A Muslim in the Army

A recent article in The Washington Post provides a startlingly in-depth and emotional account of a young American Muslim serving in the U.S. Army. The article covered the backlash and harassment Zachari Klawonn deals with as a Muslim soldier.

The first thing that struck me was the picture at the beginning of the article: A lean, olive skinned young man wearing  Army fatigues standing on a prayer rug with his hands raised to begin the prayer. As soon as I saw it I felt drawn in. The picture felt familiar and right. And not just because I come from a military family and have seen my father pray in his uniform several times. It felt right because  the picture affirmed for me, the promise of America. That there is no conflict between being American and being Muslim.

As I read the story, I found myself simultaneously feeling detached and connected to him. Detached because I couldn’t relate to the intense harassment he was put through because of his faith. I’ve been blessed throughout my life to be surrounded by people with warm hearts. I felt connected to him though, because of his desire to serve.

Zachari talks about his decision to enlist in the Army:

Then Klawonn’s father was told he had cancer and died just weeks later. Golf suddenly seemed so trivial. Klawonn thought back to how his dad, a convert to Islam, had always talked about his five years in the Air Force. How he had enlisted straight out of his Kansas high school. How it had given his life purpose and molded him into the man he was.

He could be like his father: one of his country’s proud defenders. There were Muslims to protect in the United States, just as there were in Iraq.

To this day, one of my only regrets was not having been able to serve in our nation’s Armed Forces, as my father and brother do. I can definitely understand and appreciate the pull, as Zachari did, to be a part of something greater than yourself. And just like Zachari, unfortunately, I’ve come across a few people who seem to think that an American Muslim cannot or should not serve in the U.S. Military. This view has been rejected:

Muzammil Siddiqi, an imam in Orange County, Calif., and member of the North American Fiqh Council, which issues rulings on issues of concern to Muslims, said Islam in no way prohibits Muslims from serving in the U.S. or other non-Muslim militaries, and they may even participate in war.

I encourage all young Muslims to read this article. The harassment Zachari had to put up with is frustrating, but the real gem of the story is how Zachari held up under such mental and physical strain with a healthy attitude looking forward instead of backwards.