By Rehan Ali, Fullerton, CA
Our government’s visa restrictions on male Muslims (16 to 45 of age) is both insensitive profiling and stereotyping of Muslims that only strengthen the impression that this is after all a ‘crusade’. President Bush may not want to conduct a ‘crusade’. But it cannot be disputed that many Muslims sense that to be the case after seeing the list of 22 Most Wanted Men in the world (Muslims only); 25 countries black listed for US visa restrictions (Muslims countries only); and now the male 18 to 33 years of age who have entered the US on non-immigrant visas that Uncle Sam wants to talk to.
All the countries blacklisted for visa restrictions are Muslim countries, including our front-line ally Pakistan. What could be more blunt, crude and insensitive than that?
Targeting Muslims would damage our claim that Islam is not the enemy in our war on terrorism. The focus exclusively on Muslims and Muslim countries is magnified. Are there no terrorists among non-Muslims in the world? Pakistanis are doubly violated for such shabby treatment for a front-line country that has gone out on a limb to back the US cause.
P.S: When Muslim rulers treat their own citizens with contempt, they too share the blame for the shabby treatment their nationals receive abroad.