Two stories to share, which I think speak for themselves.

The first is from a New York Times article about the local neighborhood community meeting in new York a few weeks ago regarding Cordoba House, where a panel of representatives from the Muslim American Society tried in vain to assuage the paranoia of the citizenry arrayed against them:

The tenor of the inquiry became so fraught that the meeting eventually collapsed in shouting around 11 p.m., prompting the police and security guards to ask everyone to leave.

But just 20 minutes earlier, as Bill Finnegan stood at the microphone, came the meeting’s single moment of hushed silence. Mr. Finnegan said he was a Marine lance corporal, home from Afghanistan, where he had worked as a mediator with warring tribes.

After the sustained standing ovation that followed his introduction, he turned to the Muslims on the panel: “My question to you is, will you work to form a cohesive bond with the people of this community?” The men said yes.

Then he turned to the crowd. “And will you work to form a cohesive bond with these people – your new neighbors?”

The crowd erupted in boos. “No!” someone shouted.

And the other is a personal narrative from a muslim soldier, and physician, serving in the US Army. I am of course keeping the identity of the soldier private for their protection.

On Thursday I get a page from one of the in-patient social workers at Walter Reed about one of my patients. She is very nervous when I call her back, saying, “Sir, I do not know how to say this. And I feel absolutely horrible saying this to you, but one of your patients requests that you no longer be one of his caretakers.” She went on to explain how he could not have a Muslim treating him when he has been in the business of killing Muslims for several years now. Muslims had killed his comrades and have now left him with one functional leg and only three fingers on his right hand. People who looked like me betrayed him and his unit. He said more, apparently, but you get the point.

About him, before I go further, he’s 34. He is a member of the Special Forces and was involved with peacekeeping efforts and negotiations with local warlords/tribesmen in Afghanistan. He isn’t one of those 18 yr-old infantryman; he was no kid. And he’s seen some horrible things.

So long story short, I told the social worker that I was on call that night and I would go talk to him, if he were willing. She called me back and said he was willing to talk to me. So I spent an hour that evening discussing and arguing. I had never heard such bigotry. He said America is losing its culture to people like me who wish to bring their own culture. I replied that that is what America is: a melting pot of culture. He continued that he just couldn’t stand that the white man was now the bad guy, even in America. However, he added that he never thought he could think like this. He said he used to see how much his grandfather hate the Japanese all his life because of what he saw in World War II and could never understand.

In the end, we agreed that we could not change how we think. I simply said, “You can hate Muslims, you can hate Islam, you can hate Afghanis, but that won’t change how I treat you. I’m simply your doctor and I can only request that you trust me as a fellow American soldier and your doctor. If you do not want me to be your doctor, you won’t have to see me anymore. This is patient-oriented medicine.”

After thinking for a bit, he said, “Okay fine, I appreciate you spending the time talking to me. We’ll just see how it goes. I chose a career of risks; I guess this is just another risk.”

I said, “This is no risk.” We shook hands and I left. I saw him the next morning for morning rounds and things proceeded as normal.

This is just the beginning.

There’s nothing we can do about what our non-muslim fellow citizens believe. But what we can do, is to refuse to cede our rightful status as citizens and neighbors to their fear and paranoia. We must move forward and eventually, the rest of America will catch up to us. This is what the Catholics had to do, this is what the Irish had to do, this is what the jews had to do, and now it is our turn. Apologizing for who we are is not the answer. Leading by righteous example is how we will win acceptance, if not for ouselves, then for our children.

And it will work. But not overnight.