CALIF. MUSEUM OF TOLERANCE TO SCREEN ISLAM-BASHING FILM - TOP (LOS ANGELES, CA, 5/15/2009) The Greater Los Angeles Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-LA) today called on the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) to cancel a Sunday screening of a film called “The third Jihad” that the civil rights group says portrays Muslims as a “fifth column within the United States.” In a letter to SWC founder Rabbi Marvin Hier, CAIR-LA Executive Director Hussam Ayloush wrote in part:
Last year, CAIR-LA joined Jewish leaders in denouncing the Wiesenthal Center for building a “Museum of Tolerance” in Jerusalem on what was once the largest Muslim cemetery in Palestine. SEE: An Intolerable Spot for a Museum (Forward) CAIR, America's largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 35 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding. CONTACT: CAIR-LA Communications Coordinator Munira Syeda, 714-776-1847, 714-851-4851, info@losangeles.cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-488-8787 or 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com; CAIR Communications Coordinator Amina Rubin, 202-488-8787 or 202-341-4171, E-Mail: arubin@cair.com SEE ALSO: Background: On Tuesday, May 19, 2009, Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA) is scheduled to give the opening address at a conference entitled "Libel Lawfare: Silencing Criticism of Radical Islam" hosted by the Middle East Forum, a right-wing think tank founded by Daniel Pipes, one of the nation's leading Islamophobes. The false premise of this conference is that American Muslims are involved in a concerted effort to suppress free speech on Islam by misusing the American legal system. In the past, Pipes has stated that "all immigrants bring exotic customs and attitudes, but Muslim customs are more troublesome than most," and more ominously, "In its long history of immigration, the United States has never encountered so violence-prone and radicalized a community as the Muslims who have arrived since 1965." He has also stated that the views of far-right French racist Jean-Marie Le Pen "represent an important outlook in the national debate over immigration and Islam" and supports racial and religious profiling of Muslims and Arabs. Not limiting himself to anti-Muslim bigotry, in December 2004, Pipes wrote on his website that he supported the widely-repudiated internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. Gaffney has claimed that the use of Islamic finance in America is a form of treason. "[I]t is advancing a criminal conspiracy whose purpose is the violent overthrow of the United States Constitution and government in favor of Islamic rule," wrote Gaffney. (Washington Other conference participants include Joe Kaufman, a Florida anti-Muslim extremist with a long history of seeking to marginalize and disenfranchise the American Muslim community and its institutions. In 2006, Kaufman joined forces with an anti-Islam preacher in Florida to block the expansion of a mosque in Boca Raton. "This mosque should not exist on American shores," said Kaufman. (St. Petersburg Times, 7/14/06) Is Senator Specter's presence at this conference truly representative of you as a resident of Pennsylvania? If you don't think so please sign the petition below. Honorable Senator Specter, I am writing to express my dismay that you have agreed to deliver the opening speech at a conference entitled "Libel Lawfare: Silencing Criticism of Radical Islam" hosted by the Middle East Forum. It has come to my attention that many of the conference speakers and co-sponsors, such as Daniel Pipes, Frank Gaffney and Joe Kaufman make their living by propagating fear, mistrust and bigotry against Muslims and other minorities. While I recognize your rights to free speech and association, I must say that as a concerned citizen and resident of Pennsylvania your participation in this event grossly misrepresents my viewpoint and will do nothing to help win my vote in next year's election. [Sign petition here] CONTACT Sen. Specter's offices directly here. (As always, be POLITE and respectful.) ----- CAIR-LA: THE FBI, THE MUSLIMS, AND MOLE - TOP On “Inside the OC with Rick Reiff,” CAIR-LA Executive Director Hussam Ayloush discusses the Muslim community’s concerns about the FBI hiring a convicted felon to “infiltrate” Southern California mosques and to try to incite violence. Click here to watch the video. ----- CAIR: N. CALIF. POLICE OFFICERS DISCIPLINED OVER RACIAL COMMENTS - TOP (SANTA CLARA, CA, 5/15/09) - The San Francisco Bay Area chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SFBA) announced today that disciplinary action has been taken against officers of the Newark Police Department over inappropriate racial comments made to a 15-year-old of Moroccan heritage when he was detained for questioning and later released. While the teen was being questioned, a police officer allegedly asked him where he was from, and then said, “You came here to make trouble, I’m sending you back to your country.” Other police officers present in the room reportedly laughed. The incident left the young man feeling shaken. He says he began to have recurring nightmares and now feels intimidated by any