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VIEWPOINT -
DRISS TEMSAMANI
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 I run as fast as I could from this topic. I tried hiding in my busy schedule to avoid seeing the images. I thought about other issues hoping to clear my mind from the horrible stories. Exhausted I had to give up and surrender to the facts.
Here I am now, facing this blank page of paper. Angry and scared I open the door to unleash my thoughts. A combination of sadness, fury, shame and confusion is pushing me to ask the question, are we a schizophrenic nation? But wait, as I dialogue with myself, I doubted the validity of the word and I decided to look it up. Schizophrenia, a group of psychotic disorders usually characterized by withdrawal from reality, illogical patterns of thinking, delusions, and hallucinations, and accompanied in varying degrees by other emotional, behavioral, or intellectual disturbances. Yes, I think it’s safe to ask the question; Are we a schizophrenic nation?
As I proceeded to interview my self, I asked; Is this the first time someone attacks Islam? Is this the first time people disrespect our faith? Was the publication of images in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten portraying our prophet Mohammed PBUH in degrading cartoons the last drop to overflow the boiling sea of Muslim sentiment around the world or did we overreact? Confused and puzzled, I looked back in history and found that Islam has been attacked, disrespected since the day our Prophet PBUH said that there is not God but Allah. Mohammed PBUH was called magician, poet and mad since the day he spoke the words of Allah.
As Islam spread across the world, the non believers lied about the religion and the prophet. You can even find religious text books today that depict our Prophet PBUH as a smart man who learned other religions during his travels in the Far East driving him to create Islam. So what is it? By god what is it? What has taken over this nation? Are we being punished in this world before we face our creator in the afterlife? What else can this nation bare? Never like today has the image of Islam been so tarnished and dragged in the lowest ranks history. Our kids shot in cold blood while at school, our women raped in jails, our man piled naked like animals while interrogated, and our elderly pushed and step on in the street. Is this the end? Or is there more suffering for generations to come? We got striped from our values, morals, culture and dignity what else can we loose? Our faith? How sad is it? How bad is it when you have to look at your child and explain why are Muslims being treated the way they are? How hard is it? How confusing is it for a child to face his non Muslim friends at school and answer a question about Muslims being terrorists? How would your child deal with it when they are made fun off when others mention the caricatures of the Prophet PBUH?
Did you have to go through that when you were a child? Did you ever have to defend your faith when you were ten years old? Is the Muslim nation over reacting? Are we having a panic attack? Or are we just a bunch of self conscience people who like to victimize our self in front of the world? What is it really that make us so different from Christians and Jews? Islam brought to the world a very powerful formula. Like no other religion Islam combine the social, political and religion under one single concept. In fact Islam is a life style and anyone who would understand it enough would realize the power that lies underneath such concept. No wonder so many are trying to high jack this religion to gain power. No wonder so many are trying to destroy this religion to stop it from gaining power. What about us? The simple people who just want to live? Why do we have to pay so dearly? Why do we have to suffer so much?
Back to my page, no longer blank, my emotions high, I suddenly felt a wired feeling of numbness accompanied with desperation and a blend of failure. I no longer wanted to think. I no longer wanted to hear. I no longer wanted to be. I came to the conclusion; the Muslim nation is free falling. Every day we are getting closer to the impact. The day where our nation will be shuddered to a million pieces and I am afraid of that day. I am afraid to think about what would cause the free fall to come to an end. What would it be? More degrading pictures of our Prophet? More riots? More rapes, more killing? More bombing of innocent civilians? Is there an end to this fall? There is no slower death than when you know you are going to be executed. The anticipation of your execution is the ultimate punishments. After September 11 our nation has been condemned and we are a Dead Nation Walking.
While the pictures faded away and I no longer could think about the future, I decided to end my pain with a prayer. With my arms stretching to the heavens while raising my head from the ground. Looking up I shouted; God! Let us be respected. Oh God, let our children be respected. Oh you the one who hears the prayer of the believers please have mercy on this nation. Please steer us away from those who have put us on this path of destruction oh please God let us live in peace.
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'Let Gaza Live' Jan. 10 National March on Washington
