As a U.S. citizen and a resident of Bothell, I am deeply saddened by the recent hate acts against my fellow Americans and their places of worship. I find it hard to understand what the motive was behind it.

Our forefathers came to this land to be free and avoid religious persecution. We, as Americans, have made sacrifices to uphold our values of equality and justice for all with religious freedom and tolerance. We believe in winning the hearts and the minds of friends and foes alike. As a result, we are the beacon of hope for the rest of the world. As a civil society and peace-loving citizens of Bothell, I pray that those who made this error in judgement can see the light of wisdom and truth and recognize that it is the goodness in our heart and purity of our intent that has made America what it is today, the only superpower. Our unity and diversity is our strength. It is in America where we have entrusted a son of an African Muslim to be our commander-in-chief and keep Americans safe and protect us from terrorists.

It is extremely unfortunate that recently some individuals amongst us vandalized a Hindu temple, an Islamic mosque and a local junior high school with hateful messages. Yes, in our own backyard, some individuals have unsuccessfully tried to harass our peace-loving, law-abiding, tax-paying fellow Americans. They did not even spare a school, possibly trying to affect the minds of the youngsters. I fail to understand their aim or what are they wanting and what they get out of it. No religion, whether it is Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, people from other faiths, and non believers, including atheists alike do not preach hurting anybody’s feelings or provoke attacking others religious sites and places of worship. This is what differentiates us from our enemies and this is why there is such a clear-cut difference between good and evil. And we know that in the end, good guys win. And this is the reason that civilization continues to prosper.

I see this as a challenge for all of us to get these uninformed individuals back in the fold. We are one big family and we have to educate those who try to scare our fellow Americans of different faiths. We have to make them recognize how our differences do not make anybody better or lesser then others and having a different faith does not mean a threat to anyone. We see on a daily basis how people from different faith are serving our nation in all fields including military and civil, contributing to our progress. We have to start teaching our children not to harass our next generation of Americans in school. We have to support our schools to help educate tolerance and acceptance of each other. The families, clergy, media, leaders, both elected and non elected, and society in general, all have to continue to work on emphasizing the principles of mutual respect and tolerance and condemn any un-American acts.

I know that we as a Bothell community, care for our neighbors and we support and stand up for what is right. I hope and pray for my fellow citizens that God keeps us all safe and away from any danger. I also hope that those individuals who engaged in recent vandalism, make the right choices in the future and adhere to the American principles. Our togetherness is what makes America strong.

May God bless America.

Nadia Mustafa is a former city council candidate and a resident of Bothell.