On Wednesday the 7th of january 2015, I received a WhatsApp message from my friend in Canada asking me if I have heard of what has happened in Paris and that it is all over the news…. Well, I don’t usually follow the news much because I don’t believe in any of it, but I went on twitter and started to read all about #JeSuisCharlie … At first I felt terrified, disturbed, frustrated and sick to my stomach. As I continued to read, questions and thoughts started to come right through me: Is this ever going to stop? “this whole terrifying act of violence in the name of Islam” Where are they trying to go with this? “Who ever is plotting these ridiculous acts of terror to create more racism, violence and hate” Why would anyone kill for any reason what so ever? “We all grow up learning the same basics around the world, killing is not justified” Why would anyone kill in the name of religion, culture and race? “Seriously, why would millions of people be tagged along an act of one or more disturbed human being” Why is it always an international story against Islam as a religion when it is a Muslim behind an act of violence? “As if there are no violence, murder and rape stories happening everyday in Europe, the United Stated, China or Russia? by people, gangsters, Mafias or any other…” Why would a religious person get something as sacred as God and religion into an act of murder? “If you are very religious, you are in a temple, in a mosque, in a church, in a synagogue, God is so sacred to be mixed with blood and violence. Therefore those people who are acting like animals are no way part of any religion in any way possible.” Didn’t the world go through enough already? “Enough of hate, racism, segregation, and stereotype?”  And then right before I went to sleep last night, I read this article that truly disturbed me in every way possible. “In the wake of Charlie Hebdo, Free Speech Does Not Mean Freedom From Criticism” by Jacob Canfield. What disturbed me about his article, is how well written it is, how ugly the truth is and I couldn’t agree any better with him. I have never seen the cartoons published by Charlie Hebdo before, I heard about them, but I never really searched for them. And while I looked at them, all I was thinking is why would anyone be so racist? why would anyone be so anti-Islamic? and why would anyone offend any religion so publicly and in such humor? Where is the line of respect? Why is it even legal? I still believe that the act of murder is never to be justified, and I will always be against any type of violence. But why are those cartoons so cool, and why were they okay to be distributed and published? I repeat what Jacob Canfield wrote in his article: “The statement, “JE SUIS CHARLIE” works to erase and ignore the magazine’s history of xenophobia, racism, and homophobia. For us to truly honor the victims of a terrorist attack on free speech, we must not spread hateful racism blithely, and we should not take pride in extreme attacks on oppressed and marginalized peoples.”

This is part of the propaganda, It is always a Muslim who is acting like a terrorist, it is always an Arab, and it always turns into a soap opera. We must all fight together “including Muslims” for the rights of all victims, there is terror happening every day in Palestine, Syria, Iraq, and many other cities besides Paris. But for some reason, it is terror and an international story only when the media decides to make it go big. Every victim is a human being, and every human being deserves the freedom to live in peace. This fight should be against the act of violence, against creating racist generations, and against creating more segregation in the world of today.

I am an Arab, a woman, a Muslim and a very spiritual person. I meditate everyday, I do yoga every morning, I read at least 2 pages of Quran everyday, I read books for Oscar Wilde, Einstein, Rumi, Robert Green, Paulo Coelho, Jack Canfield and many more. I have Christian friends, Jewish, Atheist, Hindu, Buddhist, and people I have no idea what they practice or believe in. I don’t care, I don’t even ask what they believe in, religion is personal and when it is a topic, it is sometimes an interesting topic to discuss and explore, and if I have noticed any similarities they all call for Peace, Love, Acceptance, Sharing, Life, Kindness, Giving, Charity, Light, Meditating, Praying… And they all forbid the act of Violence in all manners what so ever.

Here is a little bit of something about my peaceful religion Islam for those of you who are anti-Islamic: 

And the people who believe in the Most Merciful “referring to God/Allah” are those who walk upon the earth easily, and when the ignorant address them [harshly], they say [words of] peace. (Quran Verse 25:63)

Say, [O believers], “We have believed in God/Allah and what has been revealed to us and what has been revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the Descendants and what was given to Moses and Jesus and what was given to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are Muslims believers of God.” (Quran Verse 2:136)

Say, “Do you argue with us about God/Allah while He is our Lord and your Lord? For us are our deeds, and for you are your deeds. And we are sincere [in deed and intention] to Him.” (Quran Verse 2:139)

Be kind, for whenever kindness becomes part of something, it beautifies it. Whenever it is taken from something, it leaves it tarnished. (Prophet Mohammad PBUH)

The best among you is the one who doesn’t harm others with his words and hands. (Prophet Mohammad PBUH)

I still believe that Love wins at the end. You can always read more about Islam by visiting Omar Suleiman, Rumi, My Post