‘GO HOME SAND N**GER’ PAINTED ON IDAHO MUSLIM’S TRUCK - TOP
FBI asked to assist local police in investigation of hate crime

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 12/7/09) - The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) reported today that vandals spray-painted “go home sand n**ger” and Nazi swastikas on a truck owned by an Idaho Muslim. The victim also found a racist flier from the Aryan Nations on his lawn.

CAIR is calling on the FBI to assist local police in their investigation of the hate crime.

“This incident is apparently part of a pattern of hate crimes targeting people of all faiths and ethnicities in the area,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. “The FBI should add its resources to those of local police to help protect the entire community from bias-motivated attacks.”

Other local bias incidents included a noose left on a Spokane doorstep, a racist sticker stuck to the door of a Coeur d’Alene human rights center and attacks on and harassment of Hispanics, African-Americans and Native Americans.

SEE: Vandals Leave Racist Message (Spokesman-Review)

Last week, CAIR’s Sacramento chapter held a news conference with community and interfaith leaders to call on law enforcement authorities to investigate a possible bias motive for vandalism at the West Sacramento Islamic Community Center.

SEE: Sacramento Mosque Vandalized (Video)

CAIR also reported that a mosque in Oregon had been vandalized with hate graffiti in November.

SEE: Oregon Mosque Targeted with Hate Graffiti

On December 3, the Washington-based Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization released its annual report on the status of American Muslim civil rights. That report, titled "Seeking Full Inclusion," showed an increase in the number of bias-related incidents in 2008.

SEE: CAIR News Conference on U.S. Muslim Civil Rights (Video)

To view the entire "Seeking Full Inclusion" report, go here.

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. 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 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, 202-341-4171, E-Mail: arubin@cair.com

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INCITEMENT WATCH: DEFENSE CONTRACTOR MAKES UP WILD ISLAMIC TERRORISMFANTASY; RIGHT-WINGERS ACT LIKE IT'S 9/11 ALL OVER AGAIN - TOP
Joshua Holland, AlterNet, 12/6/09

True story. A right-winger who obviously reads too many of those really hard-core Islamophobic blogs emailed around a detailed account of how he had heroically thwarted a terrorist attack on a flight from Atlanta to Houston. (More)

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TWO GIRLS INSPIRED STUDENT TO BRING ABOUT CHANGE - TOP
Cheryl Dangel Cullen, Southtown Star, 12/7/09

Several years ago, Aala Mohamed, a senior at Universal School in Bridgeview, had an experience that would change her young life.

When just a freshman in high school, she was traveling between two cities in Sudan when she saw two little girls running behind her van.

"We stopped. Their clothes were tattered and their rib cages were showing," Mohamed recalled. "They gestured with their hands but we didn't know what they were saying and they didn't want food we had. We asked them what they wanted and finally, they told us that they wanted pencils to write. I never forgot that scene - ever. That has stuck with me."

The image of the girls has impacted Mohamed's life path. This past summer she took it upon herself to organize a follow-up trip to Sudan to help other children in the same plight. She contacted the International Call Organization and the Red Cross and arranged with them to work as a volunteer at a medical facility and school for two weeks. (More)

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MUSLIM COMMUNITY FINDS HOME IN UTAH - TOP
By Chris Mumford, The Daily Utah Chronicle

Although they trace their roots to some of the world’s most exotic and troubled regions from theMiddle East to Africa, many Muslim students call the U home and have at least one thing in common -- feeling comfortable and happy here. (More)

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CAIR: MISSED SIGNS PUZZLING AS HASAN PICTURE EMERGES - TOP
By Leo Shane III and Megan McCloskey, Stars and Stripes, 12/6/09

…Some religious groups maintained that servicemembers should be able to identify a religious radical without more specific guidelines.

"Extremism is extremism," said Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "If you’re advocating violence or hinting at violence, that should be a sign.

"What [the Army] is aiming for is objective criteria to identify problems, which is good. It can’t just be based on one religion. It has to be a reasonable person test, and then you have to take some action if there’s a reason for concern." (More)

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IS ISLAM A THREAT TO AMERICA? - TOP
Nashville activists warn churchgoers of violent threats to America; Muslims call campaign unfair
Bob Smietana and Kate Howard, The Tennessean, 12/6/09

A belief that Muslims are out to destroy the American way of life is gaining a foothold in some Christian and Jewish circles in Nashville.

The movement spreads its message through films, books and the Internet.

Its sentiment: Islam is an evil religion rooted in hatred and nurtured by violence.

Some churches have gotten involved, hosting viewings of movies that alert Jews and Christians of the perceived dangers worldwide. One film, produced by a local filmmaker, warns that a secondHolocaust is imminent if Americans do not stand united politically with Israel.

Muslims say the messages are an unfair characterization of their beliefs that began with the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and are perpetuated whenever someone professing to be a Muslim commits an act of violence, such as the recent shooting deaths at the Fort Hood Army post in Texas. (More)

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IS THE QURAN HOSTILE TO JEWS, CHRISTIANS? - TOP
By Leena el-Ali, Bradenton Herald, 12/7/09

When violence is committed in the name of Islam, the perpetrators often say that Muslims were never meant to enjoy good relations with followers of other religions, specifically Jews and Christians -- and point to Quranic verses to prove this.

Not surprisingly, some non-Muslims often point to these quotes as evidence that Muslims are a threat to their way of life, justifying their own hostility toward Islam.

But is that what these verses really mean? (More)