Several members of the SMU community have asked our Muslim students to share their thoughts about ISIS, and for one reason or another, they are reticent to participate in panel discussions. However, one student was willing to share her opinion in writing:

After the current situation of ISIS and Donald Trump’s remarks against Muslims, l feel that I’m personally a target of the current debate about Muslims in the United States. I also feel that women who wear headscarves and veils, which declare their Islamic identity, in particular, are afraid of these attacks. Wearing of headscarves on the street these days requires more courage. Sometimes I feel that there are insults and hostile looks, and I am treated badly when shopping or just walking in the streets. I am always weary from being blamed for ISIS’s atrocities.

People don’t know that Islam is different than ISIS, and we call them terrorists too; they are NOT Muslims. I think those who are afraid of Muslims do not have any personal relationship with Muslims or they have the wrong understanding of Islam from the media today. I’m wondering what we can say to American society for it to understand that these people are not like us, and we do not understand their behavior and their thinking either. I also feel helpless and disappointed that I cannot impact Donald Trump’s campaign of hostility toward us.