California: criminals called gas station clerk a ‘jihadist’ and punched him

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is searching for two Eureka men suspected of committing a hate crime on Sunday along with assault and other charges.

Suspects Jamie Sean Hunt, 32, and Jeremy Lee Schweizer, 30, allegedly attempted to pay for gasoline with a counterfeit $100 bill at about 9 p.m. According to the press release, the station clerk refused to accept the bill and an argument ensued.

The two suspects allegedly used racial epithets at the clerk, who is of East Indian descent, including statements that the clerk was a “jihadist” and that he was angry Osama bin Laden was dead.

One of the suspects then allegedly punched the clerk in the side of the head. As they left, the men pushed to the ground one of the clerk’s relatives, who was standing outside, before stealing his cell phone. The clerk’s relative received gashes on his forehead, nose and right knee.

The two men left in a gray Dodge 2500 pickup truck. While doing so, they struck a passing motorist with the truck and continued fleeing.

Times-Standard, 10 May 2011

See also KRCRTV, 9 May 2011

Arson attack on Athens mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Kallithea mosque graffitiUnknown arsonists set fire to a makeshift mosque in Athens early on Sunday, causing damage but no injuries, police said.

The arsonists broke a window of the ground-floor flat used for religious practices in the district of Kallithea around 2:00 am SA time and threw incendiaries inside, a police source told AFP. Greek news reports said a Nazi swastika was painted on the flat’s windows.

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EDL thugs target trade union and labour movement bookshop

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Members of the English Defence League invaded Merseyside’s main trade union and labour movement bookshop on Saturday.

The EDL is an organisation of racist thugs with fascists in its midst. It primarily targets Muslims with its vicious racism. But it is increasingly turning its sights on other traditional fascist targets, such as trade unionists and socialists as well as ethnic minorities.

The News From Nowhere bookshop is a central part of the trade union and labour movement in Liverpool, selling tickets for antiracist events and coaches to anticuts protests, as well as books on everything from feminism and activism to the local area and children’s literature.

On Saturday 7 May, around 15 EDL supporters, arrived at the bookshop with flags. A group then came into the shop and attempted to intimidate staff – including making comments to female staff about pornography – before they were eventually moved on by police.

UAF news report, 9 May 2011

French court acquits blogger who was ‘only having some fun’ when burning and urinating on Qur’an

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A French court on Monday acquitted a blogger of a charge of provoking discrimination related to burning a copy of the Qur’an in an internet broadcast and urinating on the book.

The court in the north-eastern city of Strasbourg found that Ernesto Rojas Abbate had been acting within the boundaries of freedom of expression when he used the Qur’an as a prop in a simulation of the September 11 2001 terrorist attacks on New York.

Filming himself with a webcam on October 2, Abbate made a paper aircraft with pages from the Qur’an and launched it at two glasses representing the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre. He then burnt the aircraft and the book and urinated on them, to “quench the flames”.

The Mosque of Strasbourg and a local anti-racism organisation had pressed charges against the 30-year-old from the town of Bischheim close to Strasbourg. But the court ruled the video was aimed at terrorist acts and not the wider Muslim community, which “could not be assimilated with the terrorist acts”.

The man told the court he had only been having some fun and that he had nothing against Islam. He said he had been responding to a dare following the burning by US pastor Terry Jones of a copy of the Qur’an.

News 24, 9 May 2011

See also Saphir News, 9 May 2011

Avon axes BNP candidate over racist Facebook comments

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Nancy Shaw-Farmer with Der FuhrerA BNP candidate has been axed as an Avon representative after making racist remarks on Facebook.

The company “terminated its relationship” with self-employed sales leader Nancy Shaw-Farmer, who stood as a BNP candidate in Blackburn’s Roe Lee ward, after complaints about her posts on the social networking site.

It launched an investigation after receiving calls about the offensive comments which were derogatory to Asian people. Her comments included: “4 P***s in a car near where I work asked for directions to a junior school. Sent them in the wrong direction.” She also wrote: “Bungee jumping! 25 per person. Muslims and P***s free. No strings attached and free transport. ha ha ha.”

Ms Shaw-Farmer, from the Bastwell area of Blackburn, lost after polling 175 votes in last week’s election. She had worked as an Avon sales leader for 12 months and had around 30 customers.

Blackburn Citizen, 10 May 2011

US court rules in favour of Muslim inmate

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A Muslim inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution in Loretto didn’t get a fair shake when he filed a lawsuit claiming religious discrimination, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday.

Charles Mack, 52, sued in federal court in Johnstown. He wrote that a corrections officer slapped a label on his back reading “I love bacon.” The officer later told him, “there’s no good Muslim, except a dead Muslim,” according to the complaint. Mr. Mack complained, and was fired from his commissary job, he said.

He sued, claiming that his rights to free speech and exercise of religion were being violated, he was being subjected to cruel and unusual punishment, and he faced retaliation and a hostile work environment. Six weeks later, U.S. District Judge Kim R. Gibson dismissed his case.

