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By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
December 2011 - Page Five
ADC condemns Cantor statement that Palestinian culture is "infused with resentment and hatred"
Dec 27: American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) today strongly condemned House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's (R) offensive and ridiculous statement that Palestinian culture is "infused with resentment and hatred." The sheer ignorance of such remarks, particularly from someone in his prominent position, is both distressing and depressing to millions of Americans, the ADC said in a statement. "Palestinian culture" is, of course, not "infused with resentment and hatred," but it is true that Palestinians resent intolerance and hate injustice, the ADC statement said adding: “Palestinians resent being discriminated against by dozens of Israeli laws that render them second-class citizens in their own country. Palestinians hate having to use segregated roads rather than being free to travel on the same roads as Israeli Jews. Palestinians in Gaza resent that they are subject to an inhumane Israeli blockade that has deprived them of essential foods, medicines and building supplies.” The ADC pointed out that Palestinians hate the fact that they have lived under oppressive Israeli military rule for more than 44 years. And they resent that so-called "leaders" who are embarrassingly ignorant of Palestinian lives, circumstances, ideals and, yes, culture, deem themselves fit to speak about such subjects with even a modicum of authority.
The ADC President Warren David stated, "Like Americans, Palestinians love freedom. Like Americans, Palestinians love justice. Like Americans, Palestinians love their families. Like Americans, Palestinians create and love art, music, literature, film, cuisine, and every other aspect of human culture. We invite Mr. Cantor to experience that rich and beautiful Palestinian culture." He went on to say, "As an American and as majority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, Mr. Cantor should stop publicly making a fool of himself and a mockery of American ideals with incendiary and ill-informed statements and instead focus his energy on pressuring Israel to ensure that Palestinians are afforded the same rights that Americans hold dear and that Palestinians have been unjustly denied for far too long." ADC challenged Mr. Cantor to spend one week in the occupied Palestinian territories listening to the stories of Palestinians who have been denied their freedom for more than 63 years and then revisit his views on "Palestinian culture." [ADC]
Rejected Muslim school bid reviewed in Michigan
Dec 27: The U.S. Attorney's Office said it is reviewing a complaint that a Muslim school's constitutional rights were violated when it sought to build a school earlier this year. The request by the Michigan Islamic Academy to construct a school in Pittsfield Township in Washtenaw County was turned down by township trustees in October. The institution wants to expand the school on land it owns in the township. Township officials said the request for a zoning change by the school was turned down because of neighbors' concerns over traffic congestion. A rezoning request was needed because the school would be built in a residential area. The 200-pupil school is on Plymouth Road in Ann Arbor. School officials want to build the school on a 26-acre site on Ellsworth and Golfside roads.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations Michigan, a Muslim civil rights organization, has taken up the issue, citing a violation of the school's First Amendment rights. CAIR officials have said traffic could be an excuse to conceal prejudice, and legal action might be pursued. "We believe this is a blatant violation of the MIA's constitutional right to open the school on their property," said Lena Masri, the staff attorney for CAIR-Michigan. The school's request also could be protected under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000, which protects individuals, churches and other religious institutions from discrimination in zoning, said Bloomfield Hills attorney Daniel Dalton, an expert in religious law cases.
Zoning laws have been cited during the past decade by township and city officials across the country where requests to build mosques and Islamic centers were challenged. Zoning laws were used in cases in Bridgewater Township, N.J., and in Murfreesboro, Tenn., to deny the construction of mosques. The Islamic Center of Murfreesboro eventually received permission to build a mosque after a court battle. A lawsuit has been filed in the New Jersey case. Efforts to reach Pittsfield Township officials for comment have been unsuccessful. [The Detroit News]
Spreading hatred: Victoria Jackson claims Muslim Brotherhood taking over America
Dec 27: Former "Saturday Night Live" actress Victoria Jackson, working on confidential information she as a web talk show host has special clearance to obtain, has claimed that the United States is being overtaken by radical Muslims bent on bringing the nation under Sharia law. "I just went to a briefing in Washington DC, across the street from the Capitol, at the Longworth building at 8:30 am two days ago and it changed my life," Jackson said last week on her web show, "Politichicks." "For six hours, I saw pictures and names and dates and facts and Islamic law books and Korans, Surahs for six hours and they proved to me... that the Muslim Brotherhood has infiltrated our highest positions in government and this is serious." Jackson also detailed the meeting in an earlier blog post this December. In that post, she details testimony given by John Guandolo, a former FBI agent who worked on the case against former Louisiana Rep. William Jefferson. Guandolo resigned from the FBI in 2008 after he was caught trying to score a $75,000 donation for an anti-terrorism group from a wealthy Jefferson case witness with whom he was having an affair. Guandolo now gives speeches on the existential threat of Islam, claiming that Muslim groups are using political correctness and political insurgency to stop FBI and police officers from stopping their spread of Sharia law.
