OBAMA INVITES MUSLIM STUDENT TO WHITE HOUSE
New York, 3 Dzulhijjah 1436/17 September 2015 (MINA) – Rejecting Islamophobia madness across the world, thousands of people took to social media websites on Wednesday (16/9), to defend the rights of a 9th grader Muslim student who was arrested after taking his home-made invented clock to school.
“Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great,” US President Barack Obama wrote on Twitter, On Islam quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.
The Irving Muslim student was arrested by Dallas police after his school claimed that he tried to make a bomb.
He hoped to impress his teachers by his one of his most elaborate creations that consists of a circuit board and power supply wired to a digital display, all strapped inside a case with a tiger hologram on the front.
After his English teacher and principal reported him to police, Ahmed was arrested and was also pulled out of sixth period.
At the police station, the Muslim teen was interrogated by four police officers, before being released. However, he was suspended for three days from his school.
#IstandwithAhmed has begun trending on social media and has drawn support not just from the United States, but the rest of the world.
“If he was a white kid they’d be glorifying him as some next Einstein or something, they dnt really wana see our kind do well #IStandWithAhmed,” Ray DeRozen Jnr wrote on Twitter.
While many condemned the teacher’s Islamophobia, many twitter users have praised Ahmed’s engineering skills.
“#IStandWithAhmed — stay strong little brother. you are a genius and we all support your incredible passion for innovation + technology,” Russell Simmons added.
US Muslims, estimated at between seven to eight million, have been sensing hostility since 9/11 attacks.
Anti-Muslim sentiments have reached an all-time high after the rise of the so-called Islamic State, formerly known as Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
Facing growing attacks on Muslims, CAIR has launched a new website, Islamophobia.org, to monitor and challenge the growing anti-Muslim bigotry.
In 2014, CAIR published Know Your Rights and Responsibilities pocket guide that tells American Muslims to report any actual knowledge of criminal activity without being asked by law enforcement authorities. (T/P006/R03)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
