It all started on September 11, 2001, when 4 planes were hijacked. Two crashed into the Twin Towers, one into the Pentagon, and one into a field that was headed either toward the White House or the Capitol. A total of nineteen Middle Eastern terrorists, part of a terrorist group known as Al-Qaeda led by Osama bin Laden, were involved in this attack. The murder of nearly 3,000 people and the destruction of some of America's most famous buildings left Americans hurt, scarred and afraid. Since September 11, 2001, Muslims have been stereotyped as terrorists on a daily basis, especially every September 11 after the attack. While Americans fear Muslims, Muslims fear Americans. When this tragic event happened, I was a 6-year-old girl living in Slovakia. Living with my mother and an older sister, while my father lived in the United States, had us turning on the television and watching the news. I was only 6 years old so I didn't really understand what was happening but I knew my dad was pretty close to where it happened and that worried me. I was so angry at Muslims because my dream was to go to New York and visit the World Trade Center. Without even wanting to know what other Muslims thought about it and without living near any Muslims at that time, I didn't like them. When I was 11, I moved to the United States. It was my first encounter with Muslims and I felt fear just because of what I remember happening on 9/11. Soon I realized that I was completely wrong and my judgment was so vicious. Just because someone was a Muslim never...... middle of paper......that shouldn't be reflected in all the Middle East. While Americans are afraid to sit next to Muslims, Muslims are afraid to sit next to Americans. It's been 12 years and they're probably tired of being judged and discriminated against. It is time for America to end this chapter of hatred and move on. Stereotypes are terrorism. Works Cited Binder, Matt. “Public shame.” Privilege tweets. Tumblr, 2013. The web. January 2, 2014.Eltahawy, Mona. “The Challenge of Being a Muslim in Post-9/11 America.” the guard. 2014Guardian News and Media Limited, September 9, 2011. Web. January 16, 2014.Patel, Neil and Pragya Kakani. “Are Americans afraid of Muslims? Harvard Political Review. Harvard Political Review, November 4, 2010. Web. December 27, 2013. Syed, Mahjabeen. “How a Muslim feels about 9/11.” ChicagoNow. News Apps Team, September 11, 2013. Internet. December 27 2013.