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Chronology of Islam in America (2009)
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
October 2009
Michigan school district apologizes for Bible study forms
Oct 1: The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI) said today that a Detroit-area school district has apologized for handing out permission slips for Bible study classes to elementary school students. CAIR-MI sent a letter to Roseville Public Schools after receiving a complaint from two parents of children who attend Huron Park Elementary School about distribution by teachers of permission slips for the Bible classes at a local Baptist church. In his letter to the school district, CAIR-MI Executive Director Dawud Walid wrote in part: “School staff and teachers are not to serve as advocates for one particular religion or congregation within a religion by passing out slips inviting parents to give permission for their children to attend religious instruction…According to the United States Supreme Court, the First Amendment clearly requires that public school students and their parents are never given the impression that their school/school district prefers a specific religion over others or sanctions religion in general.” (CAIR)
Third Islamic History Month in Canada
Oct 1: Third Islamic History Month Canada (IHMC) began today. The Canadian Islamic Congress has announced “Islamic Finance and economic theory” as the theme of this year’s IHMC which was launched in 2007. Islamic History Month Canada (IHMC) is an unparalleled annual initiative launched whose purpose is to inspire Canadian Muslims to share and rejoice in their history, heritage and culture with their fellow Canadians. During October, Muslims celebrate their civilization, their various contributions to the arts, sciences, medicine, architecture, humanities, music, spirituality, and every area of human knowledge, as well as their links with other cultures. On October 25, 2007, the House of Commons passed the following motion presented by Member of Parliament for Ottawa-Vanier and Official Opposition Critic for Canadian Heritage, Francophonie and Official Languages, Hon. Mauril Bélanger: "That, in the opinion of the House, due to the important contributions of Canadian Muslims to Canadian Society; the cultural diversity of the Canadian Muslim community; the importance of Canadians learning about each other to foster greater social cohesion; and the important effort now underway in many Canadian communities in organizing public activities to achieve better understanding of Islamic history, the month of October should be designated Canadian Islamic History Month." “During that inaugural year, and later in 2008 and 2009, several Canadian cities also proclaimed October as Islamic History Month in their civic jurisdictions — including Victoria BC, Toronto ON, Kingston ON, Ottawa ON, Calgary AB, Burnaby BC, Port Coquitlam BC, Surrey, BC and Vancouver, BC,” according to Wahida Valiante, Chair of IHMC and national president of the Canadian Islamic Congress. This year’s theme focuses on Islamic finance and economic theory, and how a different philosophy of creating, managing and distributing wealth could heal, or even prevent, major global recessions. Every year, IHMC features a theme relating to a specific aspect of Islam. The inaugural year theme was Islamic Art and Architecture, while in 2008 the chosen subject was Islamic Science and Medicine. (Canadian Islamic Congress)
GOP members fire at Muslim targets at local range
Oct 9: A group of South Florida Republicans held a recent weekly meeting at a gun range. While that is not anything unusual, the fact that that the group of Republicans spent time shooting at targets including cut-outs of a Muslim holding a rocket-propelled grenade launcher surprised many. The GOP candidate to replace U.S. Representative Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, Robert Lowry, was also a part of the group and fired at a full-body silhouette with "DWS" written next to its head. Wasserman-Schultz declined comment, but the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee called the event "extremist" and "sexist." Lowry initially described the target as a joke, but minutes later called it a mistake. Others in the Southeast Broward Republican Club event refused to apologize for the target practice that featured both assault rifles and handguns. (CBS4)
“Anti-Muslim Caucus at the Capitol Hill” attempts to destroy CAIR
October 14: In a fresh attempt to destroy the national American Muslim civil advocacy groups, four Republican congressmen which have been dubbed by Washington Independent as ‘the Anti-Muslim Bigot Caucus at the Capitol Hill’ have accused the Council on American-Muslim Relations (CAIR), of attempting to plant spies in key Congressional offices in order to affect policy. The four congressmen - Rep. Sue Myrick (R-NC), Rep. John Shadegg (R-AZ), Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ), and Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA) today held a bizarre McCarthy-era like press conference accusing the CAIR of "trying to infiltrate the offices of members of Congress by placing interns in the offices." The four are the Republican members of the Congressional Anti-Terrorism Caucus.The congressmen formally asked the House Sergeant at Arms to launch an investigation of the Council for American-Islamic Relations. The lawmakers also wanted a Department of Justice investigation to find out "if CAIR was successful in placing interns" with key congressional committees, including the Intelligence and Homeland Security panels.
The four lawmakers quoted various excerpts from a yet-to-be released Islamophobic publication entitled, "Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld That's Conspiring to Islamize America" by two well known anti-Islam and anti-Muslim writers, Dave Gaubatz and Paul Sperry. The book includes a forward by Congressman Myrick. Sperry authored in 2005 a book that accused Muslim Americans of infiltrating Washington, and attacked Islam as a violent religion. Similarly, Gaubatz has in the past targeted Islam and Muslims, called Islam an "evil ideology," and worked for an anti-Islam group that sought to make "adherence to Islam" punishable by a 20-year prison term. Dave Gaubatz, wrote last year that “a vote for Hussein Obama is a vote for Sharia Law.”
