OPINION: It's wrong to run letters that question Islamic minority

As a proud member of a military family — two of my uncles are proud U.S. Army veterans, formerly stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington, and Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and my brother-in-law a proud U.S. Navy veteran, formerly stationed active duty in Naval Station Pearl Harbor, Hawaii — and as a practicing Muslim, I am writing to express my deep concern about your choice to publish a bigoted, ill-informed and highly inflammatory opinion piece. This article, “Real Muslims won’t really assimilate?” was published in the Daily Inter Lake on April 19.

Has the Daily Inter Lake chosen, in the past, to publish opinion articles that mention stereotypes about other American minorities, such as the American Jewish community or the African-American community? If so, please provide examples.

Furthermore, have editors of the Daily Inter Lake chosen to publish opinion articles that examine the behaviors and crimes and offenses committed specifically by one American religious minority, such as the American Jewish community, with acts of violence? If not, we can only assume that editors at the Daily Inter Lake do not apply the same standards of decency to discussion about Islam and Muslims that they apply to members of other American minorities such as the American Jewish community or the African-American community.

You might be aware that according to research conducted by University of Hawaii, University of Exeter and National Hispanic Media Coalition, media content can incite hate and prejudice against minority groups. When hate speech and conspiracy theories against an American minority are constantly spread publicly and go unchallenged, they foster an atmosphere that causes hate crimes. Accurate language can inform readers, while loaded language misleads readers and fuels hate and prejudice.

The words that the Daily Inter Lake chose to publish are the same words used by perpetrators of hate crimes against law-abiding American Muslim children and families who are loyal U.S. citizens.  Defamatory attacks chosen for publishing can result in attacks on everyday Americans who are Muslim or perceived as Muslim.

Never before in the history of our nation, have violent, anti-Muslim hate crimes been as high in number as in 2015. Never before have the attacks against Americans, both Muslims and those perceived to be Muslim, been as violent as they are today. Throughout 2015, CAIR offices around the country received at least two to three reports of hate crimes or bullying of children every single day. Last December, a man in Grand Rapids, Michigan was shot in the face by someone who assumed that he was Muslim. In New York, a middle-school-aged Muslim girl was attacked by three classmates who allegedly called her “ISIS.”

Opinion editors should distinguish between opposing viewpoints and defamatory rhetoric, which misinforms the public and fuels prejudice. I ask that you apply the same standards when considering whether to publish opinion pieces targeting American Muslims that you would exercise when considering whether to publish pieces targeting American Jews or African-Americans.

You should know that the opinion article the Daily Inter Lake editors chose to publish, which has likely been seen by hundreds of readers, jeopardizes the safety of Americans who are Muslim or who are perceived as Muslim. I am sure that the Daily Inter Lake editors do not intend to fuel hate and prejudice toward American Muslims, and those perceived as Muslim, but that is the result.

American Muslims uphold the Constitution and the laws of the United States, and share the same American values and freedoms that we all cherish, knowing that we are all in this together. American Muslims believe in the right and freedom of all U.S. citizens to live and worship in their own way, and they deserve to practice their faith in return.

I expect to see more responsible journalism from the Daily Inter Lake.

Arsalan Bukhari, of Seattle, is executive director of the Washington state branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

(EDITOR’S NOTE: The Inter Lake’s Opinion Page provides an open forum for all opinion on topics of general interest. The Syrian refugee resettlement program is a topic of both general national interest and local interest as a result of the plan to settle refugees in communities such as Missoula, Montana. The question of whether or not those refugees will assimilate, as some argue, or be a danger to the community, as others argue, is a topic of general interest. We are happy to publish opinions on both sides of the argument including this one.)