The actress-turned-pundit also reported testimony from Maj. Stephen Coughlin, who in 2008 was effectively fired from his post at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, because, many conservatives believe, he was a staunch anti-Islamic extremist advocate. Wired reports that his contract was not renewed after a staffer for Gordon England, then the deputy secretary of defense, raised questions about his work. Last January, Coughlin gave a maligned speech during an FBI presentation on Muslim extremism. Claiming that it was strongly hinted that President Obama was a Muslim -- his policies all favor Muslims and are against Israel, she claims to have been told -- Jackson says in the video that the ultimatum pushed by terrorist groups in America is "You have to convert or be killed." While she says that the meeting forever changed her, Jackson has already long claimed that Muslims -- led by secret Muslim and terrorist sympathizer President Obama -- are quietly taking over the United States government. She also has famously taken umbrage with gays and "Glee," including a highly publicized string of attacks last March. [Huffington Post]
Anti-Muslim Hate Site Removed After CAIR's Intervention
Dec 29: -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) announced today that an anti-Muslim Internet hate site that contained a number of threats of violence targeting mosques, including the comment "I want [Muslim] blood on my hands," has been taken down by its hosting company. CAIR said visitors to "Bare Naked Islam," hosted by WordPress.com, now see the message: "barenakedislam.wordpress.com is no longer available. This blog has been archived or suspended for a violation of our Terms of Service." It may be pointed out that "Bare Naked Islam" was one of the major promoters of the campaign to pressure Lowe's to drops its ads from TLC's "All-American Muslim."] Last month, CAIR called on the FBI to investigate the threats of violence targeting mosques posted on the blog and urged WordPress.com to remove it for violating the hosting company's terms of service (TOS), which prohibit blogs that "contain threats or incite violence towards individuals or entities." Articles and comments posted on "Bare Naked Islam" urged attacks on and desecration of American and European mosques. [CAIR]
Couple says they were denied service due to wife wearing headscarf
Dec 30: A married couple visiting San Diego from Chicago said they were denied service at T.G.I. Friday’s in the Gaslamp Quarters because of their religion. Mansoor and Ayesha Kazi say they went to the restaurant on Christmas night with their in-laws and were told the wait time would be five minutes. But the couple says after waiting for more than half-an-hour, they asked to speak to the manager. Mansoor Kazi says that’s when a woman who identified herself as the manager told them to leave. “She said please leave right now, your type of people aren't welcomed here, and so I was sort of taken aback, I said excuse me, and she said please leave your type of people aren't welcomed here,” Kazi said. “She was looking at my wife who was wearing a headscarf, she was referring to Muslims as not being welcomed there,” Kazi added. “I was really shocked you know to hear what they said and I think especially because it was Christmas,” said Ayesha Kazi.
“It made us upset and it made us question, it made us question, why something like that would be said to us when we were, both of us were born in America, we’ve lived here all our lives, we’re contributing members of society, my wife is a first grade teacher, I’m, you know, I’m a lawyer, you know this is our home, so why would we not be welcomed in our own home,” said Mansoor Kazi. “All we're asking from them is an apology and just to acknowledge that there was a mistake made and that this type of behavior won't happen with anyone else in the future.”
T.G.I. Friday’s issued this statement to 10News evening: “We deliver a great Friday’s experience to diverse guests every day in all of our restaurants, including this location in San Diego. As soon as we were made aware of this guest complaint about the wait time that they experienced on a very busy Christmas Day, we immediately began an investigation. We regret that we weren’t able to seat this guest as quickly as they would have liked. However, after investigating, we found that this guest received the same consideration as any of our other guests with regards to being seated and served that day.” [10news.com]
Muslim leaders boycott breakfast over surveillance program
Dec 30: A prominent group of Muslim leaders today made good on a pledge to boycott New York City's annual interfaith breakfast with Mayor Michael Bloomberg in protest of a controversial surveillance program. The move stemmed from a series of news reports that raised questions about the nature of a Central Intelligence Agency partnership with the New York Police Department, pointing to the alleged surveillance of Muslim communities in New York.
The Associated Press reported that following the September 11, 2001, attacks on the city, the CIA helped the NYPD build intelligence programs used to spy on Muslims, adding that a CIA officer was involved in intelligence collection in Muslim communities. The reports said police have used informers to monitor sermons during religious services, while gathering intelligence on taxi cab drivers and food-cart vendors, who often are Muslim, in New York. "These tactics, without due process, without evidence of crime, we believe (are) unconstitutional and unlawful. That's where the shock comes from," said Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. In a letter to the mayor yesterday, the group said that "during times when a community's rights are being flagrantly violated its leaders cannot in good conscience appear at a public gathering with the government official who is ultimately responsible and smile for the cameras as if all is well, when we know full well that it is not."
Last week, the CIA announced its internal watchdog found no issue or evidence of wrongdoing in the spy agency's partnership with the NYPD following an investigation into the matter. The CIA has also previously said that suggestions that it engaged in domestic spying were "simply wrong."The spy agency said the published report "mischaracterized the nature and scope" of the CIA's support for New York police. An agency officer observing police efforts "would not be involved in law enforcement activities," said an official with knowledge of the proceedings. But New York-area Muslims and civil liberties advocates have called for investigations and hearings after the series was published in August. [CNN]
CAIR says law will be seen as 'stain on our nation's
Dec 31, 2011– The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, said tonight that it is "deeply troubled" that the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was signed into law today. The Washington-based CAIR said the legislation will forever be seen as a "stain on our nation's history" because it authorizes the military to arrest and indefinitely detain American citizens suspected of terrorism without charge or trial. In a statement reacting to the signing of the legislation, CAIR said: "It is deeply troubling that the NDAA became law with the detention provisions intact. We believe it is unconstitutional for our military to become a police force that would hold American citizens indefinitely without the right to trial or even to hear the charges brought against them. Permitting indefinite detention of American citizens without trial shatters a cornerstone of our democracy -- the right of the individual to due process. Every elected official who participated in the formation and passage of this law has violated their oath to support and defend the Constitution.” In signing the legislation, President Obama said: "I want to clarify that my administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens. Indeed, I believe that doing so would break with our most important traditions and values as a nation." [CAIR]
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