Ironically, Congressman Franks used his remarks to link CAIR to terrorism and encourage Americans to look to “moderate” Muslim organizations like the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, a tiny group launched in 2003 whose founder president M. Zuhdi Jasser has the distinction of winning the Community Leadership Award of the FBI which has been accused of infiltrating and spying against the Muslim community. It is not surprising that in the post-9/11 America, the Muslim community has witnessed a systematic campaign to defame and dislodge established prominent Muslim civil rights advocacy groups. The object was to silence genuine Muslim voices. At the same time, attempts were made to establish and prop-up compliant fringe Muslim groups such is the American Islamic Forum for Democracy. In November 2004 the Progressive Muslim Union (PMU) in North America was established with great fanfare but failed to attract any following in the seven-million strong American Muslim community. It was dissolved by its disappointed founders.
Not surprisingly, hours after the spying allegations CAIR received a death threat. The death threat was faxed to the spokesman for the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Ibrahim Hooperon October 15. The fax had a picture of a gallows and stated that Ibrahim Hooper would be hanged “for treason.” At the same time, CAIR’s offices in Washington, D.C., Detroit, and Northern and Southern California all received obscene phone calls within the next 24 hours. (AMP Report)
Vandalism probe sought
Oct 16: The San Francisco Bay Area chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is asking local and state officials for a hate-crime investigation into the vandalism of a Newark City Council candidate's home. Nadja Adolf, one of three candidates for two seats on the council, had her home egged while she and her husband were not home. CAIR said it wanted the hate crime probe because Adolf is Muslim and a picture of her wearing an Islamic head scarf appeared in a local weekly paper just days before the incident. (Oakland Tribune)
Man apologizes for vandalism at mosque
Oct 16: Police have questioned a man who admits to writing derogatory remarks about Muslims on the walls of a mosque inside a southwest Houston, Texas, cultural center, but no charges will be filed at the request of the center's leadership. “We were able to identify a suspect both through video surveillance and through a business card that was left at the scene,” said Jodi Silva, a spokeswoman with the Houston Police Department. “When we questioned the suspect, he did admit to his role in the incident.” (Houston Chronicle)
Imams removed from flight agree to settlement
Oct 21: Three years after six Muslim men were arrested on a US Airways jet in the Twin Cities, the "Flying Imams" have reached a legal settlement they say acknowledges they were treated improperly because of their religious and ethnic backgrounds. Few details of the settlement filed in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis were available, but a New York attorney for the imams, Omar Mohammedi, called the settlement "satisfactory to the plaintiffs." Mohammedi added that money is involved, but he declined to elaborate. The imams were arrested in November 2006 while returning from the North American Conference of Imams on a jet bound for Phoenix. A passenger had passed a note to a flight attendant noting what he considered suspicious activity. The case sparked ongoing debate about the power of law enforcement to override personal rights in the name of security. The imams -- Ahmed Shqeirat, Didmar Faja, Omar Shahin, Mahmoud Sulaiman and Sadeddin, all of Arizona, and Mohamed Ibrahim, of California -- argued that they were removed from the plane because of religious and ethnic bias. In July, U.S. District Judge Ann Montgomery ruled that the suit could move forward. "The right not to be arrested in the absence of probable cause is clearly established and, based on the allegations ... no reasonable officer could have believed that the arrest of the Plaintiffs was proper," Montgomery ruled then. (Star Tribune)
Terror probe against Imam leads to tax evasion charge
Oct 21: The Islamic Center of Stockton's (California) imam and three of his associates may have been the subject of an FBI terrorism probe that netted little more than tax evasion charges, attorneys for the men said today. Saeed Ur Rahman, 44, has been indicted on three counts of tax evasion, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento announced Tuesday. A separate indictment names three other members of the Islamic Center. His brother, Obed Ur Rahman, 57, Mohammad Nasir Khan, 51, and Shaker Ahmed, 36, have been indicted on charges they conspired to avoid paying taxes on a 2004 duplex sale. Sacramento attorney Bruce Locke, who represents Khan, said he learned that an FBI joint anti-terrorism task force initiated the probe. "It leads me to believe that the agents didn't have anything to charge them with," Locke said. "Rather than admit wasting time during the investigation, they charged them with tax offenses." Davis attorney Joseph Wiseman, who represents Ahmed, said he has never seen anybody prosecuted in such a case over his career of nearly 30 years. He awaits evidence the FBI collected in the investigation that may have lasted for more than a year. He expects it to be voluminous. Wiseman called the charges strange. (The Stockton Record)
Expansion of mosque in Lilburn, Georgia opposed
Oct 23: The Dar-E-Abbas Islamic center, Lilburn, Georgia, currently sits on a small plot of land on Highway 29 and Hood Road. They want to raze the current building and build a two-story mosque. It’s that expansion that has residents living in the area up in arms. “I am prejudice, I just don’t like Muslims and I don’t want them taking over our neighborhood,” said one resident who lives near the mosque. He did not want to be identified for fear of retaliation. “I don’t want someone coming to my house and burning it down.” In order for the mosque to expand they must rezone from residential to commercial. That rezoning is what residents are fighting against and followers of the mosque are fighting for. The plans include building a 10,000 square foot worship building. The building is modeled after a shrine in Karbala Iraq, for the Shrine of Abbas. The mosque also wants to be an 8,400 square foot indoor sports facility. The site has been occupied by the mosque for the past 11 years. In that time membership has grown from 10 to 70 with attendance of 250 or more during special religious ceremonies. A cemetery is also in the plans. (CBS Atlanta)
