Heres a quick question for you: Have you ever once in your life heard of a state designating a day of the year as Christian Recognition Day, Buddhist Recognition Day, Hindu Recognition Day or Jewish Recognition Day? Earlier this week, Iowa state Gov. Terry Branstad signed a proclamation designating Wednesday, April 8, 2015, as Muslim Recognition Day.
The proclamation reportedly also recognizes the many individuals and families of Muslim faith who make this state their home and willingly share their rich tradition and culture with other Iowans.
Apparently, the governor has been signing an Iowa Muslim Day proclamation for a number of years. However, this year was special, because it was the second year in a row that local Muslims were permitted to hold a public event at the Statehouse designed to combat Islamophobia.
To educate people about the Islamic religion, we need to be visible, State Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, a Democrat, explained to reporters. That is our job and our duty to do that. It is our job even to talk about terrorism. We have to denounce it when we see it. We have to let people know that this is not something that we promote.