You may remember a series of ads that came out within days of the 9/11 attacks showing images of different people from across America. The people featured each ad represented an incredibly different part of the American culture. There were New York businessmen, children on farms in the Mid-West, and people of many ethnicities, backgrounds and religions. These ads, showing such diversity, ended with a simple and powerful statement of unity: I am an American.

Instead of reacting to the tragedy of 9/11 with hatred and fear, the ads encouraged us all to recognize the humanity in one another. Acknowledging our differences gave us the ability to stand together as a diverse people, offering support and love in a time of great sorrow.

According to the Ad Council, the response to the series was overwhelming. Despite the potential for reactionary hatred and violence against those of Arab descent in our country, many people chose to recognize that all Americans suffered on that day. Instead of hatred, these ads spread a message of love, and the nation listened.

As we continue to prepare for the Why Do You Fear Me event, I was again drawn to these ads. I hope that Why Do You Fear Me will give a similar message of love and humanity—not just to Americans or Christians or Muslims, but to the whole world. In “Tea with Hezbollah,” Ted and Carl strive to ask questions that people in all cultures can relate to: What makes you cry? What do your children do that makes you laugh? These are the things that can bring us together, but we must first be willing to ask the questions and hear the answers. Can we identify with the humanity in us all? Can we choose to set aside our fears and assumptions about one another and look, instead, at our similarities?

I hope we can all remember the love and unity felt after 9/11, and the power of recognizing the humanity in us all that the “I am an American” ads promoted. By recognizing the humanity of those whom we don’t understand, we take another vital step toward peace and reconciliation. I encourage you participate in Why Do You Fear Me on January 28th. Visit the website now to purchase your discounted copy of “Tea with Hezbollah: Sitting at the Enemies’ Table” so we can learn, together, about the profound similarities we all share.

Watch a YouTube video of an “I am an American”
here.

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