Ellison denounces campaign against CAIR
Oct 26: Speaking on the House floor last night, Rep. Keith Ellison read a statement denouncing a group of conservative lawmakers who think an Islamic group may be sending spies into Congress. The statement, which was co-authored by several minority caucuses, criticized four representatives for seeking an investigation into the Council on American-Islamic Relations in response to claims in a new book, "Muslim Mafia," that CAIR is trying to plant interns on Capitol Hill. One of the representatives calling for the investigation, North Carolina Republican Sue Myrick, wrote the forward to the book. Ellison, the first Muslim member of Congress, called the allegations "racist." Ellison related the probe to McCarthyism in the 1950s. "These charges smack of an America 60 years ago where lists of `un-American' agitators were identified," Ellison said. "We should be affirming the importance of diversity and tolerance for all interns and staff who serve in Congress without suspicion of being identified as `spies.' " "The idea that we should investigate Muslim interns as spies is a blow to the very principle of religious freedom that our Founding Fathers cherished so dearly," he added. "If anything, we should be encouraging all Americans to engage in the U.S. political process, to take part in, and to contribute to, the great democratic experiment that is America." (Star Tribune)
California Muslims join rally against Neo-Nazis
Oct 27: The Greater Los Angeles Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-LA), along with members of the Riverside Muslim community, joined a rally against neo-Nazis who had gathered to protest undocumented day laborers. The organizers of the counter-protest said more than 600 members of diverse faiths and backgrounds joined the rally to speak out against the hatred and bigotry espoused by the neo-Nazis. The neo-Nazi group, National Socialist Movement, held a rally last month but was met with hundreds of counter-protesters. Earlier this month, Jewish worshipers at Temple Beth El in Riverside were intimidated and harassed by neo-Nazis who held signs and flags bearing Nazi swastikas in front of the synagogue. The counter-protest was organized by 50 community organizations, including CAIR-LA and the Islamic Center of Riverside. (CAIR)
Clinic to Muslim doctor: Its policy bars headscarf
Oct 30: A Muslim doctor interviewing for a job at a suburban Dallas medical clinic says officials there told her she couldn't wear her headscarf in the workplace. Dr. Hena said today that she was shocked when CareNow officials told her that a no-hat policy extended to her hijab. The 29-year-old doctor wants an apology and a change in CareNow's policy. However, CareNow President Tim Miller says he sees nothing wrong with the policy and feels no need to apologize. In a statement, his company says it does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion or national origin in employment decisions. (The Argus, CA)
AMT seeks probe into FBI shooting death of Michigan Muslim
Oct 30: The American Muslim Taskforce on Civil Rights and Elections (AMT), a coalition of major national Islamic organizations, is calling for an independent investigation into the death of Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah, who was shot and killed by the FBI on Oct 28 in Detroit during raids in which a number of individuals were arrested on charges unrelated to terrorism. AMT is also calling on the FBI not to link the raids or the allegations against the suspects to the Islamic faith.
FBI agents raided three warehouses in Detroit and Dearborn, seeking to arrest Abdullah and 11 other men on criminal charges including possession of firearms by a convicted felon, mail fraud, and conspiring to receive and sell stolen goods. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Abdullah was shot and killed after he refused to surrender and opened fire on agents. None of the charges against Abdullah or the other 11 suspects are terrorism-related.
In a statement, the Muslim coalition said: “It is imperative that an independent investigation of Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah’s death make public the exact circumstances in which he died. And unless the FBI has evidence linking the criminal allegations to the religious affiliation of the suspects, we ask that federal authorities stop injecting religion into this case. The unjustified linkage of this case to the faith Islam will only serve to promote an increase in existing anti-Muslim stereotyping and bias in our society.” AMT is also urging the Congressional Tri-Caucus (Black, Latino, and Asian) to call for a judicial inquiry.
In a separate statement, the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) said with so much left unknown in the developing case, MPAC is warning government agencies and media outlets of the alarming exploitation of this isolated incident that is stigmatizing Muslim American communities around the country. "There is a clear and present danger in the escalating mob mentality against vulnerable Muslim Americans," said Salam Al-Marayati, MPAC Executive Director. He added: “As is always the case with news reports regarding alleged terror plots, MPAC is concerned about the possibility of backlash against Muslim, African American, Arab, and South Asian Americans. Based on past experiences, we offer the following recommendations.” U.S. Attorney Terrence Berg has asked people not to connect the allegations brought against the group of men with Muslims in general. (AMT/MPAC)
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