It’s hard not to question the motives of the front-running nine candidates of the GOP after Tuesday night’s debate in Las Vegas. For two hours of mudslinging, the candidates took every opportunity to yell at, demonize, criticize and blame one another. But maybe the most concerning part of the display was Donald Trump attempting to justify his “anti-Muslim” sentiments, calling for a national registry of all Muslims, suggesting they carry identification cards dictating their faith and restricting their travel in the country.

There is immense danger in this fear mongering. Through the interview with Dr. Ehsun Mirza, a Kent County critical care doctor and a Muslim American published in this edition, we learn this blatantly racist rhetoric has already begun to incite outbursts against innocent Muslim Americans.

Mirza shared stories of friends and family being yelled at on the street. Women being called racial slurs and forced to use specific cashiers at grocery stores; regular citizens, not authority figures, are searching others before getting on a bus. Muslim families are scared and children fear the way they look could incite violence from those around them.

It’s not solely Muslim Americans who live with this fear; it’s any and all populations, which can be of any faith but just “look the part.”

Can we consider ourselves the “home of the brave” when such a small percentage of small-minded people, Trump included, dictate behavior? How is it that some are so prepared to turn their backs on their fellow citizens? This is not only a show of cowardice but also a demonstration of a lack of empathy.

Such rhetoric and behavior strongly mirrors similar anti-Semitic sentiments from the 1930s and ’40s leading up to World War II.

Historically, this sort of behavior, identifying a population of people based on their religious beliefs and customs as a scapegoat for domestic and international issues, has led to unbelievable repercussions, including mass murders and genocide. How can such things happen?

The overwhelming majority of the 2.1 million Muslim Americans living in this country do not stand with ISIS, rather they have just as much disdain towards them as any other American. A few radicals have tainted not only the religion of Islam, one that is founded in and preaches peace, but Muslim Americans in the eyes of scared and racist citizens throughout the country.

Rather than Muslims, they should be fearful of where such bigotry and narrow-mindedness could lead this country and stand up for the inclusiveness that had made this country strong.