Religion – “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances”. A right promised to us from the beginning of the construction and establishment of the United States. Unfortunately, some nations such as China don’t live by the same law and have taken it upon themselves to detain Muslims in what they call “political education camps”.

CNN recently interviewed exiled Uyghur activists and human rights advocacy groups, who described the horrid sights as “every household, every family had three or four people taken away. In some villages, you can’t see men on the streets anymore–only women and children–all men have been sent to the camp”. This statement came from Omer Kanat, the executive committee chairman of the World Uyghur Congress, an umbrella group for the Uyghur diaspora. “Families are suffering, loved ones’ are being stripped away from their homes, from their families. Children are growing up without their fathers”.

Possible reasons for this are that “tensions have remained high in Xinjiang–a resource-rich area long inhabited by the Turkic-speaking ethnic Uyghurs–following a spate of violent attacks in recent years. The Chinese authorities have blamed the incidents on Muslim Uyghur separatists seeking to establish an independent state”.

According to CNN, “detainees are required to praise the ruling Communist Party, sing revolutionary songs, learn to speak Mandarin, study the thought of Chinese leader Xi Jinping, and confess perceived transgressions such as praying at a mosque or traveling abroad, according to activists.” In some camps, they are converting over 2,800 people – they are stripping them of their religion and forcing them to change themselves in order to live in this society. The program aims to rewire the political thinking of those being detained, erasing their Islamic beliefs, and reshaping their identities as a whole.

These camps continue to grow with no judicial process or legal paperwork. Those who oppose conformity are forced to solitary confinement, beatings, and food deprivation. This is unconstitutional, as deemed through the U.S. Constitution, and is outright inhumane.

This closely correlates to the Holocaust, where being Jewish “allowed” Hitler and his Nazis to abduct people from their homes, strip them from their families, and detain them in concentration camps where they were in the hands of those who despised them. Muslims in China are being forced to live under monstrous conditions such as the force-feeding of pork along with a combination of acts that go against everything the Islamic religion stands for.

Regardless if one is in agreement with the Islamic religion, the mistreatment of human beings – moms, dads, sisters, brothers, sons, and daughters – is heinous.

Acts like these are being done in China. Helpless Muslims are suffering because of the religion they choose to live their lives by. Religion is something one puts their trust into, something that never leaves them through both good and hard times. Religion doesn’t judge. Why do we?

Acts to prevent ones’ efforts in being a holy human being are being put into action at this very moment. Those of you who are United States citizens – be thankful you live in a country that values your freedom to choose and express your own religion. The freedom to believe what you please and not have to worry about your life, your freedom, or your family being stripped away from you at any given moment.

Send your thoughts and prayers to the devastated families in China and continue to pray the condemnation of Muslims, not only in China but everywhere, comes to an end. A human is a human. Religion is nothing to eradicate or change. Religion is simply a form of worship every individual has a right to make. A person’s well-being should not be predicated on the religion of their choosing. Religion does not have a face. Stop the hate and embrace the human race.