Middle East attacks show the desperate need for interfaith understanding

C. Welton Gaddy *

Each year on the anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001 I pause and think about how much the world has changed since that heartbreaking day, and not so much for the better. This sentiment was illustrated with tragic clarity this year as I watched attacks on the American Embassy in Cairo, Egypt, and the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. The results were immediately the death of the U.S Ambassador to Libya and three members of his staff, new protests in Yemen, and increased tension between the U.S. and the Arab world.

European imams, rabbis pledge zero tolerance for hate preachers

Reuters

Seventy European Muslim and Jewish leaders pledged on Wednesday to show “zero tolerance” to hate preachers of any faith including their own ranks, citing what they called rising religious intolerance on the continent.

Religious leaders attend a gathering of Jewish and Muslim leaders. (Photo: Reuters)

Imams, rabbis and community leaders from 18 countries agreed to jointly counter bigotry against Jews and Muslims and combat legal threats to common religious practices such as circumcision of boys and the kosher and halal ritual slaughter of animals.

We Are All Muslims: A Sikh Response to Islamophobia in the NYPD and Beyond

Sonny Singh *

As a brown-skinned Sikh with a turban on my head and a long beard on my chin, I deal with my fair share of racist and xenophobic harassment regularly, including in my home of New York City, the most diverse city on the planet. It usually takes the form of someone yelling or perhaps mumbling at me: Osama bin Laden/terrorist/al Qaeda/he's going to blow up the [insert location]/go back to your country/etc. Less often, someone might threaten me, get in my face, or in one case, pull off my turban on the subway.