Taking up last month’s Tennessean report, Forward continues the investigation of “terror expert” Steven Emerson’s finances.
‘Christmas is hijacked by Muslims and Hindus’ claims Daily Star
Barmy PC do-gooders have put up their town’s Christmas lights along with displays for Muslim and Hindu festivals – even though those celebrations have already finished. Councillors were so anxious not to offend other faiths that they decided to share the Christian display with lights to mark the other celebrations. But residents have slammed the move because although the lights were switched on last night, the Muslim festival of Eid ends today and Sikhs and Hindus celebrated Diwali two weeks ago.
One angry father told the Daily Star: “It’s like Christmas is being hijacked. It’s mad. Why do we have these lights up for Eid and Diwali when they’ve finished? We wouldn’t go around putting Santas up on any of these festivals.” But council bosses in Rochdale say they want to keep the lights to “represent the community”. Another resident said: “The lights look fantastic … but I don’t see why they have to have all these other festivals in them.”
Philip Davies, Tory MP for Shipley, West Yorks, said: “I’ve no idea why local authorities up and down the country are so ashamed of celebrating Christmas. All this kind of pussyfooting around is done in the name of not offending other people from other faiths. But it tends to be done by white middle-class people with some kind of bizarre guilt complex.”
You’ll see that the “Happy Eid” illuminations are less prominently displayed than the main “Happy Christmas” message, and that Stars of David have rightly been included too as a mark of respect to the Jewish community. Of course, even the Daily Star balks at running an article headlined “Christmas is hijacked by Jews”. But Muslims and Hindus are regarded as legitimate targets by racist tabloids.
Update: See Rochdale Online, 20 November 2010
Man jailed for ripping off Muslim woman’s veil loses appeal
A man who was jailed for two years for ripping off a Muslim woman’s veil in Glasgow city centre has lost his appeal. William Baikie, 28, had claimed that the prison term he was given after admitting the assault at Glasgow Central Station was excessive. But judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh ruled that a sheriff was entitled to impose the punishment he selected.
Lord Osborne, who heard the appeal with Lord Reed, said Sheriff Lindsay Wood had described the crime as “appalling and deeply intrusive”. The senior judge said: “We are not of the view that that is an overstatement of the character of the offence. We consider that it would require little imagination on the part of anyone to foresee what the likely effect would be of committing an offence of this kind, particularly in the circumstances in which we live.”
Baikie, described as a prisoner in Glasgow’s Barlinnie jail, earlier pled guilty to forcibly tearing off Anwar Alqahtani’s hijab on April 27 this year in a racially aggravated assault at Hope Street.
The married 26-year-old victim, from Saudi Arabia, was studying for a masters degree in English after arriving in Scotland in January. She was entering Glasgow’s Central Station when Baikie came up beside her, seized the veil and tore it from her face before throwing it away. He then ran off. The victim’s hijab was torn and she had to use a piece of cloth to cover her face before catching her train and arriving home very upset.
Five EDL protesters deny charges in Leicester
Five men charged with public order offences following an English Defence League (EDL) protest in Leicester have pleaded not guilty. Lee Whitby, 27, from Stoke-on-Trent; Mark Turnbull, 38, from Gateshead and Scott Kerbin, 30, from Abergele, Wales, appeared before Leicester magistrates. Mark Bircham, 23, from Wigston, Leicestershire and Jake Stewart, 21, from Derby, also deny the charges. All were banned from EDL protests as part of their bail conditions.
The men were charged following protests held by the EDL and Unite Against Facism (UAF) on 9 October in Leicester city centre. The five are charged with using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour. Mr Bircham was also charged with assaulting a police officer and Mr Kerbin with having an offensive weapon. Mr Turnbull is further charged with resisting arrest and Mr Whitby with using threatening words or behaviour in a religiously aggravated manner.
Mr Whitby will return to court later in November while the other four men have been bailed to return to Leicester in January.
