Tuesday was a dark day for Muslims, African Americans, women and immigrants. Our nation now is divided. Some people feel that Tuesday night the American people lost against Donald Trump. Many citizens are frustrated, devastated and disgusted with Tuesday night’s results, and a lot of fear is growing in communities like mine.

Many Muslim people are afraid to go out because they fear harassment. Muslim women are scared to wear their hijab in public after Trump’s win. Mothers and fathers are asking their daughters not to wear hijabs in public out of fear they will be targeted. It is likely some Muslim women will remove their hijab, not because they want to but because they are afraid of what might happen if they don’t.

Fear about religious expression should not happen in America. There are already a couple of incidents that happened in locally. A community member was almost got run over by SUV—the driver was screaming to the lady to remove her hijab. A police report was made. Another incident happened at the Auburn Walmart. A women dragged a Somali women’s hijab and police report was also made. 

It is very hard to explain to children about this election. You will hear children saying, “Mom, Dad, are we going back to Africa?” We are people who ran away from war-torn nations, violence and persecution. We are trying to build lives and we deserve to have a safe, warm and welcoming home.

We can’t afford to live in fear in this great country — a country we ran to for peace and safety. There are lot of good things we have offered and are continuing to offer to this state and country.   “Go back to Somalia” – this taunt has now become a reality for some. 

There are some who feel that Americans aren’t ready for a woman president, which is sad. Why are we so concerned about women’s rights in Arab counties while we have a nation that isn’t ready for women to be president?

Trump is a man who has insulted numerous individuals, groups, class members, ethnicities, religions and others during his presidential campaign. Many in our community are struggling to understand why Americans would vote for someone to be president who has created a lot of hate. 

I have been getting all kinds of messages and calls since Tuesday night.  Everyone is scared. Even families in Africa are worried, which is weird. They call us constantly to ask us if we are okay. This is a reversal. We used to be worried about their safety, and now they are worried about ours.

 There’s a verse in the Koran that says “And it may be that you dislike a thing which is good for you and that you like a thing which is bad for you. God knows but you do not know.” Many community members are holding on to this verse as part of healing this painful moment and putting all their trust in God.

Fear is growing every minute in our community after the election. But I am so happy to see many Mainers and neighbors reaching out to offer support such as counseling, legal assistance for those who might be harassed, and so on. This encourages me. Our nation must heal the divide that was created during the presidential campaign, and the fears that have resulted from the election. 

As community, as we the people, it is our responsibility to fix the divide caused by our political leader. We need to come together and unify as one people. We need to organize community discussion and dialogue to support each other and move forward.