Religion and Values: Faith in Values: What We’ve Learned Since 9/11.
When people are forced to choose between protecting their safety and guarding their civil rights, almost everyone picks safety. After all, what good are rights if you’re injured or dead?

In the days after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, many policymakers used this forced choice to argue for new surveillance laws such as the Patriot Act. The law gave the government sweeping new powers to spy on Americans by wiretapping, seizing financial records, tracking Internet activity, and more; but these measures, we were told, were a necessary trade-off for security.
Twelve years after that terrible September day, it is worth recalling the premise of the choice presented to us—safety versus civil rights—because it was false. Targeting people who looked or sounded Muslim was tactically misguided and morally wrong. It wasted time and resources and distracted law enforcement officials from focusing on real evidence and threats. It risked alienating Muslim American communities rather than encouraging their civic engagement and partnerships with law enforcement. It gave credence to terrorists around the globe who pointed to the indiscriminate targeting of Muslim Americans as proof that America hated Islam and those who practiced the faith. Beyond all that, targeting a group of people because of their race, ethnicity, or religion was—and is—a serious violation of America’s core values of religious freedom and equal justice under the law. Fortunately, we have learned some lessons over the past 12 years. Here are some things we now know.
Community mosques in this country, rather than being hotbeds of violent extremism, actually deter radicalization and extremism through a range of efforts, such as denouncing violence, providing youth programs, confronting extremists, and cooperating with law enforcement.
Muslim American communities are valuable allies in the efforts against violence extremism. Since 9/11, they have helped law enforcement officials prevent more than 40 percent of the Al Qaeda terrorist plots threatening America. In addition, these communities are diverse, socially engaged, and committed to democratic values.
Terrorists and the hate groups that sponsor many of them come in all shapes and colors, from white supremacists and border vigilantes to anti-abortion extremists and racist skinheads. CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE.