US Muslim sues over right to wear head scarf

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A Muslim whose religious practice requires that she cover her head in public sued the Orange County Sheriff’s Department on Tuesday, alleging her rights were violated when jail officials forced her to remove a head scarf while locked up for about eight hours.

Souhair Khatib filed suit in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana, alleging that her right to practice her religion had been violated, causing her “extreme mental and emotional distress.” Named in the complaint, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Southern California, were Sheriff Michael S. Carona, the captain in charge of courtroom deputies and Orange County. Khatib, 32, of Anaheim, said she filed the lawsuit to make other Muslim women in the U.S. aware of their right to religious freedom.

ACLU attorney Hector Villagra said jail officials ordered Khatib’s hijab removed because they said it could be used to choke someone. But Villagra said a woman in the holding cell with Khatib was wearing fishnet stockings that were not confiscated and could have also been used as a weapon. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and requests that Orange County Jail officials allow the use of religious head coverings.

Los Angeles Times, 5 September 2007

Abandon stereotypes, Muslims in America say

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Ingrid MattsonSix years after the Sept. 11 attacks, Americans should distinguish between mainstream Muslims and the radical fringe, the leaders said. “Muslim Americans feel an increasing level of tension and scrutiny in contemporary society,” said Ingrid Mattson, president of the Islamic Society of North America, the largest Muslim organization in the United States and the convention organizer.

The image problems were among the topics most discussed by many of the 30,000 attendees. A fresh example cited was an open letter from two Republican House members, Peter Hoekstra of Michigan and Sue Myrick of North Carolina, that attacked the Justice Department for sending envoys to the convention because, the lawmakers said, the Islamic Society of North America was a group of “radical jihadists”. The lone Muslim in Congress, Representative Keith Ellison, Democrat of Minnesota, the keynote speaker here, dismissed the letter as ill informed and typical of bigoted attacks that other minorities have suffered.

Leaders of American Muslim organizations attribute the growing intolerance to three main factors: global terrorist attacks in the name of Islam, disappointing reports from the Iraq war and the agenda of some supporters of Israel who try taint Islam to undermine the Palestinians. American Muslims say they expect the attacks to worsen in the presidential election and candidates to criticize Islam in an effort to prove that they are tough on terrorism.

New York Times, 4 September 2007

‘Mega-mosque’ debate

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Islamic Circles Presents

TERROR MOSQUE, OLYMPIC MOSQUE OR WEST HAM MOSQUE

Date: Friday 7th September 2007
Time: 6.15pm–8.30pm
Venue: Ithaca House, 27 Romford Rd, Stratford, London E15 4LJ

A debate with Abdul Khaliq Mian (Newham Respect Coalition) and Councillor Alan Craig (Newham Christian People’s Alliance).

Far away from the oil fields of the Middle East, in the early 1990s, members of the Anjuman Welfare Trust (Tablighi Jamaat) through sheer sweat and hard work in the rag-tag factories of East London, managed to purchase a disused and contaminated area of land near Abbey Mills from Newham Council with an intention to serve the growing needs of the Muslim community in East London and beyond, by building a mosque and community centre.

If we now fast forward to 2007 – post 9/11, 7/7, Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and the announcement that the 2012 Olympic Games are to be held in London, we have a situation where this non-descript piece of land in East London has become the subject of intense controversy, capturing the attention of both local and international media.

Nearly 1 in 8 Londoners consider themselves to be Muslim. Up to half of those living near the area where the Olympic Games will be taking place are Muslim. Up to a third of the countries participating will be Muslim majority nations. So why is it that certain individuals supported by neo-con think tanks and Zionist inclined newspapers have decided to target this project, whose administrators are affiliated to Tablighi Jamaat, a worldwide movement known for being apolitical? Why is this mosque project being labelled as a potential source of terrorist activities just because some of the individuals involved happen to share similar theological roots as the Taliban?

Is it not ironic that this is happening now despite all the talk of diversity and multiculturalism – one of the principal reasons why London won. Note the hijab wearing children on the TV screens when London’s victory was announced in contrast to the recent French experience of “Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité”. What is all the fuss about? Will the area become an “Islamic Emirate of Stratford” or perhaps something more akin to a Cordoba of the past – a shining example of genuine tolerance, diversity and civilisation?

To debate the issue we have Abdul Khaliq Mian who has been an active member of the community in Newham over the last 30 years. He has contributed significantly towards the development of the West Ham mosque project and is currently a member of the Respect Party. His counterpart will be Alan Craig, councillor for the Canning Town South ward in Newham. He is leader of the Christian People’s Alliance group and has actively campaigned against the mosque claiming that the Tablighi Jamaat are funded by the Saudis and have terrorist links, and that the project would damage community relations if it were to go ahead.

All welcome and free entrance – just turn up.

Rail/Tube: Stratford Station

Directions: 5 min walk from Stratford Station, close to Ibis Stratford Hotel.

Map: http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=539150&y=184519&z=0&sv=E15+4LJ&st=2&pc=E15+4LJ&mapp=newmap.srf&searchp=newsearch.srf

For more details and to attend please contact: Tel: 07956 983 609 E-mail: info@islamiccircles.org

Hate crime yobs target Muslims

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Revolting thugs urinated on to shoes and clothes belonging to worshipping Muslims. Police are treating the incident as a hate crime against Bath’s Muslim community and say they are determined to track down the perpetrators. The two male offenders entered the lobby of the Bath Islamic Centre in Pierrepont Street during evening prayers, before urinating on clothing and shoes left in the entrance by worshippers. Their mindless vandalism has disgusted members of the mosque and left the belongings of five people damaged.

