American Muslims Celebrated In Viral Twitter Hashtag ‘Muslim American Faces’

Anti-Muslim rhetoric in the United States has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks, as have incidents of backlash against members of the Muslim faith. That’s why a senior fellow at a Washington, D.C., think tank launched a hashtag on Wednesday to humanize the country’s Muslims.

Benjamin Wittes, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, started #MuslimAmericanFaces with this tweet on Wednesday morning:

“Enough vile rhetoric directed at Muslim Americans. Share #MuslimAmericanFaces,” he wrote in another tweet.

"There seems to be a lot of people in this country who need reminding that there are real people involved when they talk about excluding Muslims from the United States," Wittes told AlJazeera.com.

Since his first tweet, the hashtag has taken off, with dozens of Muslims sharing pictures of themselves and others, describing the American Muslims featured. The tweets feature athletes, students, children, lawyers and others from all walks of life.

Historical pictures are included, as well. One tweet featured the picture of an American convert to Islam pictured in 1893. Another depicted a freed slave.

"I don't think hashtags change the world, but they provide an opportunity for people to celebrate the accomplishments of friends and neighbors, whether the person that posts is a Muslim or not," added Wittes.