire

By Hasan Zillur Rahim

Within hours of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, hate calls and death threats began flowing into Islamic centers all across North America. "We will get you on Friday [during congregational prayers]" threatened one caller.

"We're sick and tired of your bombs and your religion," shouted a woman into the phone. "You'll die a horrible death. Get out of our country." "Go blow yourself up!" suggested another.

On the Internet news group, one user said: "We should get rid of all Muslims." Another wrote that the bombing was the "work of Middle Eastern-sponsored terrorist organizations to influence the outcome of the World Trade Center bombing trial in New York." And so on and so on.

The media began pointing its accusing finger at "terrorist Muslims" almost immediately. "Terrorism experts" were convinced of a Middle East connection.

Why? Because certain people of "Middle Eastern" appearance were seen in Oklahoma City and because the state is "rich in oil."

Oklahoma resident Ibrahim Ahmad, on his way to Jordan, was humiliated by British officials in London, and returned to the United States because he was a suspect. People threw trash on his lawn and spat at his wife.

Commentators saw so much similarity to the bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut and of the World Trade Center in New York that "an international connection was obvious." The signature of the bombing pointed "clearly" toward Middle East terrorists. The reason? The immense power of the bomb, and the fact that it was delivered in a car.

Muslim leaders and organizations were among the first to condemn the bombing unequivocally, throwing full support behind President Clinton's call for "swift, certain and severe" justice for those responsible.

"A criminal act such as this cannot be legitimized by any cause," declared the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a national Muslim organization based in Washington, DC. "Whoever is responsible for this crime must pay for it, regardless of their religious or ethnic backgrounds."

CAIR and other Muslim organizations appealed to the media to exercise restraint and to avoid fanning the flames of racial hatred with insensitive, irresponsible journalism. To his credit, President Clinton said much the same. "We should not stereotype anybody," he urged Americans. "This is not a question of anybody's country of origin. This is not a question of anybody's religion. This was murder, this was evil, this was wrong. Human beings everywhere, all over the world, will condemn this out of their own religious convictions."

Only after the FBI arrested 27-year-old Timothy McVeigh and a motive emerged, however, did the media gradually begin toning down its speculations. Even then, "terrorism experts" continued to warn that the full story wasn't yet known. "After all," they opined, "we do know what happened at the World Trade Center." The desire to believe in some shadowy foreign enemy was so strong that people were unwilling to acknowledge the enemy within.

Muslims must not allow themselves to be intimidated by bigotry.

It is frustrating, and frightening, for Muslims to have to go on the defensive anytime a terrorist act takes place anywhere, until the truth, with all its complexities, is revealed. An appeal has always to be made to the citizenry not to rush to judgment. We Muslims also have to repeat over and over that our religion forbids us to take a single innocent life, for if a person kills another innocent person, it is as if he has killed the entire humankind (Qur'an 5:32).

What causes people to demonize others? Is it the need for a visible enemy? Is it to project one's insecurity and prejudice on people one doesn't want to know or understand? Is it the need to feel superior? We don't know. What we do know is that Muslims must not allow themselves to be intimidated by bigotry. The worst thing we can do is sit still, feel sorry for ourselves and collect grievances. Instead, we must boldly contact the media and our elected representatives, insist on expressing our point of view, and demand that they not feed people's prejudice with inflammatory statements.

The Oklahoma City bombing was a trial by fire for American Muslims. There will probably be many more such trials in the future, but if we build on what we have learned in this one, namely, to speak out forcefully against bigotry and stereotyping, and to spread the tolerant message of Islam not only during a crisis but even more during peaceful times, perhaps our fellow Americans will not rush to judgment.

No Let-Up

It would be a mistake to think that those who tried to implicate Muslims this time will let up in their efforts. Steven Emerson, self-described "terrorism expert" and producer of the film "Jihad in America" that was broadcast over public television in November last year, chose to "help" the investigation along immediately after the bombing by suggesting that "Oklahoma City has been for the past decade a center for Islamic activity in the United States. It has also been the site of various Islamic conventions, including one in 1992 where 6,000 people cheered calls for killing Jews and infidels."

As Greg Noakes pointed out in his article "Criticism Without Context" (Washington Report, Jan./Feb. 1995), Muslims objected because they feared a backlash from his documentary alleging the existence of a Muslim "terror network" in the United States bent on waging "holy war" against this country. Emerson offered no convincing proof of his allegations. Worse, "the overwhelming majority of American Muslims who pray, fast, and give to charity to meet the obligations of their faith while working, studying and raising families like their non-Muslim neighbors, were nowhere to be found in Mr. Emerson's film."

The backlash materialized as predicted. Can Mr. Emerson honestly look into his soul and deny that his documentary and the inflammatory statements he made in the wake of the Oklahoma City tragedy did not endanger the lives of innocent American Muslims?

At the same time, we must keep in mind that many Americans who could not resist media sensationalism and "expert opinions" sincerely regret unfairly suspecting Muslims as the perpetrators of the crime in Oklahoma City. Perhaps they will not be so easily manipulated next time. Perhaps too, if the violence on television isn't enough to keep people away from that "vast wasteland," the lies, falsehoods, shallow instant analysis of "experts," and the suffocating weight of unsubstantiated allegations will.

One by-product of the Oklahoma City bombing is a renewed call for swift passage of the Omnibus Counterterrorism Act of 1995 by Congress. Civil liberties groups passionately object to the legislation, saying it will violate some of the most fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, including the right to free association, the right to due process of law and the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty in an open court of law.

Representative Henry Hyde (R-IL), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said he will propose additional measures, such as placing greater restrictions on issuing visas to foreign citizens. Rep. Charles Schumer (D-NY), the chief Democratic sponsor of the bill and one of Israel's most indefatigable congressional apologists, said that "after this horrible attack, I think this bill will move like lightning through Congress."

That would be a mistake. Civil liberties, the right to practice one's faith, and due process of law have shaped American society and are at the core of its liberty. Whenever these principles were sacrificed, America paid a terrible moral price, as in the internment of Japanese-American citizens during World War II and in Senator Joseph McCarthy's witch-hunts in the 1950s. New York Times columnist Anthony Lewis put the proposed legislation in perspective: "The worst thing this country could do after Oklahoma City is to panic into measures that would injure our society, making it less free and less fair. That would give terrorism a victory." Equally insightful is Benjamin Franklin's comment more than two centuries ago: "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."

The deaths of so many innocent people in Oklahoma City have shaken us all to the core. Who can ever forget the televised scenes of carnage, or remain unmoved by such tragedy? Those dead children could just as well have been our children, those men and women our parents or siblings. As we reaffirm our commitment to peace and justice, we pray to God to give strength to the survivors and their families and to bless those who lost their lives with eternal peace.

Hassan Zillur Rahim is editor of the quarterly magazine IQRA, published in San Jose, CA.