Collective Guilt: The 9/11 Qur'an Burning Controversy

I read a Cagle Syndicate op ed piece in my local newspaper written by Tina Depuy.

The name of her piece is A Burning Question: Extremists on 9/11.

By now, I'm sure most of you are familiar with the Dove World Outreach Center's plans for burning Qur'ans on 9/11 in Gainesville, Florida.

I find it ironic that journalists and talking heads are going out of their way to comment that one pastor's bad decision should not reflect on all Christians or all Americans.

"Everything about our country is about to be boiled down to a picture of a heap of Korans smoldering," Depuy writes in the piece.

They fear that all Christians and the American people will be identified with the pastor.  The apologists are out in full force.  Even the military has taken to pleading with this pastor to change his plans.  They say that the Florida pastor's actions will endanger the troops. 

Oh yes - national security.  As if this reprehensible act is not sufficient enough.  We have to drag the troops into it.

"They" could stop this pastor.  First of all, he doesn't have a permit for burning.  The police could stop him.  All they have to do is show up and when the pastor lights the torch they move in and arrest him for burning without a permit.  Or, they can arrest him under the Patriot Act as endangering national security.  After all, if it were a Muslim doing this, they'd pick him up in a hot minute.  Or, they can let him go.  After all, in America, we have the right to do stupid things as long as we are willing to live with the consequences.

Let's see who else in history has burned books (called "libricide)."  According to Depuy's piece:

1.  The Ancient Library of Alexandria - burned by Julius Caesar.
2.  The Mayan codices of their history and religion - burned by the Conquistadors.
3.  The Library of Baghdad - burned by the Mongol invaders.
4.  Book burnings in Germany, Bosnia, Kuwait, China, and Tibet.
5.  Harry Potter books have been burned. 

America's in good company, eh?  A book burning in America.  In 2010.  Imagine it!

Author and professor Rebecca Knuth who studies libricide has concluded that libricide often precedes genocide according to the article.. 

But the most important part of Depuy's piece is the following:

"So as all Muslims are apparently judged by their extremists who on 9/11 crashed planes into buildings - all Americans will be judged by our extremists who on 9/11 burned Korans into ashes ... but most notably it means that THE MUSLIM WORLD AND AMERICANS ARE ABOUT TO HAVE MORE IN COMMON THAN THEY THOUGHT."

Are Americans finally starting to learn a lesson about collective guilt?

Since I wrote this piece, I am thrilled to see all of the non Muslims come out and support the Muslims and condemn the extremist attitudes of some American Christians.

More importantly, they are not so much defending the Muslims as they are defending the US Constitution, religious freedom, and everything that is decent about America.

I pray that Allaah t'ala, with Whom all things are possible, makes something happen so the event on Saturday does not go forward. He tells us,

They intend to put out the Light of Allaah with their mouths.  But Allaah will bring His Light to perfection even though the disbelievers hate it.  (Surat As-Saff, 61:8)

Even if the event does go forward, we will be okay.  As a Muslim, I will look at it as another test, and pray that "this too, shall pass" as it has with other groups in America who have traveled the same path.