police presence. CAIR-SFBA called for an investigation of the incident and for a reprimand to the officers involved. At a meeting this week with police officials, a CAIR-SFBA representative and the mother of the detained teen, officials confirmed that an internal investigation had been conducted and that appropriate disciplinary action had been taken against the officers involved. A verbal apology was also offered to the mother. “Racially inflammatory comments directed at any person are inappropriate and offensive; that these comments were directed at a minor was entirely unacceptable,” said CAIR-SFBA Programs and Outreach Director Agnes Chong. “We appreciate that the Newark Police Department took appropriate action to investigate the officers involved, and we reiterate the importance of police sensitivity and of being respectful to people of all races, ethnicities and religions.” CAIR, America's largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 35 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding. CONTACT: CAIR-SFBA Programs and Outreach Director Agnes Chong, 408-986-9874 or 408-646-2773, E-Mail: achong@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-488-8787 or 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com; CAIR Communications Coordinator Amina Rubin, 202-488-8787 or 202-341-4171, E-Mail: arubin@cair.com ----- TX: MOSQUE LEADER RELEASED FROM ICE DETENTION - TOP The popular spiritual leader of a southeast Houston mosque was released Wednesday from an immigration detention facility after being held without bail since December, his lawyer said. Sheikh Zoubir Bouchikhi, the 39-year-old imam of Houston’s Abu Bakr Siddqui mosque, was released on a $20,000 bond, said his attorney, Brian Bates. “Obviously we’re very relieved and very happy and just disappointed that it took so long,” Bates said. Bouchikhi and his supporters have pressed the government for months to release the imam while he awaited the outcome of his deportation hearing. Bouchikhi is a native of Algeria who came to America 11 years ago as a student. He obtained a religious worker visa and applied for permanent residency status for himself, his wife and oldest child. Bouchikhi’s other three children are American-born citizens. A green card petition on the imam’s behalf by the Islamic Society of Greater Houston was accepted in 2003, but in 2007, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services revoked the petition and denied Bouchikhi’s request for permanent residency. The government said ISGH had failed to prove Bouchikhi had been continuously employed for the two years prior to filing of its petition and had not demonstrated its ability to pay Bouchikhi’s salary. (More) ----- The North Central Texas Fusion Center is Collin County's new criminal and intelligence data gathering center. But, it may be gathering more criticism than acclaim as questions mount about how the million dollars to fund it are being spent. Fusion centers began springing up after 9/11. Funded mostly by grants, they were fostered by the need for law enforcement to better share information. Collin County's North Central Fusion Center has drawn national attention, but not for its innovation. Instead, the spotlight is due to its questionable operations and relationships of the man who created the center… The operator and architect is acclaimed computer scientist Dr. Bob Johnson, who works out of his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He's also known as the son of local Congressman Sam Johnson. Since 2004, Collin County has awarded Johnson $1.2 million to design and operate the center. But some say Johnson's mission has taken a sharp right turn away from computer science and towards political science, blurring the line between public protection and propaganda. Last February, Johnson warned of "Middle Eastern Terrorist Groups" infiltrating organizations such as "The Council on American Islamic Relations." He spoke of a growing Muslim influence in America, including "airport footbaths," "public school prayer breaks to accommodate Muslim students" and "hip hop fashion boutiques" where terrorists go to recruit. He also has warned of terrorists "operating in the North Central Texas region ... meeting at smoke shops and other locations to organize and plan attacks." Johnson issued weekly "Prevention Awareness Bulletins" that featured "threat indicators." When Homeland Security officials found out, they ordered him to stop. The American Civil Liberties Union said Johnson's bulletins set off an immediate alarm. "What we warned about, and now what we are seeing, is that too often these entities tend to look at people who disagree with public policies as potential terrorists," said Mike German, with SCLU in Washington D.C. Bill Baumbach's Collin County Observer blog monitors local government business. "And I thought it was one of the more bigoted, paranoid pieces I have ever seen on government stationery," he said of the bulletins. He was the first to raise questions about the Fusion Center's operations and expenses. The Fusion Center's 2004 start-up budget was $67,000. In 2005, the price tag jumped to a quarter of a million dollars. In 2006, the year the center actually opened, the costs