Obama: When Muslim-Americans Are Targeted, ‘It Tears at the Very Fabric of Our Nation’

“And that’s an anxiety echoed in letters I get from Muslim Americans around the country. I have had people write to me saying I feel like a second-class citizen. I’ve had mothers write and say my heart cries every night thinking about how our daughter might be treated at school. Girl from Ohio, 13-years-old told me I’m scared. A girl from Texas signed her letter, a confused 14-year-old trying to find her place in the world. These are children just like mine. And the notion that they would be filled with doubt and questioning their place in this great country of ours, at a time when they’ve got enough to worry about, it’s hard being a teenager already, that’s not who we are. We’re one American family and when any part of our family starts to feel separate, or second class or targeted it tears at the very fabric of our nation.”