MUSLIM SOLDIER: ARMY HAS NOT ADDRESSED HARASSMENT COMPLAINTS - TOP
William Wan, Washington Post, 5/18/10

Two months after a Muslim soldier complained to the Pentagon about being harassed in the wake of the Fort Hood shootings, Spec. Zachari Klawonn said the Army has not followed through on its promises to address problems at the country's largest military base. (More)

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IMAM'S INVOCATION SPARKS CONTROVERSY IN POMPANO BEACH - TOP
Commission considered canceling prayers
Linda Trischitta, Sun Sentinel, 5/17/10

POMPANO BEACH — A Muslim cleric's prayer at the start of a commission meeting provoked an uproar in this city, prompting officials to consider an end to religious petitions altogether.

Ever since Imam Hasan Sabri delivered an invocation at a February meeting — first in Arabic and then in English – a dozen or so speakers who are mostly from out-of-town have appeared at multiple city meetings to slam commissioners.

Critics faulted the officials for allowing prayer in a foreign language by a local Muslim leader whose religion and culture differ from practices of other faiths.

In April, city resident and conservative radio host Joyce Kaufman told the commission that she worships at Hopewell Baptist Church there.

"It is the tradition of this land that people be tolerant of one another's religious beliefs," she said. "However, once any group or religious organization evidences an ideology that conflicts with our Judeo-Christian values and our principles, it is incumbent upon you to safeguard your constituents." (More)

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ANTI-MUSLIM RHETORIC IN POMPANO: A LESSON IN RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE - TOP

View Video of the prayer.

As an agnostic who thinks clergy-led prayer has no business at government meetings, I got a perverse kick out of Muslim cleric Hasan Sabri's invocation on Feb. 9 at Pompano Beach City Hall.

There was a packed house that night, myself included, because the commission was debating the city's police future. Hundreds of Broward Sheriff's Office personnel came to the meeting, along with hundreds of residents.

Sabri delivered a rousing two-language prayer, in Arabic and English, asking God to "keep our city safe" and "guide its officials to take the right steps."

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FBI STILL PROBING VANDALISM AT BROWNSTOWN MOSQUE - TOP
Valerie Olander, Detroit News, 5/18/10

Brownstown Township -- The FBI said today two incidents of vandalism at a local mosque are still part of an open investigation, though a motive for the acts has not been determined by federal officials.

"The FBI responded and assessed the incident, however a determination as to the motivation surrounding the act of vandalism has not yet been made and the matter remains open," Sandra R. Berchtold, spokeswoman for the FBI's Detroit office, said in a written statement.

"The FBI and the Department of Justice consider vandalism and other related acts that are motivated by race, religion or national origin to be serious offenses and will vigorously investigate and pursue those cases that warrant federal prosecution," she said.

Brownstown Deputy Police Chief Robert Mathews said Monday the damage did not appear to be racially motivated or that of a hate crime and that the FBI agreed with the determination.

Windows were broken and doors were smashed at the Masjid Umar-bin-Khattab Mosque on May 9 and May 15.

The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations asked the FBI to investigate, saying it was concerned by two such incidents within a week. (More)

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CAIR VIDEO: CALIF. CAB DRIVER ATTACKED AFTER SAYING ISLAMIC PRAYER - TOP

View the video.

SAN DIEGO -- A night on the job turned into a nightmare for a San Diego cab driver after he said an Islamic prayer which led to a hate crime.

John, a cab driver, said he was finished a sunset prayer near Mission Bay on Wednesday night when he heard someone cursing at him, telling him to get out of the country.

“Besides a lot of cursing, he kept yelling, ‘get back to your home, get back out of this country,’” said John.

He said he tried to ignore the man and got into his cab, but the man followed him.

“He said ‘get out, I’m going to kill you,’” said John.

John said what happened next was a barrage of slurs and punches.

“He punched me twice from the window, in the face and then he punched me in the chest and shoulder,” he said...

“This is the first time in a long time, since 9/11,” says Edgar Hopida, who heads the local chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Hopida said the incident is the latest in a list of hate crimes from pipe bombs outside mosques to vandalism that have been happening across the country since the foiled Times Square bomb plot.

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DIVERSE COALITION URGES ATTORNEY GENERAL HOLDER TO RECONSIDER HIS CALL TO WEAKEN MIRANDA RIGHTS - TOP

Washington, DC (May 17, 2010) – A broad coalition of 35 organizations, including many civil liberties and human rights groups, sent a letter today to Attorney General Eric Holder urging reconsideration of his call to weaken Miranda rights through the codification and expansion of the “public safety exception.”

