Submitted by P.K. McCary, Aug 21, 2007 13:50

I think that the reaction to Ms. Almontaser's t-shirt, comments and work is more that we still don't have relationships with one another. While we may support a Muslim-inspired school, we don't take ourselves out of our comfort zones to understand Muslim cultures, the diversity of its people, the pain and sorrow of its place in our society today. I've often called my Muslim brothers and sisters, "the New Negro." Of course, I get slapped for it in some circles. How dare I compare what is happening in the anti-Muslim sentiments of our society with the Civil Rights movement of the past? But, I do.

Ms. Almontaser should be reinstated. We should take a look at what was being said rather than measuring it by our anti-Muslim sentiments that pervade our country. We need to understand what commitment to working on the self (which I believe is a strong tenent of Islam) that she spoke of. As a Christian, I can only hope to work on self to help build a better world. The sacrifice of the Intifade NYC is a lot like my remembering, not the resurrection, but the cross. P.K. McCary

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