Aminah Assilmi, a Muslim woman who lives in Taylor Mill, said she felt a mixture of sadness and hope Monday as she prepared to travel to Columbus to help clean a badly vandalized mosque.

        “We are all Americans, and we have to be concerned about what's happening to our country,” Ms. Assilmi said. “The rest of the world is watching us ... and they can use our distrust of each other against us.”

        Ms. Assilmi credits the high-profile presence and responsiveness of West Chester Township police for averting problems at the Islamic Center of Greater Cincinnati. Police and the mosque's administrator reported no new causes for concern at that Butler County site on Monday, but said they would remain vigilant following Sunday's damage at the Islamic Center of Columbus.

        Ms. Assilmi said anti-Muslim sentiment has ebbed and flowed after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. “It goes in waves, depending on what's happening,” she said. “When the Osama bin Laden tapes were released, there was definitely an increase in hostility.”

        Nevertheless, Ms. Assilmi, who was featured in an October Enquirer article about her successful five-year campaign for a U.S. postage stamp commemorating the Islamic feast days of Eid, said she sees signs that people seeking understanding and peace outnumber those who choose ignorance and violence.

        “I've received Christmas cards. ... One I'm looking at now has the "Love' stamp (on the envelope),” she said. Four others, she said, bore the Eid stamp for which she had campaigned.

        Some of the cards included written messages that made her optimistic that religious and political barriers can be overcome. One woman, she said, wrote that she had been a follower of the Rev. Billy Graham — but she disagreed with his son, Franklin, who called Islam “a very evil and wicked religion” in an interview.

        “She said he did not speak for all of Christianity,” Ms. Assilmi said.

        Ms. Assilmi said she understands people are afraid — and they're especially afraid of people who are different and practice a religion they don't understand.

        But she urges everyone to consider: “The one country in the world with the greatest diversity is the greatest country in the world. If we did away with our diversity, what would happen to our country?”

Mosque damage assessed

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