3 Heroes in Portland
The climate of Trumpistan (aka America) is one where the most dreadful things like hate speech and incitement of violence are dying to become normalized. So much so- people are dying. Trump’s America is killing people.
When a white, extremist terrorist who will not be named on my blog- no notoriety here- walked on a train, he decided to terrorize a black teen and hijab-clad Muslim teen. 3 heroes came to their aid, and he slashed all of their throats. 2 heroes died and 1 survived.
I join the others in the Muslim community that hail these men as heroes. Launch Good campaigns and blogs will not bring these men back. But as far as this Muslim is concerned, they all saved lives which is like saving all of humanity. What we have here are 3 men that now own the key to heaven.
Image: People Magazine
Portland Stabbing Victims: Best, Namkai-Meche, Fletcher
Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche was only 23 and had his entire life ahead of him. The glimpse into his spirit that his family has shared publicly shows a soulful individual with integrity and enormous potential.
Rick Best was an Army Veteran of more than 2 decades who was driven to serve humanity.
Micah Fletcher, 21, is a poet and by the grace of God, survived the attack. He has shared his perspective — as difficult as it is. We grant him the space he needs and the heartfelt gratitude for his heroic efforts.
I am proud of the Muslim community for coming together to collect funds for Micah the families of the 2 fallen heroes. I hope that Micah uses the funds for whatever he needs in life– and doesn’t feel for a moment that he is not deserving.
Launch Good Campaign for the Portland Victims
Sentiments from friends to the families:
“The men are martyrs. They have a place in heaven. Amen!” ~Jasmine
“Your son was amazing human being. He stood up to bigotry and hatred. He wasn’t afraid to stand up against injustice. May he rest in peace and may Almighty make it easier on you. Your son is a true hero.” ~Ifeta
“This lunatic, the attacker, was very clearly disturbed and suffered from mental illness and societal maladjustment … though he attacked two very obvious and soft targets, two young females, and the crux of his hatred seems to have been centered around xenophobia, I think that mental illness in this country continues to be something we never talk about or prioritize. Our streets and prisons are filled with sick and mentally ill individuals, and crimes like these are easy to be labeled as hate crimes – I think that this particular one may be yet another example of the worst mental illness manifested as hatred- toward Muslims, foreigners, women, or anyone in the way…But this piece of shit man seems to have been a ticking bomb… and without asylums, where do we house these individuals? And of course, who would pay for this? It’s so sad; but the deaths of the men who came to the girls’ rescue highlight that this guy wanted to kill… white, Muslim, men, women… he was bent on killing someone to honor his hatred… the two men were amazing humans and because of them these two girls have a chance at life, and at giving life forward as mothers … so maybe this tragedy holds a greater purpose – I don’t know, but I hope.” ~Patricia
Our country needs healing from the hate and its deadly repercussions. Let’s hope this low point in our history will lead us to take our elections much more seriously … to install representatives that uphold the tenets of our Constitution not only in action and speech but in character. The right-wing hate climate has done enough damage. We cannot allow it to continue to fester and take more lives.
About the Author
About the Author: I'm a Writer, Speaker and Muslim Activist. I'm a former Board Member of the #MyJihad Public Education Campaign.
Follow my blog at yasminareality.com or follow me on Twitter: @yasmina_reality. I'm also now on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YasminaReality
Peace! More from this author.
Don't Miss the Next Great Post
If you enjoyed this blog post, subscribe below, and you'll receive an automatic email update when we publish new content.