Abstract

How does moral injury affect Muslim military personnel (MMP) serving in the United States longest war, Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom? Moral injury in MMP has often been triggered by stressors such as harassment, embarrassment, marginalization, prejudice, and being associated with a co-religionist enemy. MMP are perceived as a threat to the safety and security of the United States, which exacerbates their emotional state of mind because they do not feel included as valuable assets within their units. Little is known about this population’s mental state of mind and how they cope when their religion is ridiculed and distorted, causing it to become a stressor and exacerbating the effects of moral stress and injury experienced by individual MMP—including the author—as they serve their country today and in the recent past. Recommendations include (1) more in-depth studies on the experience of moral injury and how it manifests with this population, (2) studies on the incidence and prevalence of moral injury among MMP, and (3) more Muslim chaplains in the U.S. military.

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