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August 24, 2011
Page 9
O pinion
Fear and Hatred 10 Years after Sept. 11
We must
overcome for
the sake of our
children
by
M . L inda J aramillo
I have vivid memories
o f that tragic Sept. 11
morning 10 years ago. It
was early in the morning in
my hometown of Portland,
Ore. The waking news blaring
from my radio seemed like a
dream.
I jum ped out of bed and ran
into the living room to turn on the
television. Sure enough, there it
was. The first plane had blasted
its way through the north tower,
seemingly a terribly unfortunate
failure of the airplane’s radar
system that led them off course.
Then the second plane was in
sight, crashing into the south
tower. It became clear that this
was no accident.
The shock of such a horrible
sight had not even set in when
we heard the news stories about
tw o o th e r h ig h ­
jacked planes, one
crashing into the Pen­
tagon, another into a
field in Pennsylvania.
Were there more?
Who was capable of
such mean spirited
destruction? Little did I know
then what would follow.
Every year on Sept. 11, I
feel the em otional disbelief and
fear that I experienced that
m orning. How ever, two days
prior to that fateful day is still
equally alive in my m em ory—
Sept. 9, 2001.
O u r lo cal c o n g re g a tio n ,
A insw orth U nited C hurch of
C hrist in northeast Portland,
was offering adult forum s on
diverse faith traditions on Sun­
day, Sept. 9. We w elcom ed
two leaders from the M uslim
com m unity to share the key
tenets of their faith. We learned
about the im portance o f peace
and harm ony in their teach­
ings.
During our discussion, it be­
came obvious that we shared a
mutual understanding o f G od’s
unconditional love for every­
one and our responsibility for
the com mon good of humanity.
As C hristians and M uslim s, we
agreed to journey together and
continue to learn from one an­
other tow ard deeper solidarity
in the m idst o f our differences.
In the days follow ing Sept.
11, 2001, it becam e clear that
all M uslim s were being held
responsible for the tragic acts
o f a violent sect o f Islam ic
fanatics whose values and in­
terpretations of the Q u r’an are
radically d ifferen t than the
m ajority of M uslims.
Our Muslim friends went into
hiding in Portland, ju st as oth­
ers did in cities across the na­
tion. They feared going to the
grocery store, sending their
children to school, or w orship­
ping in the local M osque that
had previously been relatively
safe. My fear and d isb elief
was revived as I saw the uni­
versal hostility being directed
at our neighbors.
I joined a group of Latino and
Latina leaders who gathered with
neighbors from the Muslim Edu­
cational Trust led by Wajdi Said
(who continues to be a close
friend to this day). We wanted
to offer support to a community
whose complexion is much like
ours. We knew what it was like
to be singled out for ridicule and
exclusion.
We had experienced similar
verbal and physical attacks for
no other reason other than the
color of our skin. We prayed for
forgiveness and healing and
pledged to teach one another
and our children about our shared
understanding of goodness as
opposed to evil.
Mahatma Gandhi once said,
“I have seen children success­
fully surmounting the effects of
an evil inheritance. That is due to
purity being an inherent attribute
of the soul.”
As we approach this 1 Oth an­
niversary, my prayer is that in
our disbelief, we will strive to
overcome the fear and hatred
that has resulted— for the sake
of our children and the purity of
their souls.
M. Linda Jaramillo is ex­
ecutive minister for Justice and
Witness M inistries in the
United Church o f Christ.
Issues in Riot-Torn London Plague Us Here
Prevent youth
uprisings
by
J udge G reg M athis
The recent youth-led
uprisings in London that
caused millions of dollars
in damage and led to over
a thousand people being
arrested are not just a wake-up
call for Britain. The U.S. must
take notice and put into place
measures that would prevent
such uprisings here at home.
The London uprisings began
when a group of young people,
upset over the death of a 29-
year old black man killed by
police officers, gathered outside
a police station in London.
Frustrated with high unem­
ployment rates, a failing educa­
tion system and police miscon­
duct that seemingly goes un­
checked, the protester’s tem ­
pers flared, their emotions took
over and the protests quickly
turned violent. The violence
spread, growing to massive pro­
portions and citizens in the United
Kingdom and around the world,
were shocked.
While it is very easy to dis­
miss such uprisings and think
they'd never occur here in the
U.S., we must not be
complacent or naive.
The same issues
that drove youth in
London to act out
plague us here in
America. Youth un­
em ploym ent in the
U.S. exceeds 20-percent; police
misconduct is a regular occur­
rence throughout country and
our schools fail to prepare our
children for college or the job
market.
What can we do here in the
U.S. to prevent such uprisings?
We can start by doing the exact
opposite of what London Prime
M inister David Cameron has
proposed.
Cameron proposed a tough that aim to keep youth out of
crack down and wants to ban trouble, create jobs and monitor
rioters from using social media, police activities.
evict them from public housing
If the goal is to prevent youth
and impose restrictions on youth. from destroying themselves and
His political opponent, Ed their communities in anger, then
Miliband, suggested a
different, better approach: one
that would put into place social
programs that aim to keep youth
out of trouble, create jobs and
monitor police activities.
The uprisings in the Middle
East, starting with Egypt and
then spreading, did not alarm
Americans. We believed that,
because the political and social
environments in those nations
are so different from ours, w e’d
never have to deal with such
large, violent, citizen-led protests.
Watching the events in Lon­
don unfold should change that
way of thinking, because, in so
many ways, the country is a lot
like ours. London showed us
that the w orld is on edge.
America must take steps now to
support its people and prevent
violence.
Greg Mathis is a form er
Miliband, suggested a different, an approach like M iliband’s is Michigan District Court judge
better approach: one that would needed, in London and here at and currently is a judge for his
put into place social programs home.
syndicated television program.
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