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Chronology of Islam in America (2008)
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
January 2008 Page II
New indictment issued against a Muslim charity: A former Congressman also indicted
Jan16: A federal grand jury in Kansas City, Missouri today indicted a former Michigan Congressman, Mark Deli Siljander, for lobbying on behalf of a Muslim charity, the Islamic American Relief Agency (IARA), before it was shut down in October 2004. The 42-count new indictment charges IARA with sending approximately $130,000 to help Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, whom the United States has designated as a Global Terrorist in February 2003. The money, sent to bank accounts in Peshawar, Pakistan in 2003 and 2004, was masked as donations to an orphanage located in buildings that Hekmatyar owned, the indictment said. The new indictment accuses IARA of paying Siljander, $50,000 for the lobbying. According to the indictment, Siljander, a Republican who served in the House of Representatives from 1981-1987, was hired in March 2004 by IARA to advocate for the removal of IARA from a Senate Finance Committee list of 24 Muslim charities and non-profit groups suspected of being involved in supporting international terrorism. The Senate Finance Committee placed IARA on this list of charities that was published in January 2004. Interestingly, after almost two years, in November 2005, the U.S. Senate committee concluded its work with no plans to issue a report. "We did not find anything alarming enough that required additional follow-up beyond what law enforcement is already doing," Senator Charles Grassley, the Iowa Republican who headed the committee, said at that time. The Department of Justice press release issued today pointed out that it is important to note that the indictment does not charge any of the defendants with material support of terrorism, nor does it allege that they knowingly financed acts of terror. “Instead, the indictment alleges that some of the defendants engaged in financial transactions that benefited property controlled by a designated terrorist, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.” (AMP Report)
Hamtramck passes ordinance against profiling
Jan 24: The Hamtramck City Council (Detroit) has passed an ordinance that forbids police and other city employees from profiling and discriminating against people based on their race, religion and appearance and from asking about a person's immigration status. The Detroit-based group Metropolitan Organizing Strategy Enabling Strength lobbied city officials to pass the ordinance because of concerns that immigrants who are victims of crime or witnesses would avoid the police because of their illegal status. It also would curb profiling based on national origin, sexual orientation, manner of dress and physical characteristics. (Detroit Free Press)
Student claims Muslim slur by teacher at Jacksonville-area school
Jan 25: In Orange Park, Flordia, a 16-year-old Muslim student said one of her teachers told a class that all Muslims are terrorists waging war against Americans and Christians, her father said. Ferzani Rajpoot was taking a night adult education class in psychology in an attempt to graduate from high school early, said her father, Mohammed Shadid. He said the discussion began with the teacher talking about the presidential campaign and saying his favorite candidate would keep Muslim terrorists out of the U.S. Shadid said his daughter told the teacher that she was Muslim and asked if he thought she was a terrorist. Shadid said the teacher did not reply, but turned the discussion to the meaning of the word jihad as "holy war." Shadid said the family asked the Council on American-Islamic Relations to deal with the incident and only wants to make sure it never happens again. He said he doesn't want the teacher fired, but believes he should be required to take a religious sensitivity class. The family has Pakistani heritage and Rajpoot was born in the U.S. (Miami Herald)
Muslim employees get more time for prayers
Jan 26: Somali immigrants who quit work at Arnold Logistics in Hampden Twp., Pennsylvania, because of a "misunderstanding" are back on the job, with accommodation for their daily prayers, a Muslim advocacy group says. The warehouse and distribution services company has agreed to provide a 15-minute break for Muslim prayer, according to the Pennsylvania office of the Council on American Islamic Relations. CAIR said 16 machine operators walked off their jobs on Jan. 9 "after a misunderstanding over a new policy which limited personal breaks for all employees to five minutes." (The Patriot-News)
Zoning panel's rejection of proposed mosque raises questions: Is it religious intolerance?
