Linda Sarsour, a widely known Palestinian-American activist and an organizer of the Women’s March, has come under fire over a speech she gave at the Islamic Society of North America convention last weekend, Time Magazine reported.
This is because many on social media misinterpreted her use of the word "jihad" during the speech.
In her address, Sarsour spoke out about how Muslims and minorities must defend themselves against the Trump administration.
“I hope that when we stand up to those who oppress our communities, that Allah accepts from us that as a form of jihad," she said.
Even though the word "jihad" means "to struggle" many on social media misinterpreted its use and took it as a call for violence.
They then went on to launch a massive hate-filled attack on Sarsour via Twitter.
She responded by sharing her full speech on the platform, explaining that her words were manipulated and misinterpreted.
Thousands of Muslim tweeps also hit back, defending Sarsour and taking to social media to explain what "jihad" truly means.
What does "jihad" really mean?
Although threats and hate-filled tweets are currently targeting Sarsour, a few Muslim tweeps are still trying to build bridges, including renowned Muslim lawyer Qasim Rashid, who highlighted the true meaning of "jihad" via an important Twitter thread.
The word "jihad" does not mean to "wage holy war," or "commit terrorism"
The word means "to struggle"
"The greatest jihad is the jihad against yourself"
This is how it manifests
And remember...
Take a moment to understand what words truly mean before launching racist attacks on people
Many others came to Sarsour's defense
Qasim Rashid wasn't the only tweep to defend Sarsour, thousands of others supported her via the hashtag: #IStandWithLinda.