"We responded peacefully and said that we're not those people. The holy Quran basically says we have to make peace with everyone and that if we kill one person it's like killing all of mankind."
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| File photo: A Muslim and a former marine, Mansoor T Shams's 'Ask me anything' |
Source/Credit: Sentinel and Enterprise
By Peter Jasinski | February 6, 2017
FITCHBURG -- Just a few months ago, Nasir Admad Soodhun was traveling through the countries of India and Bangladesh. His visit to downtown Fitchburg Saturday morning was comparatively colder.
Bundled in winter clothes, Sooddhun braved the below-freezing temperatures, along with a handful of other the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, to stand along Main Street in case anyone wanted to take the opportunity to meet a Muslim. He carried with him a sign that read: "I Am A Muslim Ask Me Anything."
Soodhun was chatting about his recent travels when a woman in an SUV slowed down as she drove past. First she honked her horn. Then she rolled down her window, letting the frigid air spill in. She pointed to Soodhun's signed, and shouted "I love it!" before driving off.
That was the general reaction Saturday morning. The air felt cold, but the reception was warm.
"I had one man come up to me and he was in tears," Soodhun said. "He was just saying how much he hopes we feel welcome here."
This was the first time that members of Fitchburg's chapter of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community held a "meet a Muslim" day. Local Muslims were on hand, holding signs and waving to passing cars, ready to introduce themselves and answer any question other local residents might have for them.
"We've had a couple people come up, but a majority will honk and smile to us," Furqan Mehmud said.
One of the more notable encounters of the day had been with a man who approached the group when they were outside Dunkin' Donuts.
He asked Mehmud and chapter president Ijaz Ahmed if they were the ones bringing in terrorists and killing people.
"We responded peacefully and said that we're not those people," Mehmud said. "The holy Quran basically says we have to make peace with everyone and that if we kill one person it's like killing all of mankind."
While the question was about a negative stereotype, Ahmed explained that answering those questions was the reason he was out standing in the cold.
"He wasn't hostile or anything, he was just asking questions and I think I answered him the best I could," he said. "I'm not sure what exactly I was expecting today, I know there are a lot of people who don't know any Muslims and don't know a lot about Islam."
Ahmed referred to a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center that found less than 40 percent of Americans actually know a Muslim as just one of his motivations for standing on Main Street.
"That's one of the challenges and that's one of the things we're trying to do," he said. "We want to change that number."
Fitchburg's chapter of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community are planning to hold future "meet a Muslim" events in Fitchburg and in other local communities, as well as other events that will be open to the public.
Despite national tensions and President Donald Trump's executive order to ban people from seven majority Muslim countries from entering the U.S., Ahmed and other local Muslims are optimistic that the inherent friendliness of the city of Fitchburg will prevail.
"I like Fitchburg because I can walk down the streets, I can go anywhere and people will say hi," he said. "People are so welcoming in this community and that's something I cherish."
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Peter Jasinski, pjasinski@sentinelandenterprise.com - Follow Peter Jasinski on Twitter and Tout @PeterJasinski53.
Read original post here: USA: 'I am a Muslim. Ask me Anything' campaign by Fitchburg Ahmadiyyas
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