Jan 27: Sugarcreek Twp. (Ohio) officials say church opposition had no impact on the Board of Zoning Appeals' 5-0 vote against a variance that would have allowed the Islamic Society of Greater Dayton to build a new mosque on South Alpha-Bellbrook Road. Township officials say the denial was based solely on the expected sewage and traffic impact on the neighborhood. "If (a Christian church) had the same issues, the vote would have been the same," Administrator Barry Tiffany said. But even if the township board had sound reasons for its decision, the issue has touched on larger questions: Does the presence of a mosque locally evoke feelings of fear or even hatred? Are church officials saying out loud what a lot of people are thinking privately? Pastor Barry Jude admits his opposition had little to do with traffic patterns or sewage. "We just feel that Christianity is right and that Islam is wrong. Therefore, we take a stand to see (a mosque) not in our community," he said. He invited a former Muslim and Christian convert Shahram Parvani to speak at his First Baptist Church last fall. (Dayton Daily News)
Even if Obama were a Muslim, so what?
Jan 29: Barack Obama is not a Muslim. We know this because he has told us so. We know it because there is no credible evidence to suggest otherwise. We know it despite a campaign of lies and whispers from various bloggers, pundits and head cases. Barack Obama is not a Muslim. But what if he were? Same guy, same charisma, same inspirational idealism. NBC News anchor Brian Williams, in moderating a recent Democratic debate, asked Obama about rumors "that you are trying to hide the fact that you're a Muslim." The senator laughed a heard-that-a-few-times-before laugh. Then he replied that he is a Christian, that he is a victim of Internet rumor and that he trusts the American people to "sort out the lies from the truth." What bothered me is that, by its phrasing, Williams' question presupposed there is something wrong with being a Muslim. And Obama's answer left the presupposition unaddressed. (Chicago Tribune Commentaryby Leonard Pitts)
CAIR asks judge to throw out radio host’s ‘baseless’ lawsuit
Jan 30: The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today asked a federal judge in California to throw out what it termed a “baseless” lawsuit by syndicated radio talk show host Michael Savage. Late last year, Savage sued CAIR for copyright infringement after the Washington-based civil rights and advocacy organization posted brief audio clips from his October 29, 2007, program on its website. In those clips, Savage, whose “The Savage Nation” program airs on more than 300 radio stations nationwide, screamed attacks on Muslims, Islam and the Quran. CAIR called on radio listeners of all faiths to contact companies that advertise on Savage's program to express their concerns about the host's anti-Muslim bigotry. A community and interfaith coalition, called Hate Hurts America, was also formed in response to Savage’s rhetorical attacks on Muslims and Islam. CAIR filed an answer to Savage’s suit as well as a motion for judgment on the pleadings in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. (CAIR)
Anti-Islam rhetoric aims to manipulate voters
Jan 30: Americans have a more negative attitude toward Islam now than they did immediately after Sept. 11, says Juan R.I. Cole, a professor of history at the University of Michigan.He told a seminar in Michigan that immediately after Sept. 11, 30 percent of Americans had a negative view of Islam. But reports published in the Washington Post and USA Today in December 2006 found that 45 percent of Americans held negative views of Islam. He said such a change "is not natural." He blamed "the American right wing" and the media for creating this negative view to help win elections. Cole and Corey P. Saylor, legislative director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, discussed "Exploitation of Islamophobia in Elections," or how they said politicians are creating and exploiting new threatening terms to manipulate public opinion and get their votes. Cole said President Bush and other Republicans, including some of the current presidential candidates, have used the term "Islamofacism." He compared it to an old political tactic. "They used to make them afraid of the Communists, now they are making them afraid Muslims," he said. (Infozine)
CAIR survey of Muslim voters released
Jan 31: The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today released the results of a national survey indicating that Muslim voters are civically engaged, remain well integrated in American society and are politically active. Although most are still undecided on their pick for the next president, nearly 80 percent said they would vote in the primaries. The survey asked 1,000 registered Muslim voters about their demographic profiles, political views and levels of social integration. Respondents were randomly drawn from a pool of some 400,000 registered Muslim voters. The survey’s results show a family-oriented, highly-educated and diverse group of voters who condemn terrorism and believe anti-Americanism in the Muslim world is a serious problem. The poll also shows that the more devout Muslim voters are also those who are most likely to believe that Islam and modernity are compatible. Respondents were asked which issues will most influence their vote. Education was the top pick indicated by 89 percent, followed by civil rights (86 percent), health care policy (85 percent) and the economy (85 percent). (CAIR)
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