Photo Credit: Amy Rose
On Friday, Feb. 13, The George Mason Muslim Student Alliance hosted a vigil in honor of the three victims of the Chapel Hill, N.C. shooting on Feb. 10.
The vigil started with a recitation of verses from the Quran, a series of prayers and a moment of silence. More than 200 Mason students, staff and community members were in attendance.
The Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Multicultural Education organized an open space for dialogue after the vigil for any students wishing to share their thoughts and engage in discussion about the shooting and its larger implications for the Muslim American community.
“In order to foster dialogue and companionship between all demographics on campus, we need to foster communication […] we need to accept our differences and help build each other up. In order to do this, we need open panels for discussion about contemporary topics to cultivate that communication,” said Farzana Olla, vice president of United Muslim Relief GMU.
The victims, Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha, her husband Deah Shaddy Barakat and her sister, Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha were found dead in their apartment on Feb. 10 by apparent gun shot wounds. Their neighbor, 46-year old Craig Stephen Hicks, has been arrested in connection with the crime.
The purpose of the vigil was not solely to mourn the death of the three students, but to honor and highlight their commitments to service and volunteerism.
“We stand together in memory and in motivation to continue their good work, to spread peace, and to continue loving one another for the sake of God and of the sake of humanity and taking care of one another,” said Sarah Olibah, vice president of Mason’s Muslim Student Association.
Candles and carnations were sold to raise money for Syrian Dental Relief, an initiative started by Barakat to provide dental care for Syrian refugees in Turkey.
Barakat and the Abu-Salha sisters were active members of their community and involved with United Muslim Relief’s Triangle Chapter, a non-profit non-governmental organization originally started at Mason.
“One of the greatest ways of showing love and kindness is through volunteerism. We need to better our world, not just our community, which is exactly what our heroes attempted to do through United Muslim Relief,” said Bilel Gdoura, president of UMR GMU.
Patrick S
Where were the GMU #MuslimLivesMatter hypocrite activists when ISIS murdered Peter Kassig and Jordanian Air Force Lt. Moaz al-Kasabeh? Both were Muslims.
“How dreadful are the curses which Islam lays on its votaries… the fanatical frenzy is as dangerous in a man as rabies in a dog… In Islamic law every woman must belong to some man as his absolute property, either as a child, a wife, or a concubine…. the influence of the religion paralyzes the social development of those who follow it. No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Islam is a militant faith.”
–Sir Winston Churchill, from his book “The River War,” 1st ed., 2: 248-250. London: Longmans, 1899.
jt O'Brien
I think everyone was quick to jump on the #muslimlivesmatter bandwagon. This had nothing to do with them being Muslim, what I found more interesting about incident was not that they are Muslim, but how the media and social media interpreted the event and their subsequent reactions. Why did this incident get attention when mass murders happen almost bi-weekly in the US? Why was every headline about them being Muslim? Why was there no vigil and less reporting for the 21 Christians who were just beheaded in Libya? I’m not saying what happened isn’t a tragedy but I think the way it was interpreted and reported says a lot about the media and what people find important when it comes to a story.
MasonStudent
I don’t know what motivated the shooter, my sympathies are with the victims of violence regardless of their religion, nationality, etc. I have several muslim friends and I don’t agree with the Churchill quote above.
…..however, there does seem to be a certain segment of the muslim population that wants to be seen as victims, and a white atheist shooting three muslims provides the perfect opportunity for this. Like you said every time this story comes up the victims’ religion seems to be mentioned prominently, but when a muslim commits an atrocity there’s often some doubt as to whether or not they actually belong to that faith.
I’m also noticing a trend with the Fourth Estate to have some kind of article re: Islam in nearly every issue. We know one of their authors was paid to proselytize, but what motivates the others?
GopherPatriot
The media has an intent to keep people fighting and hating one another. It’s vogue to hate Muslims and to characterize them as a monolithic boogeyman and burnishing extreme reactions and extremism as exemplary rather than exceptions or contextualized. Irrespective of that, Egypt and Jordan both launched campaigns against ISIS and condemnation of ISIS and their like has been considerable by Muslims. If you haven’t seen it, it’s because you aren’t being shown it and you’re not willing to see. #alllivesmatter
Arafat
Why don’t Muslims organize events honoring the following victims? Is it because loss of life only matters when it is a Muslim life taken by an infidel?
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On Feb 22 in Potiskum, Nigeria 5 Christians are killed by a Muslim CHILD suicide bomber.
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On Feb 21 43 moderate Sunnis are burned alive by fellow Muslims in al-Baghdad, Iraq.
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On Feb 21 at least four are killed by a Muslim suicide bomber at a hospital in Qardaha, Syria.
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On Feb 20 fifty people are blown to bits by three Muslim suicide bombers in al-Quba, Libya.
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On Feb 19 at least 30 are killed when Boko Haram randomly open fire on villagers in Chibok, Nigeria.
Arafat
And what of the following lives too? I guess Muslims can kill others without a peep from our fellow Muslim students, but if the killing is done by an infidel then their hypocrisy come to the fore.
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On Feb 15th a 37 year old Jewish man was gunned down by a Muslim in Copenhagen, Denmark.
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On Feb 15th a teenaged girl blew herself up in a crowded bus terminal killing 16 in Damaturu, Nigeria.
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On Feb 14th a Muslim gunman shot into a free speech event and killed one person in Copenhagen, Denmark.
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On Feb 14th a driver for a POLIO TEAM was murdered by a Muslim extremist.
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On Feb 13 two children and a women were murdered were among six people murdered by a Mujahid extremist in Samrrah, Iraq.
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On Feb 13th 20+ Shi’ite worshippers were murdered by Jundallah gunmen in Peshawar, Pakistan.
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On Feb 12th twelve villagers are murdered by Boko Haram in Akida, Nigeria.
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On Feb 12th a female suicide bomber murders 11 at a market in Biu, Nigeria.
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On Feb 11th ten civilians lose their lives when Sunni terrorists lob shells into Baghdad.
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On Feb 10th Boko Haram hijacks a bus and kills seven and kidnaps eight young girls in Koza, Cameroon.
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On Feb 10th ten people are beheaded and this is videoed by Ansar Bait al-Maqdis in Arish, Egypt.
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Shall I go on?
GopherPatriot
Arafat doesn’t much care for the fact that among the killed in the Charlie Hebdo attacks was a French Muslim police officer and a Muslim shop assistant saved the lives of Jewish hostages in a French deli during an attack. Those actions must not be attributable to anything more than the individuals because that doesn’t advance his narrative.