Many of us are guilty of turning to religion and ethnicity as ways of making sense of inexplicable tragedies, but we must stop using these stereotypes as excuses  for cultural ignorance and disdain. It is time to stop the perpetual finger-pointing that often follows an act of terrorism. Terror knows no one religion, race, nationality or ethnicity. We must stop acting like it does.

As I scanned news feeds for information regarding the recent events in Boston that would explain such horrible acts, the inevitable and familiar fear must have risen inside Muslims across our nation. They were thinking, “Please don’t let the people behind the bombings be Muslim.”

A decade after one of the worst terrorist attacks in U.S. history, Muslims still face the reality that the actions of a few individuals cast guilt by association on anybody holding Islamic beliefs.

It has been reported that the two brothers who carried out the attacks are, in fact, Muslims holding radical Islamic beliefs, although they are Chechnyan nationals. Until further evidence emerges as to the role religion played in the attacks, we cannot assume their religion influenced their decision to attack. Nevertheless, Muslims across the nation will continue to face scrutiny in the fallout of these bombings.

What is clear amongst the chaos is the marathon bombings have the potential to perpetuate Islamophobic sentiment and the capacity to undo a certain level of non-discrimination achieved in the post-9/11 era.

It is easy to get caught up in feelings of fear and hatred toward a group of people perceived to be responsible for such abhorrent action, but what ultimately matters is how we as a nation respond. We can’t allow tragedies like this to unravel the ties that bind us together.

When we give into fear, we as a nation adhere to the terrorists’ agenda. Terrorism’s effectiveness depends on the collective willingness of people to give into fear.

I am positive of one thing: Our humanity will not be bombed away by terrorists of any race, belief or creed. Our resilience as a nation and our ability to come together will continue to define the American spirit, which has never been more important than it is today.

I still have faith in humanity. I still believe the good people in this world outnumber the bad, and always will.