A note on Constitution Day

CONSTITUTION DAY: On September 17, 1787, thirty-nine brave men signed the United States Constitution.

As the world continues to face an ever-increasing threat from Islamism – most recently in its especially brutal form, that of ISIS – it is more important than ever that we hold fast to the values upon which our nation was founded.

Ongoing threats to liberty the world over – from Pakistan’s blasphemy laws to the sexual violence and other brutality of ISIS – continue to remind us how precious our freedoms are, how brave our founding fathers were in their fight to secure them, and how bold and diligent we must be to protect them. As liberty and reform-minded Muslims, we firmly believe that without the explicit separation of mosque and state, true liberty cannot prosper. In states where there is no real equivalent of America’s First Amendment and Establishment Clause, the tyranny of theocracy is sure to find fertile soil. We remain steadfast in our opposition not just to ISIS, but to all so-called “Islamic States” – that is, any state claiming to be ruled by Islam. As Muslims, we find no conflict between our personal faith and secular governance. Rather, it is America’s commitment to freedom of conscience for people of all faiths and none which allows us to have a dynamic and sincere relationship with our faith.