As officials scurried about Paris assessing the damage and seeking to identify the culprits, I know my Muslim friends were thinking, "I hope they're not Muslims." Were innocent people killed again in the name of Allah? If so, my Muslim friends know that Muslims will once again be defined not by what they believe and how they live, but by the actions of a vicious few who pervert the meaning of Islam. They fear that "Muslim" and "terrorist" will become even more deeply seared into the Western psyche. And they fear that when Westerners look at them (Muslims who love peace and hate violence) they will be viewed through distorted lenses, lenses that see them (Muslims who love peace and...
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