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Description
Assalaamu alaikum [peace be to you],

In today's turbulent world, Islam is often on the front page - mostly for the wrong reasons. Islam calls for peace; yet some have taken this peaceful way of life and hijacked it into a violent way, and distorted their ideology for personal and political gains. Seeing a faith through explosive world events, and judging it by the actions of a misguided few, is the primary reasons why Islam is often misunderstood.

Islam is sometimes, intentionally misrepresented. Some politicians, religious leaders and media have found an ideal scapegoat in Islam. By associating Islam with the inhumane acts of a handful, they have been successful in driving larger numbers of people to vote for them; to donate towards their ministries; and to read their newspapers, watch their television programs and listen to their radio shows.

Islam is frequently misunderstood and may even seem exotic in some parts of today's world. Perhaps this is because religion no longer dominates everyday life in Western society; whereas, for Muslims, Islam is life. Muslims make no artificial division between the secular and the sacred.

For quite some time Islam was thought of as some "Eastern" religion. However, with an increasing number of Muslims speaking out against this falsehood; the true and peaceful nature of Islam is becoming more evident. Muslims are standing up against terrorism, against the persecution and killing of innocent people, and against those who perpetrate such injustice in the name of any faith.

Muslim culture often isn't very well understood in America and the west in general. To help sort out fact from fiction, here we address a few common ways Muslims are misunderstood:

Misconception: The terms "Muslim" and "Arab" are synonymous.

Truth:
- Only between 18 and 20 percent of Muslims worldwide are Arab (source: the Council on American-Islamic Relations).
- The largest Muslim population in the world is in Indonesia (source: the CIA World Factbook).
- Most American Arabs are Christian, not Muslim (source: U.S. census figures).
- "Arab" is a geographic/cultural term. "Muslim" refers to an adherent of Islam.

Misconception: Muslim women are oppressed and forced to wear the hijab.

Truth:
- Women often see it as empowering because they are not viewed as sexual objects but judged by their character.
- Muslim advocacy groups point out that four out of the five countries with the largest Muslim populations — Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Turkey — have had female heads of state, something the United States cannot claim.

Misconception: Islam promotes violence and terrorism.

Truth:
- According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, prominent Muslims, Islamic organizations and Islamic scholars have repeatedly denounced the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 and terrorism in general. One letter sent to President George W. Bush was signed by leaders from nine American-Muslim organizations, which together represent most of the seven million Muslims in the United States.
- Jihad is a term that is often misunderstood and associated with violent radical militants. However, according to Muslim advocates, the word jihad means to "strive, struggle and exert effort." It is a central and broad Islamic concept that includes struggle against evil inclinations within oneself, struggle to improve the quality of life in society, struggle by military forces in the battlefield for self-defense or fighting against tyranny or oppression (source: the Council on American-Islamic Relations).

I hope this was beneficial

from [link] and [link]

IN THE DRAWING:
"Ya Allah!" in Arabic means "O God!"

if I am right, it is from the God. if I am wrong, it is from myself.

Description
Assalaamu alaikum [peace be to you],

In today's turbulent world, Islam is often on the front page - mostly for the wrong reasons. Islam calls for peace; yet some have taken this peaceful way of life and hijacked it into a violent way, and distorted their ideology for personal and political gains. Seeing a faith through explosive world events, and judging it by the actions of a misguided few, is the primary reasons why Islam is often misunderstood.

Islam is sometimes, intentionally misrepresented. Some politicians, religious leaders and media have found an ideal scapegoat in Islam. By associating Islam with the inhumane acts of a handful, they have been successful in driving larger numbers of people to vote for them; to donate towards their ministries; and to read their newspapers, watch their television programs and listen to their radio shows.

Islam is frequently misunderstood and may even seem exotic in some parts of today's world. Perhaps this is because religion no longer dominates everyday life in Western society; whereas, for Muslims, Islam is life. Muslims make no artificial division between the secular and the sacred.

For quite some time Islam was thought of as some "Eastern" religion. However, with an increasing number of Muslims speaking out against this falsehood; the true and peaceful nature of Islam is becoming more evident. Muslims are standing up against terrorism, against the persecution and killing of innocent people, and against those who perpetrate such injustice in the name of any faith.

Muslim culture often isn't very well understood in America and the west in general. To help sort out fact from fiction, here we address a few common ways Muslims are misunderstood:

Misconception: The terms "Muslim" and "Arab" are synonymous.

Truth:
- Only between 18 and 20 percent of Muslims worldwide are Arab (source: the Council on American-Islamic Relations).
- The largest Muslim population in the world is in Indonesia (source: the CIA World Factbook).
- Most American Arabs are Christian, not Muslim (source: U.S. census figures).
- "Arab" is a geographic/cultural term. "Muslim" refers to an adherent of Islam.

Misconception: Muslim women are oppressed and forced to wear the hijab.

Truth:
- Women often see it as empowering because they are not viewed as sexual objects but judged by their character.
- Muslim advocacy groups point out that four out of the five countries with the largest Muslim populations — Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Turkey — have had female heads of state, something the United States cannot claim.

Misconception: Islam promotes violence and terrorism.

Truth:
- According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, prominent Muslims, Islamic organizations and Islamic scholars have repeatedly denounced the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 and terrorism in general. One letter sent to President George W. Bush was signed by leaders from nine American-Muslim organizations, which together represent most of the seven million Muslims in the United States.
- Jihad is a term that is often misunderstood and associated with violent radical militants. However, according to Muslim advocates, the word jihad means to "strive, struggle and exert effort." It is a central and broad Islamic concept that includes struggle against evil inclinations within oneself, struggle to improve the quality of life in society, struggle by military forces in the battlefield for self-defense or fighting against tyranny or oppression (source: the Council on American-Islamic Relations).

I hope this was beneficial

from [link] and [link]

IN THE DRAWING:
"Ya Allah!" in Arabic means "O God!"

if I am right, it is from the God. if I am wrong, it is from myself.