CAIR-Philadelphia

Iftekhar Hussain, who moved to the United States from Bangladesh 26 years ago, has been teaching classes in the Delaware Valley area for the last 6 or 7 years, he said. He helped found CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Pennsylvania chapter. Part of the nonprofit's mission statement, Hussain said, is to educate and help spread the true ideas of Islam, especially in a post Sept. 11, 2001, world, where he believes Muslims face discrimination. "We address this issue through education."

Gen. Powell questioned those who were stirring up anti-Muslim fervor: "I'm also troubled by ... what members of the party say ... such things as, 'Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim.' Well, the correct answer is, 'He is not a Muslim. He's a Christian.' ... But the really right answer is, 'What if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country?' The answer's 'No, that's not America.' Is there something wrong with some 7-year-old Muslim American kid believing that he or she could be president?"