The Islamic, Starkville and Mississippi State University communities came together in a town meeting (Sept. 14, 2001), to discuss the tragedies in New York City and Washington D.C.
MSU President Malcolm Portera, Starkville Mayor Mack Rutledge, Starkville Police Capt. David Lindley and other leaders met with the Islamic community to become one community.
Before the town meeting took place, a prayer meeting was held in the prayer room at the center.
“We are all one people in this tragedy, and we express our loss with you,” Portera said.
Zahir U. Warsi, engineering professor, spoke first about his resolution on the tragedy and expressed his feelings on the tragedy.
“We are all saddened by this horrible and terrible act of terrorism,” the resolution of the Islamic Center of Mississippi reads. “The horror is unspeakable and like every American, we are paralyzed by the carnage.
“Like every American, we are outraged and we want justice,” Warsi’s resolution said. “A few misguided persons took onto themselves and acted, which is deplorable in Islam. Islam does not condone violence or suicide bombing. Islam is simply the worship and submission to the God of Abraham, the same peace-loving God that Jews and Christians pray to.”
Warsi continued with his presentation and started to speak about the tragedies and hardships that he has been through during this time of grieving.
“I don’t remember in the past few years when so much energy was taken out of me,” Warsi said. “America opened her arms to us (Muslim people).”
After Warsi spoke, Rutledge took the floor.
“We can hardly imagine the loss that happened Tuesday,” Rutledge said. “The ripples of pain from New York City and Washington, D.C. have made their way to Starkville.”
“I pray for the values to continue and that we extend the hand of brotherhood and it be taken in love,” he said.
Although Rutledge spoke very briefly on the situation, he made an impression on everyone in the room. Some listeners were wiping their eyes from tears, but most were smiling.
Portera spoke about the MSU response to the Islamic community in the past, as well as the present.
He told the crowd he believed the Islamic community was a vital part of the MSU community and campus.
“The mounds of rubble are located in America, but the mounds extend into every part of the world,” Portera said.
“I want to express my regret on your loss and your tragedy,” he said. “We also want to apologize for the acts of vandalism that took place this week.”
On Tuesday, two suspected teenagers drove by the Islam Center of Mississippi and threw eggs and tomatoes at the center.
There is an investigation on who committed this act of vandalism.
“We want to build a stronger community at MSU, Starkville, Oktibbeha County and Mississippi,” he said.
“The world is vast, large and complex,” Portera said. “But we all need to build a better self for the complex world.”
Portera continued his speech by talking about what each part of the community needed to do to complete this task.
He also went on to say how students needed to be educated in today’s world.
“The international community is vital to the success here at Mississippi State,” Portera said. “We are all called to action.”
The floor was then left open to the crowd for anyone to speak his or her mind and thoughts.
“It is a very critical time for relationships and communication,” Doug Herring, a retired bank executive, said. “We need to stay aware of how this is going to bring us together.”
The protection of the Islamic community has been in doubt since Tuesday because of possible connections with Osama bin Laden.
Many people in the community have expressed their feelings about the Islamic community including the recent vandalism at the center.
Starkville Police Capt. David Lindley spoke by telling the community that everything will be under full control and any incident would be resolved.
“We are working on finding who did this act of vandalism,” he said. “If you need us, call us, and we will be there.”
This was the first meeting for all the city officials to meet inside the Islamic Center in recorded history.
Mayor Rutledge did state this was the first time he had ever come to the Islamic Center.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published in The Reflector on Sept. 18, 2001.