The three young Muslim American students were murdered execution style on the night of February 10th, 2015. By now the murders, that of Deah Barakat, Yusor Abu-Salha, and her sister Razan have permeated primetime. The speed with which the murders took on a myriad of characteristics and motives is a reflection of the shocking and threatening nature of the incident. Was the shooter racially and religiously motivated, or was it merely a squabble over parking space? Did the media take too long to cover the story? Is it wrong to immediately think it was a hate crime? Why did these murders strike such a nerve with me? Maybe it is because my first reaction was that they were racially motivated—maybe not. What is certain though is that the murders felt like an attack on American, and more importantly, human ideals of equality, security, and civility. I remember vividly the day the Twin Towers were attacked. I remember my mom crying in the living room of our California home. In the days that followed, I remember my father pacing repeatedly saying, “It won’t be the same.” Not two weeks later, in…
