Muslim Americans are pushing back against Republican frontrunner Donald Trump by tweeting photos under the hashtag #MuslimAmericanFaces to protest his proposal to shut down the country’s borders to Muslims.
The photos include Muslim Americans from all walks of life – families, yogis, students, writers, faith leaders, athletes and activists – who have banded together under the hashtag to protest Trump’s extreme policy proposal.
Benjamin Wittes, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, started the hashtag in reaction to the ugly rhetoric against deployed against Muslim Americans in the last week.
“I thought it would be nice to remind people that there are actual people that we are talking about,” Wittes told the Guardian.
My sister, Marwa. Pianist, bookworm, cross-country team member, annoyed from older brother. #muslimamericanfaces pic.twitter.com/3ZCFjAZjB0
— Adham Sahloul (@adhamsahloul) December 9, 2015
The hashtag has since gone viral, with Muslims across the country posting selfies, group shots and photographs of historical figures to show the long, intertwined history of Muslims and the US.
#MuslimAmericanFaces has received mostly warm reactions from Muslim Americans, pleased with the opportunity to present a glimpse into their everyday lives.
Faith leader, #interfaith bridge-builder, trying to put a little love in the world. ❤️ #MuslimAmericanFaces pic.twitter.com/UQcy1oo07D
— Christina Tasca (@Christina_Tasca) December 9, 2015
While Wittes recognized that hashtags alone cannot do much to effect political change, he said it is a small way to remind others that Muslims are people with “real lives, real accomplishments and real faces”.
“It’s unfortunate that people need this kind of reminder,” he said.
Obnoxiously terrible writer. Professional complainer. I have a cat. #MuslimAmericanFaces pic.twitter.com/TL8BsBm2K4
— Seedo_Amjad (@SeedoAmjad) December 10, 2015
Fashion designer. Comic book nerd. Korean beauty product obsessed. Believes Han shot 1st. #MuslimAmericanFaces pic.twitter.com/1qnPuHbl5T
— Fatima Monkush (@FatimaMonkush) December 10, 2015
The wider response has been mixed, however. Conservatives on Twitter appropriated the hashtag to instead share pictures of terrorists.
Extreme rightwing blogger Pamela Geller, who funded an anti-Islam ad campaign to be placed on New York City buses and in subway stations in 2014, shared a picture of Faisal Shahzad, who was charged with an attempted terrorist attack in the 2010 Times Square car bombing, accompanied by the hashtag.
“Unfortunately, there are people who are trolling it with pretty unfortunate messages,” Wittes said. “And that’s kind of a bummer, but there’s nothing I can do about it.”
He noted that most of the reaction has been “lovely”, with “people tweeting pictures of themselves and also people they care about”.
.@AttiyaLatif, Jefferson Scholar, Student Leader, Activist, Badass #MuslimAmericanFaces. Share three more. pic.twitter.com/c21Wbf2TrM
— Maraam Dwidar (@maraamdwidar) December 9, 2015
