Moein Khawaja, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Philadelphia, who was born in the United States and whose parents are from Pakistan, said: "I'll never forget the day my country was attacked so brutally. I'll also never forget that at the same time my faith and the religion of over a billion people was tarnished in such a manner that one of the most recognized Muslims in the world ended up being Osama bin Laden. I'm confident that my fellow Americans know that Islam isn't and never was bin Laden or his ideology."

Local authorities are on high alert at mosques, synagogues and major transit hubs, watching out for potential retaliatory violence in the wake of Osama bin Laden’s death. Philadelphia and SEPTA police both stepped up patrols to discourage any attacks.

"The truth is that every single woman I know that covers up does it on her own," said Moein Khawaja, executive director of the Philadelphia's Council on American Islamic Relations, who is married. His wife dresses modestly and covers her head, but she doesn't wear a niqab. "It's their way of saying, 'Forget what everyone wants me to do.' It's empowering for them to have control over their own style of dress."