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by Safeer Ahmad
No one woke up Sunday morning expecting the news they eventually received. I particularly watched as more and more information was discovered and the full scope of what had happened was made clear. Omar Mateen, a 29 year old Afghani-American opened fire in a gay nightclub, Pulse, in Orlando, Florida. 50 innocent people are dead and many others are injured. It’s tough to accept but this act of terrorism is the worst shooting in modern United States history. Omar had reportedly called 911 before the attack and pledged his allegiance to the “Islamic State”, who later took credit for the shooting. Speaking on behalf of the American Muslim Youth Association, my prayers go out to the families of the victims that have lost their loved ones to a deranged man acting in the name of the peaceful religion of Islam.
As a Muslim, I condemn this act wholeheartedly. The Qur’an states that “Whosoever killed a person…it shall be as if he has killed all mankind” (5:33) and “do not create disorder in the earth after it has been set in order” (7:57). Surely Omar has created disorder and murdered innocents. Along with these very clear verses, there is absolutely nothing in the Qur’an that calls for the murder of homosexuals. This sort of vigilantism has nothing to do with Islam and is nothing short of terrorism. It’s just amazing how disillusioned and hypnotized someone has to be for this sort of thing to occur. But these aren’t the only facts that prove Omar’s faithlessness.
Ever since the start of June, most Muslims around the world, including myself, have been fasting for the holy month of Ramadan. The month is highly revered by Muslims and during the month we abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset. The focus of the month is for self-reformation, prayers, and charity for our fellow human beings. It is meant for us to become nearer to God and atone for our previous shortcomings. The founder of Islam, Prophet Muhammad said, “If any one of you is fasting, let him not utter obscenities or act in an ignorant manner, and if anyone insults him or wants to fight with him, let him say, I am fasting” (Bukhari). Even simple argumentation has been forbidden in this month! So, for a man claiming to be Muslim going out and killing 50 people just shows how unIslamic he really was. Along with this, there are reports of how Omar used to beat his wife senselessly and she had just recently escaped from him. His wife has called him a violent and abusive person. Here again Omar deviates from the practices of the Prophet Muhammad who has said “The most perfect of the believers in faith is the best of them in moral excellence, and the best of you are the kindest of you to their wives” (Tirmidhi). Omar’s own parents even came out to say how he was not religious, was not regular in his prayers, and was actively homophobic.
What can be done? I’m not denying that there isn’t a problem in the Muslim world when it comes to extremists with little faith carrying out these barbaric atrocities. The best solution to eradicate this problem is leadership in the Muslim world, something it is dire need of. The worldwide Khalifa of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, the largest Muslims organization in the world under a single Imam with tens of millions of adherents, has set the greatest example. Mirza Masroor Ahmad has said, “We can all see how satanic influences are leading to brutality and murder. Innocent people are being slaughtered and the perpetrators claim they will be rewarded with a place in heaven…” Never in this community has there been an act of terror carried out by a member. The reason? Leadership. It’s time for the leaders of the Muslim world to follow the example set by the Khalifa and his followers. It is time to end these terrorist attacks.
It’s also time to stop blaming religion and start focusing on the real problem. The Orlando shooting on Sunday has been the only this year that is related to religious-extremist ties. Out of 166 days this year, there have been 133 mass shootings (4 or more people killed). Americans are no longer safer in elementary schools, high schools, colleges, places of worship, clubs, or movie theaters. Something must be done, because the trend isn’t going down, it’s only going up.
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