Nine Lessons for New Converts/Reverts to Islam

9. You’re still American, and that’s who you’ll always be

American policies are at a low when it comes to how this country treats Muslims both at home and abroad, and unfortunately anti-Muslim bigotry is shockingly rampant.  Many Muslims around the world view America as an enemy, and if we’re honest with ourselves, they have valid reasons to do so. President Obama’s drone strikes in Pakistan, our country’s blind support of Israel, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan haven’t done the American image any favors.  All of this anti-American sentiment can make an American Muslim feel guilty for being an American, but don’t let it.

You are an American.  You are not a drone program or a war or a policy.  You are not anti-Muslim bigotry or Guantanamo Bay.  You are a person who was born in a country that has so much more positivity going for it than it does negativity, a country that has provided you with an experience that has made you into the person you are today: the person who chose Islam as their faith.  You may be outspoken, educated, independent, proactive, charismatic, caring, brave, and filled with dreams that you are determined to make come true for the better of the Muslim community and the world.  You didn’t become all that the day you became a Muslim, you became all that the years you were raised as a can-do American.

Don’t let anyone else tell you what it means to be a true American, or a real patriot.  Don’t let anyone make you feel that as a Muslim you are less entitled to being the person you have been your entire life.  You have the unique opportunity to redefine American, so get out there and do it.

This article was originally published on Muslim Matters as part of its “Convert Series.”