America's decency will overcome the evil and unsettling acts of our time

A mosque in Victoria, Texas, is burned to the ground. An investigation is ongoing, but the fear is that it is a hate crime. The mosque created a GoFundMe campaign and, within a few days, over 23,000 people contributed close to $1.2 million. The American value of extending a helping hand when a neighbor is in need is alive and well.

With the donations came notes of encouragement and support. Extraordinary good came out of great evil.

The travel ban on refugees from Syria and citizens of seven Muslim majority countries that many commentators have called fear mongering has resulted in pain and disruption. It was pointed out by German Chancellor Angela Merkel this action appears to violate the spirit, if not the word, of the Geneva Convention. Spontaneous demonstrations erupted in response to the Executive Order. Scores of attorneys set up shop right in the arrival areas of airports across the United States, including O'Hare International Airport, to provide free counsel.

These were also remarkable displays of our core values of standing up for fair play and volunteerism as a nation.

Muslim Americans are understandably feeling fearful. Parents are trying to shield their young children from hurtful statements made on the media and occasionally, in person. Muslim women who wear the Hijab feel particularly threatened.

There are videos circulating of Muslim women having the headscarves pulled off their heads. There is a report of a man assaulting a Delta employee because she wore a headscarf. These kinds of incidents beg the questions: What if the next time is not a pull on the scarf or a kick to the shin but an assault with a weapon? What if the next mosque is burned down with worshippers in it?

This unease extends to other minorities as well. Recently, a longtime American citizen of Indian origin and Hindu faith left her home for a walk in Bel Air, Maryland, when she was stopped and questioned if she was legal. The chief of police commented that the action may have been insensitive but not illegal. He added that the police were justified to stop the woman and ask about her status because someone had reported a "suspicious person" walking. To the casual observer, it seems that the only thing suspicious about this woman is her skin color.

The event has echoes of incidents when passengers of color or speaking Arabic were thrown out of flights because a fellow traveler thought they looked or acted suspicious. There is a risk of not just flying but walking while brown, whether you are Muslim or not.

People from religious and ethnic minorities in this country are concerned but are also deeply moved at the groundswell of altruism and justice demonstrated by ordinary citizens. They, along with so many of their white American peers, have felt alarmed by many politicians who appear to have accepted the Faustian bargain that they have struck with the new administration. If the policies they espouse on health care, immigration and taxes pass, and a conservative Supreme Court judge is confirmed, everything else appears tolerable.

Ideally, the courts should be the backstop and in the instance of the travel ban, they were.

"The public also has an interest in free flow of travel, in avoiding separation of families, and in freedom from discrimination," the appeals court ruled unanimously while striking down the travel ban.

Acknowledging that "the public has a powerful interest in national security and in the ability of an elected president to enact policies," the justices wrote that the public interest needs to be characterized "more definitely than this."

The decision might be appealed to the Supreme Court but with an even split, the odds of it getting overturned are extremely low. The new conservative justice proposed for the Supreme Court, when confirmed, may tilt the balance to the right. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court in our country is politicized because the appointees largely reflect the politics of the administration in power.

The silver lining in the recent incidents is an opportunity to build on the groundswell of goodwill that has been generated. The Women's March was another demonstration for peace and civility, with one of its aims being restoring women's dignity. These historic and un-orchestrated actions are being transformed into a movement, with social media playing a large role in sustaining it.

Despite the problems that Muslims and other groups are facing, they cannot but be highly optimistic about the future. Large pluralities of Americans are clearly passionate about inclusiveness and fair play. When I see anxiety and fear around me, I feel like sticking my head out of the window and shouting at the top of my voice, "Don't worry, all will be OK."

America has the resilience and decency to survive and emerge even stronger.

Javeed Akhter is a physician and freelance writer from Oak Brook.