Loading ...Obama condemns discrimination against Muslim Americans as he celebrates Eid for the first time at the White House
President Obama spoke in strong support of Muslim Americans, who he said ‘enrich our lives every single day’, during the first ever Eid celebration at the White House on Thursday.
Obama broke from the tradition of hosting the annual Iftar dinner, an evening meal during Ramadan where Muslims break their daily fast, to celebrate the conclusion of the Islamic holy month instead.
More than 100 Muslim Americans attended the event celebrating the holiday, including Muhammad Ali’s wife Lonnie and six of their children.
President Obama smells a rose given to him by one Muslim American family during the White House’s first ever Eid celebration on Thursday
Obama broke from the tradition of hosting the annual Iftar dinner, an evening meal during Ramadan where Muslims break their daily fast, to celebrate the conclusion of the Islamic holy month instead
Obama began his remarks by paying tribute to the Greatest, who passed during Ramadan.
‘As proud of his blackness as he was of his faith, the Champ taught us that the most important thing in life is to be ourselves,’ the president told the crowd.
And, Obama said, he wanted the day to be a reminder that Muslims ‘have always been a part of America’.
‘For more than two centuries, Muslim Americans of all backgrounds – Arab and Asian, African and Latino, black and white – have helped build America,’ he said.
‘As farmers and merchants, factory workers, architects, teachers and community leaders. Muslim Americans have enriched our lives every single days.’
The president celebrated the doctors ‘we trust with our lives’, the entrepreneurs who ‘create jobs’ and the artists who ‘inspire us’.
And, like Ali, he celebrated the athletes, including American fencing champion Ibtijah Muhammad, who he said will be ‘proudly wearing her hijab’ when she represents Team USA at the Rio Olympics.
Obama paid special tribute to Muhammad Ali during his remarks, and was gifted the Greatest’s cuff links by members of his family during the celebration
Obama was introduced at the reception by Aisha Osman, a 15-year-old Oregon native, in the East Room
Obama cited the ‘heartbreaking letter’ he received from Osman, who told the crowd she has been called both a terrorist and the N-word due to her Muslim religion and African American heritage
Obama told the young people in the audience that he wanted them to know one thing: ‘That we see you, that we believe in you’
Obama also gave special tribute to Deputy Police Chief Malik Aziz of the Dallas Police Department and World War II veteran Sheikh Nazeem Abdul Karriem.
‘Let’s be clear,’ the president said. ‘Muslim Americans are as patriotic, as integrated, as American as any other members of the American family.’
‘And whether your family has been here for generations or you’re a new arrival, you’re an essential part of the fabric of our country.’
Just as Obama’s speech was about to take a serious turn and discuss the ‘difficult time’ Muslim Americans currently face, the crowd broke into an impromptu chant.
‘Four more years!’ the audience yelled, ‘Four more years!’
Obama laughed as he quickly shut them down.
‘Michelle is going to come down and scold you,’ he joked. ‘Don’t say that.’
The president then touched upon the fact that Muslim Americans not only have to fear the ‘threat of terrorism’, like their compatriots, but also the fact that it is their community that is blamed for it.
‘Let’s be clear,’ the president said. ‘Muslim Americans are as patriotic, as integrated, as American as any other members of the American family’
Obama, pictured he greeting attendees after speaking at the Eid al-Fitr reception, said he wanted the day to be reminder that Muslims ‘have always been a part of America’
Obama cited the ‘heartbreaking letter’ he received from 15-year-old Aisha Osman, an Oregon native who was selected to introduce the president after writing a letter about her experiences.
‘She told me, “There were moments in my life where I would want to just take off my hijab and leave my identity behind so I can fit in with my peers,'” the president told the crowd.
‘That’s a young American, full of promise, full of possibility, fearful because of her faith,’ the president said in his remarks.
Osman told the crowd that as both an African American and a Muslim, she has been called both a terrorist and the N-word.
‘What those people don’t know is that I am proud to be an American,’ she said. ‘I know I am the future of this country that I love.’
Obama told the young people in the audience that he wanted them to know one thing: ‘That we see you, that we believe in you’.
‘And, despite what you may sometimes hear, you’ve got to know that you’re a valued part of the American family,’ he continued.
The White House has held an annual Iftar dinner every year since 1996. Pictured is George W Bush with Kuwait’s Prime Minister Nasser al-Mohammed al-Ahmed al-Jaber al-Saban in 2008
In December 2001 Bush read the children a poem and answered questions after celebrating Eid al-Fitr
‘And there’s nothing that you cannot do.’
The president never once mentioned Trump by name, but evoked the Republican presidential nominee when he said it was wrong to single out Muslim Americans.
Trump called for a complete ban of Muslims entering the country following the San Bernardino massacre in December by two ISIS supporters.
‘Singling out Muslim Americans feeds the lie of terrorists like ISIL that the West is somehow at war with a religion that includes over a billion adherents,’ Obama said.
‘That’s not smart national security.’
The president instead called for all Americans to reject hatred.
‘Muslim Americans – and all Americans – have to reject discrimination,’ he continued.
‘Muslim Americans – and all Americans have to answer those who peddle hate, or suggest somehow that their interpretations of their faith justify violence.’
‘And in the face of terrorism, we will prevail.’
‘But we will prevail by working together, not driving each other apart.’
Source: dailymail.co.uk