#IStandWithAhmed takes Twitter by storm

Jessica Durando | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Muslim student detained for invention resembling bomb A high school freshman was detained by police after a teacher mistook his latest invention for a bomb. The Dallas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations believe the student was targeted because of his religious and racial identity.

After a Texas high school student said school officials called police in mistakenly thinking a clock he invented looked like a fake bomb, folks on Twitter have been vocal about supporting the Muslim teenager.

#IStandWithAhmed is the number one trending topic now on Twitter. In the past 24 hours, the hashtag has been mentioned over 209,000 times, according to Topsy, a social analytics site.

President Obama asked Ahmed Mohamed, 14, if he wanted to bring the clock to the White House. "We should inspire more kids like you to like science," POTUS tweeted.

Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great. — President Obama (@POTUS) September 16, 2015

CEO Mark Zuckerberg also invited him to Facebook, saying, "The future belongs to people like Ahmed."

Hey Ahmed- we're saving a seat for you at this weekend's Google Science Fair...want to come? Bring your clock! #IStandwithAhmed — Google Science Fair (@googlescifair) September 16, 2015

Assumptions and fear don't keep us safe—they hold us back. Ahmed, stay curious and keep building. https://t.co/ywrlHUw3g1 — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 16, 2015





Hillary Clinton tweeted, "Assumptions and fear don't keep us safe- they hold us back."

Other politicians, including Rep. Keith Ellison, offered support.

Smartwatch maker Pebble chimed in telling the teen to "keep making."

Director and producer Shonda Rhimes, TV host of Mythbusters Grant Imahara and Ebony magazine also spoke out.

My room looked exactly like his with soldering iron, computer, circuit boards. Some homemade, some cobbled together. #IStandWithAhmed — Grant Imahara (@grantimahara) September 16, 2015

Genius shouldn't be discouraged or feared based on the color of someone's skin. #IStandWithAhmed — EBONY MAGAZINE (@EBONYMag) September 16, 2015

I can't imagine if be working @nasa today if anything like this had ever happened to me. http://t.co/OajWwPXchB #IStandWithAhmed — Bobak Ferdowsi (@tweetsoutloud) September 16, 2015

Hey Ahmed, give me a call in a couple years. We could always use smart, curious & creative people. https://t.co/02a4feMrk5 — Bobak Ferdowsi (@tweetsoutloud) September 16, 2015

#IStandWithAhmed And we'd love to offer him an internship here next Summer! Build w us! — DoSomething.org (@dosomething) September 16, 2015

Note to most people: Nearly everything is made of electrical circuits. Not just bombs. #EngineersForAhmed https://t.co/zdwxmtLIiS — tai viinikka (@viinikka) September 16, 2015

If any of our early geek experiments had gotten the most terrifying response possible from teachers & police, would we have kept doing it? — Anil Dash (@anildash) September 16, 2015

Another hashtag, #EngineersForAhmed, has also been circulating social media.

Of all the justifications, "It wasn't an assignment" is the worst. Bell? Edison? Einstein? Engineers don't wait. #IStandWithAhmed — David Wood (@prototypo) September 16, 2015