Imam Rashad Amazi, a leader at the Bath Islamic Centre, said the victims were disgusted by the crime. He said: “They felt disbelief and they were horrified. While they were doing their prayers they heard very loud shouting inside the building. They couldn’t break their prayers but they were terrified. As soon as they’d finished, they ran to the ground floor where they thought the shouting was coming from. By that time the people had left. They smelled the alcohol and the urine and then found there was urine in their shoes and on the carpets.”

Rosco Jones, from Bath and North East Somerset Racial Equality Council, said he was concerned that other victims of hate crime were keeping quiet about their experiences in an effort to evade more attention. He said: “The main concern is that not as many victims of hate crime resulting from the heightened concerns around Islamic-based terrorism are coming forward to say they’ve been attacked. People on the whole are just keeping the information to themselves. That is quite bad. The police and authorities such as ourselves need to be aware so we can take normal community safety preventative action.”

Bath Chronicle, 3 September 2007

The British National Party are not happy: “The police, instead of treating it as a stupid misdemeanor, are pulling out all the stops to track down the two culprits, for no other reason than to curry favour with Bath’s growing Muslim community.”

BNP Regional Voices, 3 September 2007

Jesse Jackson urges unity in fight against discrimination

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Jesse JacksonROSEMONT, Ill. – The Rev. Jesse Jackson used an impromptu appearance at the Islamic Society of North America’s convention Sunday to urge American Muslims to work with blacks and other minorities in their shared fight against discrimination.

Jackson likened Islamophobia in America today to the problems faced by Mexican immigrants and blacks during the 1960s. He used the venue to speak about some issues dear to the hundreds of Muslims in his audience, including their opposition to the war in Iraq, ethnic-based profiling of Muslims by law enforcement and what Jackson referred to as “fear-mongering.”

Indianapolis Star, 3 September 2007

Police defend Muslims rather than chase criminals

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“John O’Sullivan was not exaggerating when he said that the police are more interested in sniffing out racist or Islamophobic attitudes than in investigating crime. When I reported to police the theft of my cheque book and attempted theft of £1,500 from my account, I was told ‘the police do not investigate such cases’. On the wall of the police station was a poster inviting me to ask for my Anti-Islamophobia Action Pack.”

Letter in the Sunday Telegraph, 2 September 2007

Fascists protest against mosque in Fareham

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The British National Party reports that it organised a day of action in Fareham, Hampshire, against the proposed contruction of a mosque and community centre in nearby Wickham. The fascists’ local organiser claims that they distributed 4,000 leaflets which boasted : “Only the British National Party speaks out against both Muslim extremist terrorism and the threat that ‘mainstream’ Islam poses to our British culture, heritage and way of life.”

BNP regional voices, 1 September 2007

Blogger bans Islamophobic website

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“All those who have complained about the racist site Blog Cochon will be pleased to know that Blogger has decided to ban the site from public viewing on the basis that it is in contravention of its Contents Policy. Blogger is to be congratulated and supported in its exemplary actions.”

Chimes of Freedom reports on a successful campaign against an Islamophobic French-language website.

Jewish leader tells US Muslims that Islam is being demonized

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The president of the Union for Reform Judaism accused American media, politicians and religious groups on Friday of demonizing Islam. Addressing the annual convention of the Islamic Society of North America, Rabbi Eric Yoffie said Muslims have been turned into “satanic figures.”

“There exists in this country among all Americans, whether Jews, Christians, or non-believers, a huge and profound ignorance about Islam … there is no shortage of voices prepared to tell us that fanaticism and intolerance are fundamental to Islamic religion, and that violence and even suicide bombing have deep Koranic roots,” he said.

Yoffie said his organization is discussing with Muslim leaders a dialogue and education program in the near future to increase understanding between the two faiths. He said Americans need to know “how far removed Islam is from the perverse distortions of the terrorists who too often dominate the media, subverting Islam’s image by professing to speak in its name.”

Ha’aretz, 1 September 2007

New York’s Arabic-themed school divides community

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Khalil Gibran demonstrationConcerns have been raised over whether a groundbreaking Arabic-themed school in New York, due to open next week, will be a model of coexistence or a conduit for extremism. Education Department officials have said that religion will not be taught at the Khalil Gibran International Academy, which is set to open on September 4 and will focus on Arab language and Arabic culture.

Such specialised schools are common in New York, and the city’s Department of Education has continued to insist that the school will be no different from Chinese- or Hispanic-oriented public schools. But others fear that the academy may teach students extremist Islamic beliefs.

One local politician, State Assemblyman Dov Hikind, alleged that the school had been endorsed by “radical” groups. “Establishment of an Arab school is a misguided and dangerous idea,” the Democratic politician – who represents a large Jewish constituency – told the JC. “It will not, as suggested, be a hope for peace; it is a blueprint for anti-Israel and anti-US extremism.”

Conservative commentator Daniel Pipes has slammed the project as “a Public Jihad School” where “imbuing pan-Arabism and anti-Zionism, proselytising for Islam, and promoting Islamist sympathies will predictably make up the school’s true curriculum”.

Supporters of the school – named after a Lebanese Christian poet – have vigorously denied such allegations. In a recent demonstration supporting the school, a mix of Jews and Muslims carried signs that read “NYC needs multi-cultural education” and “The Torah and the Koran both teach peace”. Speaking at the rally, Rabbi Michael Feinberg of the Greater NY Labour-Religion Coalition said elected officials should come forward to defend the school.

Jewish Chronicle, 31 August 2007