We were recently overwhelmed by the news of Ahmad Mohammad, a student in Texas, who had invented a homemade clock and was very optimistic about getting recognition for his invention from his school. On the contrary, he was pulled out of class and was detained at the police station. The school and concerned officials reflected the clock as a bomb rather than a mere science project. After it was determined that the electronic device was not a bomb, the police announced that the teenager would not be charged.
The issue with Ahmad’s case was that he is a Muslim, and not only that, the addition of “Mohammad” to his name raised a serious concern for the Americans, who perceive Muslims as a threat and anything even a toy fabricated by a Muslim is considered a nightmare, a bomb or an alarming device.
A report by the UK-based newspaper The Guardian revealed that a lot of Muslim students want to switch to aerospace engineering, but parents have discouraged them because they believe that there is no future for them within that field due to them being Muslims.
In an interview conducted by the University of Birmingham alongside MAMA (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks), 20 British female Muslims who had been victims of discrimination stated that they have considered not wearing their hijab or headscarf after having been abused, pushed, ridiculed and humiliated.
Last week, Republican US presidential candidate Dr Ben Carson made a statement on whether or not a Muslim should become the president of America and whether Islam was consistent with the US constitution, which he firmly disagreed with.
The continuous discrimination against Muslims in the US is absolutely unjustified and unfair, particularly in a country, which ensures equal rights and civil liberties for all people living in the country.
— The reader is a Pakistani office manager based in Dubai