The fourth anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, has forced Americans to reflect on that horrible tragedy, such as the images of the World Trade Center and where one was when one first heard about the terrorist acts. September 11, 2005, also presented Americans and the rest of the world with an opportunity to re-examine the conditions facing Muslims, Arabs, Sikhs, and South Asians since that fateful fall morning. This post looks at two of the articles discussing this condition and three incidents that took place on or around the anniversary:

Sept. 11 has forced local Muslims to defend their religion as one of peace: "'9/11 brought about a major change for a lot of Muslims,' said Ghada Osman, an assistant professor at San Diego State University and director of its Center for Islamic and Arabic Studies. 'It somehow extenuated both identities. It made it much clearer that they are part of American society and yet at the same time put them on the spot to explain their religion.'"

Terrorists 'hijacked the Muslim faith' on 9/11: The terrorists, who hijacked the planes before using them as human bombs to kill nearly 3,000 people, did not just attack the freedom of the Western world on that day. They also made the lives of Asian people across the globe hell.

Vandals hit Muslim center Sept. 11: Standing near a broken window, Ahmed Elmalky said the vandalism "broke his heart." any Muslims have expressed concern after a Sept. 11 break-in at the Islamic Center of Irving.

Firefighter charged with assault following 9-11 memorial: A firefighter who had just attended a memorial service for a comrade killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attack was charged with assaulting an immigrant worker who claimed his attacker told him he looked "like he's al-Qaida," authorities said.

Two Muslims offloaded from plane as nervous passengers refuse to fly: The Excel Airways flight from Larnaca to Manchester was due to leave Cyprus on Sunday - the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks - but was cancelled after passengers refused to fly amid fears they were being targeted by bombers. The scare began when two Muslim men, believed to be British of Pakistani origin, boarded the flight.