Don't use 'Muslim' in offensive way

I am writing this letter to oppose how numerous amounts of people call Barack Obama a "Muslim" in an offensive way. For instance, when I was walking to a football scrimmage with my teammates, the Obama/McCain campaign came up. My cousin and I naturally supported Obama and opposed McCain. One of my teammates exclaimed, "but he's a Muslim." My cousin and I were shocked that anyone would use that as an excuse to not vote for a candidate. I know that it's probably the parents who told my teammate about that, so I didn't blame him for saying it. When my family and I came upon a McCain/Palin commercial. One of the comments was "Barack Hussein Obama, Leader of The Society of Terrorist Muslims."

Obama's father's family was Muslim, but Obama was raised as a Christian by his mother. His mother was 19 when Barack was born and his father abandoned them when he was 2 years old. Barack's dad came back when he was 10, only to make sure that Barack was a good student. His dad left again to Kenya and never came back. So why call Obama a Muslim? He doesn't have a reason to be. I'm a Muslim and I wouldn't like to be called anything else, so why call Obama a Muslim? Or is it racism? Is it because he's half-African that some people just can't stand the thought of Barack being in the White House? Or is it about the war in Iraq? Or that some people don't have any idea where the terrorists come from? So, my fellow Americans, don't call Obama a Muslim in an offensive manner, or else you'll prove that you're no better than the people in the past.

Naasir Haleem

5th grade, Mill Street Elementary School Naperville