# U.S. Muslims protesting against terrorism? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 6, 2005, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329 "2005-09-06T13:28:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/1 "2005-09-06T13:28:52Z")
Does anyone have a cite for U.S. muslims protesting against extremist violence? I looked in Google and all I saw was muslims protesting against desecration of the Q’aran. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/2 "2005-09-06T13:59:00Z")
You might want to offer up a prayer (to Allah, natch ;)) for more powerful Google-fu. A search on “Muslims against terrorism” yields, among other things: [Muslims Against Terrorism (Islam for Today)](http://www.islamfortoday.com/terrorism.htm) [Free Muslims Against Terror](http://www.freemuslims.org/) [May 14, 2005 March Against Terror led by Muslims/Middle Easterners](http://www.freemuslims.org/march/) [Muslims Against Terrorism](http://www.m-a-t.org/) (another one, founded in 1999) [Muslims Against Terrorism](http://www.rayhawk.com/classics/matusa/home.html) (yet another one, founded after 9/11) Are you specifically looking for examples of American Muslims actually taking to the streets to protest terrorism? Wouldn’t that be kind of like marching against child molestation or mass murder? I.e., fairly redundant and pointless? After all, public demonstrations and protests are usually undertaken to influence public opinion and/or governmental policy on a controversial issue. But the vastly overwhelming majority of Americans, Muslim and otherwise, public servants and private citizens alike, are **already** strongly opposed to things like child molestation, mass murder, and terrorism. The very few people in this country who actually **support** terrorism are almost universally (a) keeping very quiet about their views, and (b) impervious to expressions of public opinion disagreeing with them. They already know that most people oppose terrorism. Personally, I’d say that organizations like the ones linked above should be focusing on promoting an anti-violence Islamic ideology to counteract militant Islamist extremism—which is exactly what they seem to be doing. Organizing public demonstrations to protest terror (at least in the solidly anti-terror USA) is, IMHO, a waste of time and resources. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/3 "2005-09-06T14:46:50Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > You might want to offer up a prayer (to Allah, natch ;)) for more powerful Google-fu. A search on “Muslims against terrorism” yields, among other things: > > [Muslims Against Terrorism (Islam for Today)](http://www.islamfortoday.com/terrorism.htm) > > [Free Muslims Against Terror](http://www.freemuslims.org/) > > [May 14, 2005 March Against Terror led by Muslims/Middle Easterners](http://www.freemuslims.org/march/) > > [Muslims Against Terrorism](http://www.m-a-t.org/) (another one, founded in 1999) > > [Muslims Against Terrorism](http://www.rayhawk.com/classics/matusa/home.html) (yet another one, founded after 9/11) > > Are you specifically looking for examples of American Muslims actually taking to the streets to protest terrorism? Wouldn’t that be kind of like marching against child molestation or mass murder? I.e., fairly redundant and pointless? > > After all, public demonstrations and protests are usually undertaken to influence public opinion and/or governmental policy on a controversial issue. But the vastly overwhelming majority of Americans, Muslim and otherwise, public servants and private citizens alike, are **already** strongly opposed to things like child molestation, mass murder, and terrorism. > > The very few people in this country who actually **support** terrorism are almost universally (a) keeping very quiet about their views, and (b) impervious to expressions of public opinion disagreeing with them. They already know that most people oppose terrorism. > > Personally, I’d say that organizations like the ones linked above should be focusing on promoting an anti-violence Islamic ideology to counteract militant Islamist extremism—which is exactly what they seem to be doing. Organizing public demonstrations to protest terror (at least in the solidly anti-terror USA) is, IMHO, a waste of time and resources. I’m having an argument with a redneck relative who wants to see if muslims have taken to the streets in protest of the extremist attitudes against the U.S. In my opinion, they’d have to be crazy to assemble anywhere in this political climate anyway, seeing as it could be very dangerous. My relative thinks that there are no peaceful muslims, and that they should all be forced to wear a “scarlet letter” so we can identify them while boarding busses and planes. I told him that there are plenty of websites he could glean a hint of knowledge from but he won’t be happy until all 3.6% of the Illinois muslims march down his street in protest of the extremism that is cultivated in some Middle East countries. What fucking ever. Yeah, he’s not too bright, but he’s family. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/4 "2005-09-06T16:13:43Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > . . .a redneck relative. . .thinks that there are no peaceful muslims Yeah, I think there are no peaceful rednecks. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Catalyst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@Catalyst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catalyst)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/5 "2005-09-06T17:38:01Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > My relative thinks that there are no peaceful muslims, and that they should all be forced to wear a “scarlet letter” so we can identify them while boarding busses and planes. Hey, if it was a good idea in the '30s, it’s a good idea now. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/6 "2005-09-06T17:51:51Z")
Well, besides the small May 2005 march in Washington linked to above, there have been various anti-terror demonstrations by Muslims **outside** the US: In [Germany](http://www.byegm.gov.tr/YAYINLARIMIZ/CHR/ING2004/11/04x11x22.HTM#%207), organized by the Turkish-Islamic Union (25,000 protesters, both “native” Germans and Turkish Muslim immigrants) In [Spain](http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/display.article?id=5430), on the first anniversary of the Madrid bombings (again, Muslim and non-Muslim Spaniards together; photo shows Muslim women with banner) In [Qatar](http://www.muhajabah.com/islamicblog/archives/veiled4allah/010481.php) this spring: > [@](#): > > Carrying slogans such as “Hurting Muslims or non Muslims is against Islam”, “Terrorism is destruction”, and “No to violence”, the demonstrators condemned the attack and acts of violence. > > Ghanim Al-Kuwari, Executive Secretary of the Central Municipal Council, told [Aljazeera.net](http://Aljazeera.net) that the rally aimed to denounce terrorism and to prove to the world that the Qatari people and government are united. He estimated the demonstration was attended by between 2000 and 3000 people. Oh, and there’s also the [fatwa against terrorism](http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/007409.php) issued this summer by the Fiqh (Muslim religious) Council of North America. It doesn’t sound as though your relative is particularly accessible to evidence and reason, though, if he’s willing to assert flat-out that “there are no peaceful Muslims”. Your only hope is probably to expose him to an actual Muslim community so he can see for himself that there are. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/7 "2005-09-06T20:14:32Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > It doesn’t sound as though your relative is particularly accessible to evidence and reason, though, if he’s willing to assert flat-out that “there are no peaceful Muslims”. Your only hope is probably to expose him to an actual Muslim community so he can see for himself that there are. He’d rather eat his own young. We had a heated e-mail exchange (I was cool with a Dope-like exchange and it derailed into a name-calling session, with each email ending in “I love you man!”, but after the last one I sent him, I haven’t heard back. Not sure if that’s due to time constraints before his trip out of town or that I’m on the permanent family shit list (his daughter said, "whatever my dad says, I agree with him). I’m up against a whole lot of rednecks over there. Other than this, I get along great with all of them. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2005, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/8 "2005-09-06T22:58:22Z")
Dunno about US Muslims, but the last time I walked down Cornmarket Street (the main shopping street in Oxford) there was a bunch of UK Muslims standing behind signs that read “Islam Condemns Terrorism” … I don’t know many Muslims, but all the ones I _do_ know feel the same way. Anecdotal evidence? I suppose it’s a little better than none. ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2005, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-muslims-protesting-against-terrorism/320329/9 "2005-09-07T02:54:31Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Yeah, I think there are no peaceful rednecks. :rolleyes: If rednecks take the streets to protest against violence, will you begin to consider that they might be a “culture of peace”? 😛