How the Paris attacks are affecting Muslim children

Editor of French daily invited Muslim children to voice their opinions and share their experiences post-Paris attacks

A French newspaper Le Petit Quotidien and its sister editions have dedicated Tuesday's pages to their young Muslim readers after parents particularly from Muslim families found it hard to talk to their children about the deadly attacks.

"We got praised by parents and teachers saying, 'We really needed your words to be able to explain such an unexplainable things to our kids,'" editor Francois Dufour said.



However, he did receive 10 letters from Muslim parents that did not praise the newspaper’s efforts. "They were from Muslim parents. You cannot write that those guys [the attackers] are Muslims because they are not Muslims, they are just using Islam. Some of us believe in the strict application of Islam and that doesn't make us terrorists."

"We aren't terrorists!!!" say the people on the left." The others reply, "OK! OK! We believe you but let us live!" Source: I' actu

So the editor decided to ask Muslim readers to share their feelings and experiences following the attacks with the readers. "It was not easy to convince them to talk. Those who did, revealed they were frightened, astonished and disgusted - even more so if they are Muslim because they are disgusted that some guys are using their religion to kill.”

"The kids have been extremely shocked to learn that some of the terrorists are French, so it was French killing French, and that was absolutely astonishing for them," he added.

Many children came forward to share their experiences. "When I arrived at school last Monday, some friends treated me like a terrorist. I spoke to my teacher. She explained to my classmates that being a Muslim does not make you a terrorist," nine-year-old Ayman said.

Some, however, made use of the opportunity to share their understanding of Islam. "For me, Islam is to give food and money to poor people, build hospitals to help the sick, give my coat to someone who needs it," Alicia-Rim wrote.

"Me, I am a true Muslim!" says the man with the gun. "Not at all... just a true murderer," is the reply. Source: Mon Quotidien



Older children also wrote to the French newspaper, condemning the attacks and describing their unease in greater detail.

"Attitudes towards us have changed since November 13. On Monday I took the metro with my mother who wears a headscarf. When we entered the carriage, I heard a woman say, 'Oh no, not this now.' My mother and I didn't say anything but it bothered me." 13-year-old Abdelkader wrote.

Another youngster Azziz had a similar story to tell. “You could say that everyone believes we are terrorists. They give us strange looks in the street, they are uneasy, and they look away. I feel that they are scared of us. You could say they think we could do the same, just because we look Arab, Muslim.”

Older teenagers also shared their grievances towards the French government. "The French government does not respect us. They see us as immigrants, as scum, good-for-nothings. The terrorists were wrong to kill. But it is the French government that started bombing Syria. You can't do that: fly over a country and drop bombs! The Daesh [IS] attacks in Paris are a response to the hatred that France gives out." 17-year-old Omar said.

Another teenager Ousmane said that French Muslims lived in ‘ghettos’ which stopped them from integrating. He went on to say, "Daesh uses the hatred people feel and feeds it. They exploit the racism that exists in France. They use divisions in society and Islamophobia."



"The terrorists do not represent Islam. They don't have a religion, the only religion they have is terror. They cite the Quran but take verses about times of war out of context. They forget the verses that promote tolerance. Everything I know about tolerance has been instilled in me by the Quran," 19-year-old Anissa wrote.

But perhaps, seven-year-old Dado says it best. “Terrorists are very nasty. They have made people afraid and that's not good because if people had done the same to them they wouldn't have liked it. In killing people they prevent them from having pleasure in the future, celebrating their birthdays or having a visit from the tooth fairy when they lose a tooth.”

This article originally appeared on BBC