If I told you that 10,000 Muslims and guests gathered in a town in Pennsylvania to celebrate peace and to share an olive branch with their neighbors, would you hold it to be true? Or would you fear the unknown?
The Ahmadiyya Muslim community held its annual convention, the USA Jalsa Salana 2019, at the Pennsylvania Farmshow complex in Harrisburg July 12-14. So close to the Fourth of July, it is a blessing of the many freedoms we enjoy in the United States — a freedom that comes at no cost, but guarantees justice for all.
According to the Pew Research Center, 62% of Americans have never met a Muslim — a fact that has caused many to develop fear of the unknown. Integration is vital, segregation is not. It is time we bring down the walls of hatred and embrace a culture of pluralism.
The healing starts right here.
Nayyar Ahmed
Monroeville
The writer is an assistant professor of biology at at University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg and a member of the Muslim Writers Guild of America (muslimwriters.org).