On August 13, 2010, President Obama
hosted an iftar dinner at the White House.
Iftar is the evening meal when Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at
sunset.[1] Below are excerpts from his remarks that
evening. The full speech is worth a
read, and you can find it here.
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Here at the White House, we have a tradition of hosting
iftars that goes back several years, just as we host Christmas parties and
seders and Diwali celebrations. And these events celebrate the role of
faith in the lives of the American people. They remind us of the basic truth
that we are all children of God, and we all draw strength and a sense of
purpose from our beliefs.
These events are also an affirmation of who we are as
Americans. Our Founders understood that the best way to honor the place
of faith in the lives of our people was to protect their freedom to practice
religion. In the Virginia Act of Establishing Religion Freedom, Thomas
Jefferson wrote that “all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to
maintain, their opinions in matters of religion.” The First Amendment of
our Constitution established the freedom of religion as the law of the
land. And that right has been upheld ever since.
Indeed, over the course of our history, religion has
flourished within our borders precisely because Americans have had the right to
worship as they choose -– including the right to believe in no religion at
all. And it is a testament to the wisdom of our Founders that America
remains deeply religious -– a nation where the ability of peoples of different
faiths to coexist peacefully and with mutual respect for one another stands in
stark contrast to the religious conflict that persists elsewhere around the
globe.
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* * * *
But let me be clear. As a citizen, and as President, I
believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone
else in this country. (Applause.) And that includes the right to
build a place of worship and a community center on private property in Lower
Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This is America.
And our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakeable. The
principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country and that they
will not be treated differently by their government is essential to who we
are. The writ of the Founders must endure.
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* * * *
In my inaugural address I said that our patchwork heritage
is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims,
Jews and Hindus —- and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and
every culture, drawn from every end of this Earth. And that diversity can
bring difficult debates. …. But time and again, the American people
have demonstrated that we can work through these issues, and stay true to our
core values, and emerge stronger for it. So it must be -– and will be -–
today.
And tonight, we are reminded that Ramadan is a celebration
of a faith known for great diversity. And Ramadan is a reminder that
Islam has always been a part of America. The first Muslim ambassador to
the United States, from Tunisia, was hosted by President Jefferson, who
arranged a sunset dinner for his guest because it was Ramadan —- making it the
first known iftar at the White House, more than 200 years ago.
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For in the end, we remain “one nation, under God,
indivisible.” And we can only achieve “liberty and justice for all” if we
live by that one rule at the heart of every great religion, including Islam —-
that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us.
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