Source/Credit: SanDiego.Com
By Paul Richter | August 31, 2011
A local San Diego chapter of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has announced a blood drive around the 10th anniversary of the tragic September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The blood drive, part of a nationwide campaign launched under the title, Muslims for Life, will run during the month of September and will feature blood drives at all United States mosques and prayer centers, in remembrance of those who lost their lives on 9/11. Their goal is to collect 10,000 units of blood, enough to save up to 30,000 lives, according to the official press release.
The national group Ahmadiyya Muslim Community was established in 1921 as the first American-Muslim organization, proclaiming a moto of "Love for All, Hatred for None." The notion that some non-Muslims have about the Islamic culture being predicated on violent religious extremism is something that Ahmadi Muslims have been working to correct.
Religious leaders are spearheading projects like Muslims for Life with community organizers around America to make the distinction of being a peaceful, benevolent religious group, no different than Christians, Catholics or Mormons. Unfortunately, this message hasn’t been received by everyone, as hate crimes against Muslims have skyrocketed following the terrorist attacks almost a decade ago.
"We think that on Sept. 11 not only did the terrorists hijack the airplanes but they also hijacked the essential message of Islam, which is to value life," said Waseem Sayed, a spokesman for the community. In a previously released report titled "Unequal Protection: The Status of Muslim Civil Rights in the United States," performed by the Council on American Islamic Relations, almost 80 percent of anti-Muslim crime was committed in just 10 states; 20% in California, followed by 10% in New York, 9% in Arizona, 7% in Virginia, Florida and Texas, and 5% in Maryland, Ohio, Illinois, and New Jersey.
"Whoever supported 9/11 is not a true Islam," Idrees Munir, a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, told Mercury News. "There's no religion in this world where you're allowed to kill anyone, let alone Islam. No religion can afford to even put a finger on someone."
Dr. Tahir Ijaz, a medical doctor who is board certified in radiology and part of the Scripps Health group, is a member of the local San Diego Ahmadiyya Muslim Community chapter and will be organizing the local drive. National partners of the Muslims for Life campaign include American Red Cross, Puget Sound Blood Center, Carter BloodCare, America's Blood Centers, American Islamic Congress, Bowl for Life, and Blood Centers of the Pacific.
For a list of all participating locations, visit MuslimsForLife.org or call (800) 949-4752.
Read original post here: Muslim Group Holds September Blood Drive to Honor 9-11 Victims
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