Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination, called for a ban on Muslims entering the USA after the recent mass shooting in San Bernardino, California, where 14 people were killed in an attack by a Muslim couple that was allegedly inspired by the Islamic State (IS).
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The Pew Research Center study found 65 percent of Republicans, or those who lean Republican, want President Barack Obama’s successor to speak bluntly about Islamic extremism, even if the statements are critical of Islam as a whole.
“This is not a clash of civilisations between the West and Islam”, he said and asked American-Muslims to show they’re faithful to Islam and also part of a pluralistic society in the US.
“An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths”, said Obama, noting that it is the global task of all religious faithful to condemn violence.
Inserting himself into a debate that has ricocheted in the presidential campaign, Obama told parishioners at a mosque outside Baltimore that he had heard from young Muslims anxious they’ll be rounded up and kicked out of the country.
Obama also urged Muslims to be vigilant in their communities and to shun terrorist groups like al Qaeda and ISIS.
The Islamic Society of Baltimore has received such threats. “Muslim Americans are some of the most resilient and patriotic Americans you’ll ever meet”, he said.
The president has accused prominent political figures of using fear to win support, and said those tactics are dividing the country and fueling propaganda by terror groups like Islamic State and al-Qaida.
“We have to understand that an attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths”, Obama said at the mosque in Catonsville, a suburb west of Baltimore.
“Obama’s address was inspiring, but also a reminder that we must continue to engage and serve our community as way to combat Islamophobia and strengthen the fabric of our nation”, said ISNA president Azhar Azeez. “We must not give them legitimacy”, Obama said.
“Most of the Muslim population in America, right now, feels very insecure”, said Ajazuddin Shaikh.
Obama has visited mosques in the past, but never inside the United States, which is home to 2.75 million Muslims, according to the Pew Research Centre.
Obama isn’t the first president to visit a mosque in order to stress unity and tolerance.
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Barack Hussein Obama has had a complicated relationship with Muslims.