Five EDL protesters deny charges in Leicester
Five men charged with public order offences following an English Defence League (EDL) protest in Leicester have pleaded not guilty. Lee Whitby, 27, from Stoke-on-Trent; Mark Turnbull, 38, from Gateshead and Scott Kerbin, 30, from Abergele, Wales, appeared before Leicester magistrates. Mark Bircham, 23, from Wigston, Leicestershire and Jake Stewart, 21, from Derby, also deny the charges. All were banned from EDL protests as part of their bail conditions.
New Statesman interview with Lutfur Rahman
The Mayor of Tower Hamlets talks to Mehdi Hasan.
EDL hooligans arrested after attack on Respect meeting in Oldham
Four people were arrested after far-right campaigners stormed a meeting where former MP George Galloway was speaking.
Protesters, believed to be members of the English Defence League, burst into Oldham’s Pakistani Community Centre in Glodwick. The group hurled abuse at Mr Galloway and members of the audience at the Respect Party public meeting. Punches were thrown and the police were called. Officers arrested four protesters on suspicion of affray.
It is understood that members of Respect, who arranged the gathering, had earlier made police aware of the event after a similar gathering in Wythenshawe was disrupted by EDL protesters in the summer.
The Pamela Geller Blog Generator
This made me laugh.
Islam is being ‘demonised’ says former Met Police Commissioner
Islam is being “demonised” as a result of atrocities carried out in the name of a “distorted” version of the faith, former Metropolitan Police Commissioner Lord Blair of Boughton has said.
The ex-commissioner, who led the Met during the 2005 suicide bombings on London’s transport system, described Islam as one of the “great” Abrahamic faiths and a “faith of peace” which had suffered as a result of atrocities carried out by individuals.
Press Association, 16 November 2010
Back in 2005 Ian Blair won the IHRC’s “Islamophobe of the Year” award, presumably on the basis of the stick he received over the Menezes killing. This struck me at the time as grossly unfair. Whatever criticisms you might make of Blair, he was never an Islamophobe. On the contrary, he always had a good line on supporting multiculturalism and diversity, and countering anti-Muslim bigotry in the police force – for which he was denounced by the likes of the Daily Mail, Melanie Phillips and the BNP.
Tory MPs take up halal meat campaign
A Yorkshire MP has called for clearer food labelling after discovering that halal meat was unknowingly sold in the House of Commons’ canteens.
The Commons catering service is currently looking for new food suppliers who can tell them how the meat they sell is killed after admitting it had “unknowingly received” poultry slaughtered in accordance with Islamic law. MPs and staff who eat at the Commons’ canteens and restaurants were “not made aware” of how the animals were killed, Sir Stuart Bell, representing the House of Commons Commission, added.
MPs are now calling for the Government to introduce legislation to make sure halal meat is properly labelled by restaurants, food wholesalers and supermarkets.
Conservative Greg Knight (East Yorkshire) tabled a question last week to find out whether halal meat had been sold in the Commons’ outlets. He added there was cross-party support for halal meat to be clearly labelled. Mr Knight said: “This underlines the need to have proper labelling in place so people actually know what they are eating. It seems to me that there has been this drive in the food industry to do everything halal so it doesn’t offend people. But as a consumer I would like to know what I am eating and how it was killed. The issue needs to be addressed and I hope it is something the Coalition does shortly.”
Fellow Tory Philip Hollobone (Kettering) said he was “not shocked or surprised” by Sir Stuart’s admission. He added: “I am angry because I don’t think it is that difficult a problem to solve. It just needs the political will to do it. We are waiting for Europe to do something rather than taking the initiative ourselves or maybe the Government is frightened about upsetting ethnic minorities.”
Meanwhile, Conservative Andrew Rosindell (Romford), secretary of the Associate Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare, said consumers had a right to know what they were eating.
Earlier this year, an investigation found halal meat was being served in many schools, hospitals, pubs and sporting venues without diners being told. A written Commons question was then tabled last week by Mr Knight. In it, the MP asked whether canteens in the House of Commons had served halal beef, lamb or chicken in the last year and should, therefore, be added to the list.