Mention: NY1 on #PrepareNY

Muslim New Yorkers Learn to Pick Their Battles – WNYC. “There’s no longer a sense of Muslim and American, but Muslims as Americans,” said Rashid, “and I think that’s a really important part of that political engagement. And I think, looking at France, you still see this isolation, this difference. You’re either French, or you’re Muslim.”

Hijacking Jihad: Reclaiming Islam’s ‘Personal Struggle’. Over the last two decades, the term “Jihad” has exclusively been defined as a holy war perpetrated by extremists. As such, when the average American hears the term “Jihad,” they conflate Islam with terror. Although the term has been hijacked by extremists, many Muslims in the US and around world don’t recognize Jihad’s contemporary application. For these Muslims, the term, which literally translates to “struggle,” is a personal struggle, or a mission. For example, someone’s “Jihad” could be giving up smoking or to strive to be a better neighbor, friend, husband, or wife.