There have been 210 mass shootings in the United States this year. A mass shooting is described as a shooting that has four or more victims. Of those 210 mass shootings, only one, the killing of the Marines in Chattanooga, Tennessee, was perpetrated by a Muslim. That unfortunate and tragic incident is the only mass shooting in which the media mentioned the religion of the shooter. It is also the only one where the psychological issues the shooter was clearly struggling with were dismissed as the most important factor informing his actions. Instead of focusing on his mental state a fervent but futile search was undertaken to discover his connection to “Jihadi” groups.

Hence, someone is over 200 times more likely to be a victim of a mass shooting perpetrated by a non-Muslim, yet the media has skillfully cultivated a fear of Islam and Muslims to such an extent that most people think the greatest threat to their safety and well-being is Muslims. I don’t blame the media for this, they are only doing their job. We need desperately to develop our own media resources to tell our own story and to define ourselves to the public as we are and not as some parties wish to present us.