25 years after 9/11, many Muslims fear a new backlash

The morning of Sept. 11, 2001, began like any other day. Sabinah Mohyuddin was getting her kids ready for school in Clarksville, Tennessee, while her husband, a cancer physician, was still asleep.

Then the first plane struck the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City.

"I remember when it happened, because my husband always put his alarm to National Public Radio," she said. "He came running out shouting, 'Turn on the TV!'"

It wasn't clear whether the first strike was intentional. After dropping her kids off, Mohyuddin watched in horror as a second plane crashed into the south tower.

She and the rest of the nation waited in petrified anticipation for answers about who was behind the attack that killed nearly 3,000 people.

Then Mohyuddin, a Muslim, learned the hijakers also followed Islam.

"It fell on me like a heavy weight," she said. "What did this mean for the Muslim community? What did this mean for me?"

Now, 25 years after the attacks, Muslims across the country are asking the same question as they experience rising Islamophobia and concerns about their First Amendment right to religious freedom.

Over 40% of U.S. adults believe Muslims are less…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/