That’s the headline to an article in yesterday’s Yorkshire Post. It is based on a report by the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Nick Hardwick, of an inspection carried out in December at HMP Full Sutton in Yorkshire.
The report found: “Black and minority ethnic and Muslim prisoners reported much more negatively about their treatment and conditions across a range of indicators than white and non-Muslim prisoners.”
A North Side man has filed a federal lawsuit that says a Westerville-based logistics company fired him after he sought permission to attend weekly Muslim worship services that conflicted with overtime shifts.
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday on behalf of Yusuf Sufi, 23, by the Columbus chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. It says Exel Inc. used religious discrimination and retaliation, and wrongfully terminated him. Exel is a subsidiary of Deutsche Post DHL.
Amnesty International has issued a statement on the case of Fatima Afif, sacked from her job as a nursery assistant for wearing a headscarf.
On Monday, the Oklahoma State Senate passed legislation that would prevent the use of religious or foreign laws in American courts.
Considered by some to be the “anti-Sharia” bill, House Bill 1060 passed the Oklahoma Senate on a vote of 40-3. An amendment to the bill was added. That amendment must be approved by the bill’s author before going to the desk of the Oklahoma governor.
The Fourth Annual International Conference on the Study of Islamophobia will be held on 19-20 April at the University of California, Berkeley. A live stream of the proceedings will be available. See here for further details of the conference.
“I am a proud Muslim-American woman, and I am tired. I am tired of being told that I am oppressed. That I have no voice. That I need to be liberated.
“I am tired, and I am speaking out for the rights of my and other fellow Muslim sisters to be able to dress and be how they wish to be.”
Laila Alawa rejects FEMEN’s claim that they are working for her liberation.
North Carolina state Rep. Michele Presnell (R-Burnsville) linked Islamic prayer to terrorism in an email sent to a constituent, the News & Observer reported Tuesday.
In an email exchange obtained by the Raleigh newspaper, Presnell was asked by a constituent if she would support an Islamic prayer being said before a state legislative meeting.
“No, I do not condone terrorism,” Presnell responded, according to the report. “We just need to start taking a stand on our religious freedom or it will be whisked away from us.”
Huffington Post, 10 April 2013
See also “GOP must repudiate NC lawmaker who compared Islamic prayer to ‘terrorism'”, CAIR press release, 10 April 2013
Rabbi Michael White and Rabbi Jerome Davidson condemn the decision to invite anti-Muslim hatemonger Pamela Geller to speak at the Great Neck Synagogue in Long Island next weekend.
They write: “We state unequivocally that Geller’s inflammatory rhetoric does not represent us or the great majority of Jews in Great Neck and on Long Island. Hate speech has no place in synagogues. Synagogues should be places for worship, positive dialogue and reasoned political debate. The right of free speech is vitally important, but Geller crosses the line from political to hate speech. In sharp contrast, Judaism teaches us to respect the traditions and values of other faiths.”
Sharia courts have been described as “courts of convenience” by Keighley MP Kris Hopkins, who claims they threaten the integrity of the nation’s justice system.
The MP was speaking after the Bradford Council of Mosques revealed they were in talks to start up a local Sharia panel that would offer advice and deal with legal issues within the Muslim community. It led to Mr Hopkins writing to Justice Secretary Chris Grayling to block any such move.
Well, so Stephen Lennon claims. For some reason, the police chose to arrest him rather than the “armed Muslims”. But then, that’s your two-tier system for you, innit?