dropped to $77,000. But from there, Johnson's billings grew to $368,000 in 2007. Last year, Johnson billed Collin County nearly half a million dollars to maintain and add to the system. Johnson said the budget has grown as the system improves. "I wanted to see what it was about," Baumbach said. "But what I found out was a bunch of politically-connected insider nepotism that was going on. The commissioner's court was not paying attention." Collin County Commissioner Joe Jaynes may be the exception. He has questioned not only the expenses, but the ethics as well. "I've probably been watching it closer than most because of my concern," he said. Among his concerns, Johnson's awarding of a $100,000 sub-contract to a software firm called Bassham and Associates. It turns out the owner, Elbert Bassham, is Johnson's brother-in law. Bassham's business address is a post office box in Marfa, Texas. (More) ----- HI: ISLAM DAY DRAWS HEAT FOR ISLES - TOP Hawaii already designates April 8 as Buddha Day and March 21 as Baha'i New Year's Day. Good Friday is even enshrined as an official state holiday, with public offices closed. So state Rep. Lyla Berg thought that marking Sept. 24 as Islam Day would not be out of line in Hawaii, with its multicultural fabric. But her seemingly innocuous resolution has attracted worldwide attention -- and a flurry of phone calls and e-mails, including threats to boycott Hawaii. Passed unanimously by the state House and overwhelmingly in the Senate on May 6, the resolution (House Concurrent Resolution 100, House Draft 1) recognizes the "rich religious, scientific, cultural and artistic contributions" of Islam and the Islamic world. It does not have the force of law. Congress passed a similar resolution on Oct. 15, 1979, honoring the 14th centennial of Islam. But in the post-Sept. 11, 2001, era, Hawaii's move has touched some nerves. While Berg's office has received many positive calls and e-mails, she said, her staff has also been berated by an equal number, mostly from out of state. "By acknowledging Islam, there's an assumption that means we support terrorists," said Berg (D, Hahaione Valley-Aina Haina), who introduced the resolution with Rep. Faye Hanohano (D, Pahoa-Kalapana). "I was hopeful we would have an opportunity to become more informed on what the religion is about and the people who are connected with it, so that we don't make the broad generalizations that are happening now." Gov. Linda Lingle told a radio interviewer that her office had received "a lot of angry calls from the mainland saying, 'We're not coming to a place that's having an Islam Day.'" "Here we are, in a very difficult economy, and it was just unnecessary," said Lingle, who had no authority over the resolution. "It didn't make any sense. You know it's going to get this kind of attention." As of yesterday the Hawaii Tourism Authority had received 14 e-mails and one phone call protesting the resolution. "Hawaii has always been known to be a tolerant and respectful place," said Mike McCartney, HTA president, adding that his agency has no position on the resolution. Sen. Josh Green (D, Milolii-Waimea), one of just three senators to oppose the resolution, said it violated the separation of church and state, a view shared by the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii. Many articles making the rounds on the Internet decry legislators for singling out Islam alone for praise, but a review reveals that at least 10 days with religious overtones have been recognized by the Legislature. Confucius Day and Islam Day were marked with resolutions, which do not become part of state law or recur annually. Others, such as Buddha Day, Hawaiian Makahiki Commemoration Day and Father Damien De Veuster Day, were recognized in bills that became law, although they are not state holidays. Christmas and Good Friday are official state holidays. (More) SEE ALSO: TX: RICHARDSON CITY COUNCIL MEMBER THOUGHT TO BE FIRST MUSLIM ELECTED LEADER IN NORTH TEXAS - TOP Much about Amir Omar, one of Richardson's newest City Council members, is a contradiction. His parents, who grew up Shiite and Sunni in radically different home environments. His support base, which combined the city's business elite with those who are often the group's loudest critics. And his role as politician, a trailblazer believed to be the first Muslim elected to office in North Texas, with a message focused on conservative fiscal policy and attracting young professionals to town. "Regardless of my audience, my message has been the same: How are we going to solve these issues?" said Omar, 37. "Religion shouldn't be a factor in the way a city councilman should approach his job." (More) ----- AFGHAN VILLAGERS DESCRIBE CHAOS OF U.S. STRIKES - TOP FARAH, Afghanistan — The number of civilians killed by the American airstrikes in Farah Province last week may never be fully known. But villagers, including two girls recovering from burn wounds, described devastation that officials and human rights workers are calling the worst episode of civilian casualties in eight years of war in Afghanistan. (More) | |
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Friday, May 15, 2009
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