Muslims in Atlanta are upset, furious and saddened at the news of the attack at the US consulate that killed J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans. Irrational actions such as this are perpetrated by those who claim to love Islam but in reality have no understanding of its fundamental teachings of peace and tolerance. Here is what some Atlantans have to say:

M.I.W. -
"How ironic...the masses who want to crush such portrayals of the Prophet are the very ones who have now given rise, popularity and credibility to the next Salman Rushdie."

R.K. -
"sad about the turn of events in Libya...Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was attacked, both verbally and physically, many times during his lifetime and he bore it all with patience, mercy, and forgiveness. how ironic that those who claim to be acting on his behalf are so far off from his example. may the perpetrators of this crime be brought to justice and may we all come to a closer understanding of the life and teachings of Muhammad, the most beautiful human being and a mercy to all."

"i am sure i just wrote down what 99.99% of us feel. also, i don't think a lot of ppl understand how much muslims really do love Muhammad (pbuh), and that when he is attacked, we feel it in our very core. i say this bc i don't want it to somehow appear that we don't care about the gravity and vicious nature of what was done/said against him. however, we would do better by him to actually follow his way and channel our emotions into positive action that will better protect his legacy from defamation."

S.M. -
"yes, but unfortunately us Muslims take these pictures, books, or videos too seriously... I personally believe it is a way to deflect on a people's real problems and channel their frustrations and anger at a seemingly easy target. Nothing binds a nation more than fanning a religious issue, and we see a repeat of this over and over again. Yet, we should also be prepared to see more of these, as simply demanding another disparate set of people to stop trying to create more of these will not stop, in fact it will only help grow that campaign. Unfortunately Muslims are too scared to come out and call it out for fear of backlash from their own - examples of Salman Taseer and such..."

S.M. -
"The thing about having 1.5 billion people following your religion is that there is bound to be a few violent morons among them. Unfortunately, the current situation is that I'm expected to explain their behavior every time one of them does something stupid. #tiredofthis #enoughisenough.."

Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta -
"It is also an Islamic principle that one does not blame or punish another for the crimes of another. The employees at the embassies were in no way responsible for the actions of either Terry Jones or the producers of the film. Such extreme responses, in fact, can only help Islamophobic interests. Such actions and reactions are but a useless cycle of hate that benefit no one and as occurred yesterday, can be potentially dangerous and even deadly."

Imam Mansoor Sabree of The Atlanta Masjid -
"The Atlanta Masjid of Al-Islam and the muslim community in Atlanta condemns in the strongest possible terms the killings and attacks on U.S. diplomatic compounds in Libya and Egypt on Tuesday, September 11th. The parties responsible for these events in both countries claimed to be reacting to an online film considered offensive to muslims. It is Important for us to be clear; In no way does their actions of violence represent the religion of Al-Islam, muslims worldwide nor specifically the American muslim community. It is a greater defamation of the teachings of Al-Islam to react with violence and murder of innocent people . Our prayers are truly with the victims and their families."

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