Despite President Obama clearly stating that he is a Christian, nearly one in five Americans incorrectly believes he is Muslim. The nonpartisan group Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life conducted a poll (between July 21 and August 5) and found of those surveyed, 18% identified Obama as Muslim.

What’s disconcerting about this isn’t the growing, media-perpetuated confusion about the President’s faith, but the negative connotations  asserted in this poll. Of those 18% who believe Obama is Muslim nearly all disapprove of the job the President is doing. With the debate over the proposed mosque in lower Manhattan and the protests that went on over the weekend it’s clear the anti-Muslim sentiment is on the rise. Muslims are being demonized and this perception of Obama as a Muslim is shroud both in racism and religious intolerance. The wide racial divide can clearly be seen with the number of whites whose perception of a Muslim Obama rose from 11% to 21% in just over a year, yet there was virtually no change in blacks’ views on the President’s religion or faith.

Quite simply a white president wouldn’t be questioned about his or her religion. John Kennedy’s Catholicism wasn’t questioned nor was Bush identifying as a Methodist. Why then, if not race, is President Obama questioned about his faith?

A somewhat small percentage  claim President Obama mentions his faith too infrequently or that he relies too little on his religious beliefs when making policy decisions hence their confusion. Yet  those polled also said they are opposed to too much political involvement on the part of churches. Close to 61% say it’s important that politicians have strong, agreeable religious beliefs.

Are we to guess that by “agreeable” they mean Christian? This poll represents a continued and blatant racial divide. President Obama shouldn’t have to continually defend his religion or his race. Nor should the irrational fear and prejudice against Muslims be tolerated.