Loonwatch profiles Usama Dakdok.
Category Archives: Resisting Islamophobia
Respect public meeting in Newham
Justin Trudeau defies critics in speech at Islamic Spirit conference
Liberal leadership contender Justin Trudeau told an Islamic conference Saturday that groups who attacked his decision to attend the gathering only work to divide Canadians.
Trudeau told a crowd of thousands at the Reviving the Islamic Spirit conference in Toronto that his critics attempted to tap into “fears and prejudices” that sap the acceptance of others.
“It is short-sighted to pit groups of Canadians against one another. It may make some feel good for a little while, or even work politically in the short term, but it is no way to build a country,” Trudeau said in a keynote address. “It is not who we are.”
Trudeau was criticized earlier this month by some Jewish groups and media outlets for agreeing to address the conference because of allegations of a link between one of its sponsors, IRFAN-Canada, and the militant group Hamas.
Florida Muslim businessman sues Homeland Security over harassment
A Central Florida Muslim businessman detained by authorities at airports and border crossings more than 30 times since June has filed suit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
It’s the second such lawsuit Sadique M. Jaffer has filed in Orlando against the federal agency in almost four years, in response to what he says are baseless and harassing detentions.
Jaffer, who lives in Windermere and works in real estate and computer sales in multiple states, claims he has been detained more than 50 times since 2007 as he has traveled domestically and internationally.
Michigan: Anti-Islam law denied
Last week, Muslims nationwide were urged to take action against HB 4769, better known as the Anti-Islam Legislation.
State Legislator Dave Agema, a Republican from Michigan, was the state representative behind this bill, and actively pushing for it to pass during Michigan’s lame duck session.
CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, had their state-wide chapters calling on “all people of conscience” to urge their state governors “to veto the biased bill which is among those that seek to impose government-sanctioned discrimination on followers of a minority faith.”
Muslim family taking school to High Court over hijab ban
A Greek Orthodox school is being taken to the High Court for banning a Muslim pupil from wearing a headscarf.
The nine-year-old girl’s parents were so incensed at the decision they have pulled her out of St Cyprian’s Greek Orthodox Primary Academy, in Thornton Heath. Now they have applied to the High Court in an attempt to force the school – the only one of its kind in the country – to reverse its ban on their daughter wearing a hijab.
Court of Appeal quashes the wrongful conviction of Ahmed Faraz
One year on from his imprisonment, the quashing of Ahmed Faraz’s conviction for the dissemination of terrorism publications, is a great victory for freedom of expression in the UK.
In a damning judgement, the UK Court of Appeal ruled that no causal link could be presented that publications produced by the Maktabah bookshop would inspire acts of political violence or terrorism. They said that it was incorrect of the trial judge to permit evidence that those who had carried out acts of terrorism had owned copies of the books or DVDs and that it was a short cut to a conviction.
Muslim family taking school to High Court over hijab ban
A Greek Orthodox school is being taken to the High Court for banning a Muslim pupil from wearing a headscarf.
The nine-year-old girl’s parents were so incensed at the decision they have pulled her out of St Cyprian’s Greek Orthodox Primary Academy, in Thornton Heath. Now they have applied to the High Court in an attempt to force the school – the only one of its kind in the country – to reverse its ban on their daughter wearing a hijab.
New study of perceptions of Islamophobia among Muslims in France, Germany and the UK
The International Journal of Intercultural Relations has published the results of research by Jonas R. Kunst, David L. Sam and Pål Ulleberg into Muslims’ perceptions of Islamophobia. The article, “Perceived islamophobia: Scale development and validation”, can be consulted here.
Tea Party anti-Muslim hate comes to Ohio school
The Cleveland office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Ohio chapter (CAIR-Cleveland) today released a video highlighting anti-Muslim hate preached at a recent Tea Party event at a school in that state, which included claims that American Muslims “will kill your children” and that “we are in war with Islam.”