In the immediate aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks on our nation 25 years ago, Americans united like we never had before and like we rarely have since then. We gave billions in charity. We donated massive amounts of blood. We stood with impacted families and survivors. We put aside our political infighting. And contrary to what many assume, most people did not countenance hatred against American Muslims. President Bush visited the historic mosque inaugurated by President Eisenhower to denounce hate crimes against Muslims and people perceived to be Muslim, including a Sikh man killed by a white supremacist days after the attack. Many other Americans also visited mosques to build bridges, ask questions, and learn about Islam directly from their Muslim neighbors. American Muslims made it clear that Al-Qaeda did not represent Islam any more than the KKK represented Christianity, and that no political grievance with American foreign policy or warped interpretation of Islam could justify these horrific acts of terrorism. In the years after 9/11, the spirit of unity our nation experienced dissipated. The trauma we all felt after the attacks was exploited to erode civil liberties, justify torture, normalize illegal discrimination, empower hate groups and launch forever wars across the Middle East that killed thousands of American soldiers and hundreds of thousands of men, women and children in numerous countries. Today, bad actors are once again exploiting the 9/11 attacks to score political points, incite discrimination, and justify forever wars overseas. We cannot let these resurgent voices of division, hate and violence succeed. We must instead embrace the spirit of unity that bonded all of us together 25 years ago and stand up for the universal value of human life, anywhere and everywhere. On this 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, we remember the 2,977 men, women and children who were murdered by Al-Qaeda on that day. We remember the first responders, volunteers, and others who were injured while saving lives that day. We remember the over 5,000 people who have lost their lives to cancer and other health-related illnesses since that day. We remember the 60 members of the American Muslim community who were killed that day, including NYPD cadet and paramedic Mohammad Salman Hamdani and New Jersey Muslim community pioneer Tariq Amanullah. We remember Sikh-American Balbir Singh Sodhi and many others who were injured or murdered in hate crimes after that day. And we remember the untold number of civilians in other countries whose lives were also taken in the wake of that terrible day. May God comfort the families of those we lost on and after September 11th, 2001, and may God bless our nation and the world with peace and justice.

"By describing American Muslim public servants as threats to our nation, President Trump is putting a target on the back of Muslim elected officials across our nation... Anti-Muslim hate is out of control in large part because of politicians who hate America’s diversity and cannot stand the sight of American Muslims engaging in the political process."