Nabil Ahmed of FOSIS calls for joint action against Islamophobia and antisemitism.
When there’s something Muslim in your neighborhood, who ya gonna call?
It’s not religious practice, claim the Mosquebusters, it’s parking. Or noise pollution. Or building codes. And with downloadable petition templates, generic letters to councilors, and free legal advice for begrudged locals, it’s Boby’s mission to make it as easy as possible for your average, disgruntled suburbanite to join in. If there’s a trial or hearing about planned construction, Boby will come down to the courthouse to provide free legal representation; if a mosque site has been proposed, he’ll arrange volunteers to paper a neighbourhood with flyers. But the Mosquebusters aren’t just a resource for aggrieved pensioners – the group actually wants its volunteers to spread out, actively trolling city planning offices and public records for mosque applications. “It is satisfying detective work, rooting around Islamic deviousness!” reads the instructional e-mail sent to volunteers.
Spike Johnson examines the methods employed by Gavin Boby’s Law and Freedom Foundation to obstruct the building of new mosques in the UK.
Michigan Islamic Academy files lawsuit over discrimination
The Michigan Islamic Academy has been in Ann Arbor, MI since 1986, but now a move has hit a road block and prompted a lawsuit over discrimination.
The lawsuit announcement came at a press conference inside the Council on American Islamic Relations office. “MIA once had a dream, but the Township has made it a nightmare for our students and their families,” said Tarek Nahlawi of the Michigan Islamic Academy.
According to the Michigan Islamic Academy, the lawsuit is the last resort in their effort to put a new school building on a 26.9 acre property, purchased in Sept. 2010. “This project was not a surprise to the township, as we approached them before purchasing the land our intentions to build a small school and community center,” said Nahlawi.
OSCE Personal Representative urges participating States to take hate crimes against Muslims seriously
In view of the Oslo massacre last summer and the spate of neo-Nazi serial killings in Germany, the OSCE Chairperson’s Personal Representative on Combating Intolerance and Discrimination against Muslims Ambassador Adil Akhmetov expressed concerns over the feeling of insecurity among Muslim communities across the OSCE region.
“Although the efforts of the Norwegian and German authorities to bring to justice those responsible for such heinous crimes are commendable, there remain serious concerns about the effectiveness of measures to combat manifestations of intolerance, in particular hate crimes, and discrimination against Muslims,” Akhmetov said.
Akhmetov warned about the risk of “falling into the error of categorizing such deplorable crimes as isolated acts of certain marginal personalities”, and urged OSCE participating States to look into the broader context and address the root causes of racism, xenophobia and intolerance.
Londoners won’t be fooled by the anti-Ken Livingstone spin
The polls are showing the two leading contenders for London mayor – Ken Livingstone and Boris Johnson – running neck and neck. Predictably, sections of the rightwing media have started reaching for the proverbial dog whistle; playing politics with race and religion and appealing to a diminishing band of bigoted voters who respond to the politics of fear. They are painting a picture of the East End which doesn’t exist – but which aims to frighten the voters in suburbia down to the polling stations on 3 May.
Tower Hamlets councillor Rabina Khan replies to the Evening Standard‘s witch-hunt of the borough’s mayor Lutfur Rahman as part of a campaign to smear Ken Livingstone.
Twelve EDL supporters in court over attack on Leeds anti-racism concert
Five men including a serving soldier and seven juveniles will appear in court tomorrow charged in connection with a disturbance at an anti-racism concert.
The 12 will appear at Leeds Magistrates Court charged with affray in relation to fighting which interrupted the “Rage Against Racism” event at The Well bar in Chorley Lane, Leeds, on June 18.
During the concert attended by around 150, a group of people allegedly chanting support for the English Defence League attempted to enter. It was reported rocks and bottles were thrown and one person suffered a serious facial injury and others minor injuries. Damage included broken windows.
Brigitte Bardot appeals for nominations for Le Pen
Another EDL thug gets a CRASBO
Officers serving with the National Domestic Extremism Unit have spoken of their satisfaction after a man was barred from attending any Islamic-related sites and ordered to steer clear of English Defence League protests.
Woolwich Crown Court was told how John McAndrew had been jailed for a minimum of seven months for affray and common assault in December 2011.
And at a hearing on February 20 2012 he was served with a Conviction-Related Anti Social Behaviour Order (CRASBO). The move means he must now not enter mosques, Islamic cultural centres or Muslim festival sites in Greater London for five years. He is also barred from attending any public demonstration organised by, or in conjunction with the EDL or promote their activities within England and Wales.
Christian carer who refused to work on Sundays ‘denied rights given to a Muslim allowed to visit mosque’
This was the headline to a report in yesterday’s Daily Mail. It’s always interesting to see the Mail suddenly acquiring an interest in employment rights – not a subject that usually looms large among the paper’s concerns. Unfortunately, the only time this issue arouses the Mail‘s interest is when it offers the opportunity to have pop at Muslims.
The article begins: “A Christian care worker was forced from her job for refusing to work on Sundays even though a Muslim colleague had time off on Fridays to visit the mosque, a tribunal heard yesterday. Celestina Mba, 57, claims she was threatened with disciplinary action after telling her employer her church duties came first. In her evidence, she said she felt so intimidated by bosses at Brightwell children’s home in Morden, South London, that she had to resign.”
NYPD built secret files on NJ, Long Island mosques
Americans living and working in New Jersey’s largest city were subjected to surveillance as part of the New York Police Department’s effort to build databases of where Muslims work, shop and pray. The operation in Newark was so secretive even the city’s mayor says he was kept in the dark.
For months in mid-2007, plainclothes officers from the NYPD’s Demographics Units fanned out across Newark, taking pictures and eavesdropping on conversations inside businesses owned or frequented by Muslims.
The result was a 60-page report, obtained by The Associated Press, containing brief summaries of businesses and their clientele. Police also photographed and mapped 16 mosques, listing them as “Islamic Religious Institutions.” The report cited no evidence of terrorism or criminal behavior. It was a guide to Newark’s Muslims.