Terrorists caused death and destruction on Sept. 11, 2001. But they also hijacked the faith of Islam. By painting a violent, militant picture of the religion, terrorist extremists have created suspicion of all Muslims. But the truth is that terrorists do not represent Islam or Muslims.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has, since its founding, upheld the sanctity of all life as emphasized by Islam. The Holy Quran teaches that life is sacred and reaffirms Talmudic teachings that whoever unjustly kills a single person is as if he had killed all of mankind; and whoever saves the life of one person is as if he has saved the life of all of humanity (5:33). In his Farewell Pilgrimage address, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, “Even as this month, land and day of Pilgrimage are holy, so has God made the blood, property and honor of every human being sacred.”
In 2010, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community launched its “Muslims for Peace” campaign in the United States and the United Kingdom, with the goal of demonstrating that Muslims do stand for peace. The campaign included bus and billboard advertisements, interfaith dialogue events and distribution of flyers by our members door-to-door and in public areas.
The “Muslims for Life” campaign, whose goal is to collect enough blood to save 30,000 lives in honor of those who lost theirs on 9/11, is a natural continuation of the theme that Islam teaches peace and sanctity of all life.
We invite all Americans to join us as we collect 10,000 units of blood in the month of September, to demonstrate the true spirit of peace and collaboration—values that we hold dear in this country. Donate blood through one of our drives or help your organization work with us to coordinate a drive of your own.