JOE AHMED-DOBSON, the son of former Labour Cabinet Minister Frank Dobson, converted to Islam five years ago.
Here the 26-year-old tells The Sun how ordinary Muslims condemn the events of September 11 and want lasting peace through tolerance of all religions.
SAY it quietly but Im one of them a Muslim. I was publicly outed last Christmas when the press turned up at my house uninvited.
Youd honestly never guess it to look at me walking down the street.
I dont wear an Arab gown, dont have a big, long beard and my name is Joe. But yes, its true…Im a Muslim.
After reading a copy of the Koran when I was 16, I realised I had found something which explained the why in life in a rational way.
It took another five years before I felt that I could call myself a Muslim and be able to live happily by the rules and officially converted.
It was the best decision I ever made and one that has given me purpose and meaning in life.
Today I am proud to say that I am British and Muslim. I work with the Islamic Society of Britain to promote a positive view of Islam.
But for a long time after converting I kept my beliefs to myself. Theres nothing worse than a God-botherer shoving religion down your throat.
However, the horrific attacks on America changed that.
Many British Muslims black and white realised we had to stand up and say, Were here, this is our home and what happened on September 11, 2001, was not in our name.
We Muslims held a public commemoration at the London Central Mosque the biggest one in Britain on Wednesday for those who died.
It got little coverage because of the horrendous conference held by extremists at the same time just a few miles across north London.
It should be made clear that out of the 1,000 mosques in the UK, these extremists control only one of them.
The idea that if the police cracked down on them there would be an uproar among Muslims is nonsense.
At the same time, the BNP constantly incite hatred against Muslims which we are legally powerless to stop.
The law must be changed to stop all extremists spreading their poison, whether it be those who encourage attacks on Britain in the name of Islam or those who incite attacks on British Muslims in the name of nationalism.
At our commemoration we read a line from the Koran stating: Whoever kills a human being shall be regarded as having killed all mankind; whosoever saves a human life shall be regarded as having saved all mankind.
This reminds us of the police and firefighters who lost their lives while trying to save their fellow New Yorkers.
It also reminds we Muslims of the Palestinian ambulance crews and firefighters who have been regularly shot at while trying to save civilian lives in the past 12 months.
We also remembered and prayed for the thousands who have lost their lives in other conflicts Chechnya, Afghanistan and India.
Islam, like Christianity, teaches us to be positive in life and to talk in good faith to those who are different from us.
The Jewish cabbie who drove me to the commemoration told me a story we all could learn from.
He said: Our neighbours, Muslims, asked us round to their sons birthday party. My cousin said, Theyre Muslim, why do you want to go round there?
I replied, Cos theyre nice people…and we had a really good time.
The best homage we Britons can pay to those who died on September 11 is not to lock ourselves away from each other.
Instead, we must try to follow the lead of my cabbie.
If we just hide and hate, we betray the memories of those who died.
I got this here
Will
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