On Northern Kentucky University’s campus, a professor authorized posting a display on a board that belongs to her department. It was offensive to Muslim students, both international and American. It was a picture of a woman’s feet tattooed with Quran scriptures and a gun coming out from the middle.
Muslim students were doubly offended. First, it’s a lack of respect to Islam by writing the scriptures on feet. Secondly, putting the Quran scripture alongside a gun implies that Muslims are terrorists.
The students immediately contacted the International Student Affairs Office, which contacted the professor at once. The professor apologized and she promised to take the display down as soon as possible, saying that she didn’t understand the content of the script and she didn’t know it was Quran.
We are hoping that such an incident will not happen again, that professors ensure they’re aware of the content and meaning of their displays, and that they will consider the feelings of students from different backgrounds.
Yousif Salame freshman electronic media and broadcasting