Why Muslims Don’t Have to Prove to You (Or Anyone Else) That We’re ‘Good’ People

January 27, 2016 / Maha Hilal

“I don’t need to prove to you that I am a non-violent Muslim American.”

In today’s political climate, there’s a lot of pressure on Muslim Americans to condemn acts of terrorism and reassure people who aren’t Muslim that not all followers of Islam are violent.

But if you think about it, this expectation is pretty absurd. After all, the majority of domestic terrorist acts in the US are committed by white Christians and other white non-Muslims, and we don’t expect all white Christians to apologize for them.

For a smart counter-narrative, check out what Dr. Maha Hilal, Executive Director of the National Coalition to Protect Civil Freedoms (NCPCF), had to say at the December 2015 “Say No Trump” Rally in New York City.

Let’s reject these oppressive expectations and anti-Muslim lies.

With Love,
The Editors at Everyday Feminism

Click for the Transcript

I don’t have to tell Trump I went to an American University, actually American University, and got my PhD. I don’t have to stand here and convince him that I deserve to be here.

He has to convince me why he deserves to be here.

And I’m not going to take responsibility for the actions of other Muslims. As much as this nation and Donald Trump and all the politicians in this country want us to condemn acts of terrorism perpetrated by other Muslims, that is not my responsibility!

I do not have the responsibility as an individual who condoned the actions just because I have a shared identity. This imposition is not placed upon white people. When white people commit crimes, as we all know, they are held individually responsible.

But Muslims have to stand here and say, “I condemn this. I condemn that. ISIS is like this. We’re not like that.” No! I’m not going to stand here and do that. I don’t need to prove to you what kind of American I am. I don’t need to prove to you that I am a non-violent Muslim American. I don’t need to do that and I won’t do that.

I’m sorry that Muslims feel like they need to do that at this point in time, but that is ridiculous and absurd. And if we want to defeat the dominant narrative that positions Muslims – the entire 1.2 billion Muslims – as terrorists, the only way we’re going to do that is to create a real counter-narrative.

A counter-narrative that does not just negate the dominant narrative that says we’re all terrorists. A counter-narrative that allows us to exist as a Muslim community defined by ourselves – not defined by white supremacy!

So I want to be clear today that I am a Muslim. Okay? I am a Muslim and I stand for myself. I am responsible for my own actions. And the only actions I will take responsibility for are this country’s because I pay taxes.

If there’s anything I’ve done wrong, it’s that I’ve paid taxes to this country to go around the world and perpetrate massive acts of violence. State violence with my tax dollars! That is the only thing I’m going to stand here today and take responsibility for.

Thank you!

To learn more about this topic, check out:

[do_widget id=’text-101′]

Dr. Maha Hilal is the Deputy Director of the National Coalition to Protect Civil Freedoms. You can find out more about the Coalition via their Twitter @ncpcf.