Obama slams ‘inexcusable’ anti-Muslim political rhetoric

“An attack on one’s faith is an attack on all our faiths”, Obama said as he mentioned recent attacks against Muslim community and also cited those of Sikh-Americans who looks like them.

“President Obama went to a mosque today in Baltimore to talk about religious tolerance and to talk about the contributions Muslims have made in the United States”, she said.

“I want you to know that from the president to the Federal Bureau of Investigation director to everybody in law enforcement, my directive, and their understanding, is that this is something we have to do together”, Mr. Obama said. “I think the President is quite interested in making sure that we’re affirming the important role that Muslims play in our diverse American society, and certainly affirming their right to worship God in a way that’s consistent with their heritage”.

In addition, the President waded once again into the presidential race, telling parishioners that he’d heard from young Muslims who were anxious they’d be rounded up and kicked out of the country – a policy 2016 GOP front-runner Donald Trump has called for. “We’ve heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslims that has no place in our country”. Personally, this visit by our president is an affirmation to all Muslims; we are just as American as any other.

Making his first visit to a US mosque as POTUS, President Obama scolded the TV networks for not doing their part to portray Muslims in series storylines other than ones about national security. “It’s no surprise then that threats and harassment of Muslim Americans have surged”.

In a speech at Cairo University, he declared that the United States would never be at war with Islam.

During Wednesday’s visit to the mosque, Obama challenged the idea that he should use the term “Islamic terrorists” when referring to ISIL. “You’re Muslim and American”. Do you agree with his assessment that the Quran and Muslims are not promoting violence but rather a small minority of extremists? “We can’t give in to profiling entire groups of people because there is no single profile of a terrorist”, he said adding that engagement with a community cannot be used as a cover for surveillance.

“I would urge all of you not to see this as a burden but as a great opportunity and a great privilege to show who you are”, he said.

Al Jazeera’s Patty Culhane, reporting from Baltimore, said Obama’s critics in the Muslim community have called the visit as “too little, too late”.