The 3rd Circuit judges found that Mr. Mack’s claims met legal thresholds that warrant further review. It rejected Judge Gibson’s view that the “I love bacon” sign was a “junior high school level prank,” that spurred only “offended religious sensibilities.”

The appeals court ordered the U.S. District Court to take another look at the complaint and allow Mr. Mack to amend it if warranted.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 7 May 2011

Toronto: anti-racists mobilise opposition to Wilders

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Protesters are getting ready for Geert Wilders’ first Canadian visit as the controversial anti-Islamic Dutch politician rolls into town for a private speech to local Christian groups Monday night.

The Freedom Party leader maintains that because Canada helped out Holland during the Second World War, it is only fitting to repay them by raising awareness the country is in danger of a hostile takeover and being “Islamicized”.

“Freedom is the most precious thing we have,” he said Sunday at a Toronto hotel. “(Canadian soldiers) didn’t give their lives to free Europe, (so that) not 50, 60, 70 years later we would face another totalitarianism ideology called Islam.”

Toronto’s invitation-only event is being emceed by the Sun‘s Ezra Levant, who will also interview him Monday on Sun News. London, Ottawa and Nashville are also on the schedule because Wilders said they are known as “the Bible belt” – areas with devout Christians.

“What happened in Europe will also happen here,” Wilders said. “We should wake up to the fact that Islamization means less freedom to us and our children.”

The Islamic Society of Toronto and the Canadian Islamic Congress could not be reached for comment on Sunday. However, Anti-Racist Action and the First Nations Solidarity Working Group are organizing protests in the cities Wilders is speaking in.

“As Muslims, racialized people and/or anti-racist allies, we are alarmed at this invitation extended to Wilders by the Canada Christian College and International Free Press Society Canada,” the groups said in a press release. “It is also very clear that after all the hysteria about free speech, the event has been organized so as to deter any dissenting voices or protest.”

In addition to being invitation-only, tickets cost $20 and must be purchased with a credit and proper name just to find out the location of the speeches.

Toronto Sun, 9 May 2011

Birmingham Project Champion ‘spy’ cameras being removed

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Birmingham spy cameraMore than 200 so-called “spy cameras” installed in largely Muslim areas of Birmingham are being dismantled.

The cameras in Washwood Heath and Sparkbrook, some of which were hidden, were paid for with £3m of government funds earmarked for tackling terrorism.

An independent report was highly critical of the Project Champion scheme and West Midlands Police. The force agreed in December they should be removed and said none of the 218 cameras had ever been switched on.

Assistant Chief Constable Sharon Rowe said: “The work starting today shows that we have listened to what our communities wanted and acted upon those wishes. We accept that mistakes were made and we are keen to learn the lessons that emerged from the review into Project Champion. The removal of the cameras is part of that learning process.”

BBC News, 9 May 2011

See also Birmingham Post, 9 May 2011

Two more Muslim religious leaders taken off plane

Posted on by Bob Pitt

For the second time in less than a week, two more Muslim religious leaders say they were not allowed to fly to Charlotte. “What we have here is a case of blatant discrimination,” said attorney Mo Idlibi, who now represents the Imams.

On Friday, two Imams were told to get off a flight from Memphis to Charlotte after going through TSA security twice. After they boarded the flight, the pilot decided to return to the gate and the Imams were told to get off the plane. Both were allowed to take a later flight but the Imams say they never got a clear understanding of why they were asked to leave the plane in the first place.

Then on Saturday, two more Imams were prevented from boarding a flight to Charlotte for the conference on Islamaphobia. The father and son, both Imams, tried to board a flight from LaGuardia to Charlotte. The younger man, Abu Bakr Adul Latif, was initially allowed to board after passing through a security screening. However, his father, Al Amin Abdul Latif, was never allowed to get on the American Airlines flight. Later Abu Bakr Adul Latif and the other passengers were taken off the plane – apparently because of security reasons. Both Imams had cleared security more than once.

“Body frisks, excessive security checks and they were cleared every time,” said Idlibi. “Discrimination based on race, based upon national origin and religions and those are just unacceptable in our country.”

Idlibi said that he plans to seek damages in court and would like to see pilots undergo sensitivity training. He said he also wants answers. “My clients want to know why they haven’t received any explanation from American Airlines about why this took place,” he explained.

WCNC, 9 May 2011

Posted in USA

Sign next to mosque reads ‘Bomb making, next driveway’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Bomb Making Next Driveway

AMHERST, N.Y. — There was no answer at an Amherst home, where a stenciled sign reads, “bomb making, next driveway.” The property is located next to a newly built mosque at the Jaffarya Center.

Across the street, patients of Dr. John Athans expressed shock upon viewing the sign, questioning the timing of it. It went up this past weekend, only days after the death of Osama Bin Laden.

WIVB, 9 May 2011

See also WNY Muslims, 7 May 2011

Update:  See WGRZ-TV, 10 May 2011

Further update:  See “Neighbor removes sign next to mosque”,WBEN, 11 May 2011

Posted in USA