USA TODAY Network Does the Meme: 25 Years After 9/11, Muslims Fear New Backlash

With the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks looming, five reporters from the USA TODAY Network (all female, judging by their names) are doing the Norm Macdonald meme and reporting that 25 years after 9/11, many Muslims fear a new backlash. A new backlash? The old "backlash" was put down immediately and still holds, with cries of "Islamophobia" any time someone dares to criticize Islam. President George W. Bush quickly stated that "Islam is peace." The old backlash was New York City's Muslim Mayor Zohran Mamdani's "aunt" allegedly stopping taking the subway after 9/11 because she didn’t feel safe in her hijab. (It turns out his "aunt" was actually his father's deceased cousin.)

The media has been writing this story every year since 2001. pic.twitter.com/7oaxdrXpV4
— Tom Bevan (@TomBevanRCP) September 6, 2026

The Detroit News decided to pick up on USA TODAY's story and run it:

25 years after 9/11, many Muslims fear a new backlash https://t.co/Eqkuah3eM5
— The Detroit News (@detroitnews) September 7, 2026

BrieAnna J. Frank, Cate Charron, Angele Latham, Stephany Matat, and Taylor Seely write:

Now, 25 years after the attacks, Muslims across the country are asking the same question as they experience rising Islamophobia and concerns about their First Amendment right to religious freedom.
Over 40% of U.S. adults believe Muslims are less patriotic than other Americans and that Muslim Americans are having a negative impact on the country, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in May.
The stigmatization, often amplified by politicians, has affected everything from immigration statuses to due process rights and everyday religious practices. Muslim leaders and community members, in turn, told the USA TODAY Network they’re left fighting to defend their faith and warning the nation that its founding principles are at stake.
“Being Muslim doesn’t make me less American,” Salam Jabaieh, a Muslim woman from Arizona, said. “Those things are part of who I am, and I shouldn’t have to make myself less visible or less Muslim in order to prove I belong here.”

These are all great things to think about *before* funding, planning and executing a historically significant mass terror attack against another country.

What has happened since is a direct result of the attackers' (including the funders & masterminds) own actions. They own it.
— Craig S. Bell (@craig_s_bell) September 7, 2026

wait, was there an old backlash?
— Len Wolfson (@lenwolfson2) September 7, 2026

They're literally building a city in Texas exclusively for Muslims.

It took 5 @USATODAY leftist narrative pushers to write the same radical Islamic apologetic drivel?
— Doctor of Coding Thinkology (@bradcundiff) September 6, 2026

Muslims fear that their actions will be used to hold them accountable.

They’re sure it’s Islamophobia because Allah said we could do these things… so stop complaining. And take it.

Insanity.
— MtnDogMan (@MtnDogMan) September 6, 2026

Where’s the headline about Americans concerned it will happen again every year? They can’t possibly consider the victims’ perspective in any of this.
— Heather Hunter (@heatherhunterdc) September 7, 2026

Where's the story about non-Muslims' fear of a copycat attack?

There has never been a real backlash. This victimization story is just another tactic to help them take over.
— Patricia Gleason (@patagleason) September 6, 2026

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