I'm sure this has been reported before, but I feel that I have to speak out on it.
The far-right meme "Obama is a Muslim" carries with it a current of bigotry that is really pernicious and disturbing. First of all, Obama isn't a Muslim. But so what if he WERE a Muslim? Would being a Muslim make him any less qualified for the Presidency? Would it make him any less patriotic, any less American?
In other words, why does the idea that Obama might be a Muslim strike so much fear into the hearts of people?
Islam is a complex religion, and Muslims in this country have just as much freedom to worship and to express their identity as do Christians, Jews, Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists, and anyone else. That's one of the things the 1st Amendment protects.
The "Obama is a secret Muslim" meme is nothing but pure, disgusting, unjustifiable bigotry in its worst form. If we're truly a free country, then the idea of a Muslim President should cause no more consternation than does the idea of a Christian president, or a Jewish president, or a Hindu president, or an atheist president.