In its letter to the Attorney General, the coalition stated, “Current law provides ample flexibility to protect the public against imminent terrorist threats while still permitting the use of statements made by the accused in a criminal prosecution. Weakening Miranda would undercut our fundamental Fifth Amendment rights for no perceptible gain.” (More)

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U.S., NOT STATES, SHOULD CONTROL BORDERS, EXPERT SAYS AT FORUM IN SHADYSIDE - TOP
Dan Majors, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/18/10

The signs passed out at a forum on anti-immigration legislation Monday night in Shadyside read: "What happens in Arizona STOPS in Arizona."

And, just in case it doesn't, representatives of the American Civil Liberties Union and other organizations rallied local residents to band together and speak out against what they say are misconceptions and myths regarding immigrants.

Arizona's new law mandates that police there must question a person's citizenship if there is "reasonable suspicion" that the person is an illegal immigrant. Similar legislation was introduced in Pennsylvania two weeks ago by state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, except that it would require checking immigration status only if a person were stopped for some other offense.

"Underlying all of these anti-immigrant laws seems to be a sense that undocumented immigrants are here to rape, murder and rob us. And, if not, they're at least here to take our jobs," said Witold Walczak, the ACLU's Pennsylvania legal director and the first of six speakers at Monday night's forum.

"If you think of these people as economic refugees, which is really what they are, they are no different than our ancestors."

More than 150 people crowded into the Friends Meeting House to hear speakers from the ACLU, Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network, the Pennsylvania Immigrant Resource Center, the Path to Justice Committee of The Religious Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh and the Council on American-Islamic Relations. (More)

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EXTREMIST ATTACKS ARE NOT ROOTED IN RELIGION - TOP
Dawud Walid, Detroit Free Press, 5/17/120

Recent attempted extremist attacks with international connections should prompt us to take a deeper look at root motives instead of simplistically faulting religion.

The tired cries of the un-nuanced, such as former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani stating that President Barack Obama is complicit in the recent failed Times Square attack because he fails to use the nomenclature "Islamic terrorism" to define such attacks, plays no constructive role in making our nation safer. Moreover, the Giuliani-type discourse misses a clear yet painful point. Many of these criminal acts are direct blowback in response to our foreign policy missteps. (More)

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FOCUS ON MUSLIMS IN AMERICA AT CAIR NY ANNUAL BANQUET - TOP
Farrah Hamid, elan, 5/18/10

Last Saturday, CAIR-NY celebrated its 13 years of service with its annual banquet and fundraiser, titled “I am Muslim, I am American.” The event featured a packed house and guest speakers from New York’s Muslim community, including comedian Preacher Moss, Imam Shamsi Ali and various CAIR members and volunteers.

Emcee Haroon Moghul began the night by reflecting on the evening’s theme, outlining the long history of Muslim-American presence in the United States. He was followed by Zead Ramadan, President of CAIR-NY’s board. Ramadan stressed the importance of CAIR’s work in the larger context of the American community. “We are here to defend the interests of our community, and our country, for years to come,” he said. (More)

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SOUTHERN BAPTIST'S EX-MUSLIM NARRATIVES IN DISPUTE - TOP
University to investigate seminary leader's claims
Bob Smietana, The Tennessean, 5/18/10

Ergun Caner, seminary president at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., has become an evangelical superstar by telling his dramatic story of converting from a would-be terrorist to a Southern Baptist preacher.

It has earned him book contracts and invitations to preach at megachurches around the country. Caner has become a leading Southern Baptist expert on Islam and one of the most influential ex-Muslims in America.

But his personal account has ignited a firestorm of controversy. In recent weeks, a series of court documents from Caner's past, dug up by bloggers, has undermined his story. They show that Caner grew up not in Turkey but in Ohio. He was raised not by Muslim extremists but by a non-Muslim mother. (More)

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MUSEUM OF TOLERANCE SPECIAL REPORT / PART I: HOLES, HOLINESS AND HOLLYWOOD - TOP
Haaretz, 5/18/10

On the connection between the esteemed California-based Simon Wiesenthal Center, run by one of America’s most famous rabbis, an enterprising Jerusalem contractor and the feverish excavation at what was then probably Israel’s most secret civilian building site. (More)