U-M’s Amer Ahmed dispels ‘Islamophobia’ at MLK assembly

Myths and misconceptions abound for Muslim Americans, so, in honor of Martin Luther King and his teachings, the middle school’s DIA (Diversity In Action) asked Amer Ahmed, associate director of multi-ethnic student affairs at U-M, to clear up those myths at Friday’s Martin Luther King, Jr. assembly.

Ahmed started off his presentation by singing a rap song (he’s also a hip hop activist) and then set about dispeling the most widespread misconceptions about Islam, a religion practiced by one-and-a-half billion people worldwide:

–Islam the religion does not undermine women’s rights (in fact, it has supported women for more than a thousand years),

–Muslims are not violent (Islam literally means “peace”) or anti-American, and

–Muslims are not synonymous with Arabs (only about 18-20% of Muslims are Arabs).

“It’s important to always challenge the narratives that we hear,” he emphasized, further citing that Islam and Christianity have elements in common, including believing Jesus is a prophet and the practice of wearing headscarves (think Mary and nun’s habits).

“I really enjoyed Mr. Ahmed’s talk today,” commented Grace Davis ’17.  “I learned all sorts of things I didn’t know before, like that Muslim headscarves come from Mary. It was all really, really interesting.”