UCI BANS MUSLIM STUDENT UNION - TOP
Deepa Bharath, The Orange County Register, 6/14/10
IRVINE – Campus officials at UCI have banned the Muslim Student Union for one year and placed the organization on disciplinary probation for an additional year, according to a statement released by the Jewish Federation Monday morning...
The students have appealed the decision, according to Husam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
Their attorney, Reem Salahi, said based on her understanding of the university's policies and procedures, what has been issued is not a "ban," but only a recommendation...
Ayloush said he is disappointed by The Jewish Federation's decision to release information that was meant to be confidential.
"I'm puzzled at their attempt to score political points at the expense of the privacy of the students and the process that is internal to UCI," he said.
Ayloush called the university's actions "unprecedented, heavy-handed and draconian."
"It appears to be politically motivated to silence any future peaceful and legitimate criticism of Israel's brutal practices," he said. "This was nothing but a peaceful and symbolic protest of the Israeli Ambassador at UCI. It was a reflection of a growing worldwide campaign by human rights activists to end the Israeli occupation of Palestine and their racism toward the Palestinian people."
The Muslim students did not engage in fraudulent, immoral or criminal behavior, Ayloush said. (More)
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UC IRVINE MSU APPEALS 'DRACONIAN' SUSPENSION RECOMMENDATION - TOP
(Irvine, CA - 6/14/10) -- The Muslim Student Union (MSU) at the University of California, Irvine, announced today that it has filed an appeal to the recommendation by the Senior Executive Director of Student Housing to revoke the student group's charter for one year, following allegations that the MSU violated sections of University policy.
The allegations arose as a result of the appearance of Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren for a UCI-sponsored event in February. During the event, eight UC Irvine students stood up and protested against Israeli policies which deprive Palestinians of their human rights.
The university alleged that the students actions were an officially sanctioned MSU activity, which the MSU has repeatedly denied. The students acted in their personal capacity.
"Suspending the MSU would undoubtedly create a chilling effect and deprive Muslim students -- both current and incoming -- of a place where they can develop a sense of community with one another and with the broader UCI campus community," said MSU President Asaad Traina. "Depriving Muslim students a venue to associate is an act of marginalization at a time when Muslim students and Muslim youth already feel besieged."
The recommendation to suspend the MSU as a registered student organization for one year came as a shock to the student group, which was recently presented with the Social Justice Award by the UCI Cross Cultural Center, a group of active and socially conscious student organizations. From humanitarian and educational events to events that encourage social justice and youth outreach, the MSU's multifaceted activities encourage spirituality among its members and create well-rounded individuals who are active participants of the UCI community. Among other activities, the MSU raised $5,000 earlier this year for the people of Haiti following the devastating earthquake.
Despite their vibrant and contributing role in the campus community, the MSU and its members have repeatedly been targeted and singled out by the administration for monitoring and punitive actions, and been subjected to hateful and threatening verbal and email attacks by off-campus entities.
Even UC Irvine faculty members who disagreed with the students' actions have argued that suspending the MSU would be unnecessary, unfair, and overly harsh.
Dean of the UCI Law School Erwin Chemerinsky wrote in the Los Angeles Times that he "disagree[s] with those who call for draconian sanctions against these students or of punishment for a larger group." When asked by the Orange County Register whether the Muslim Student Union would be disciplined, the director of UCI Media Relations also said she "would find it highly surprising if that was happening."
The UC Irvine MSU aims to provide a space for Muslim students to engage in religious study, public education and community service alongside other student groups on campus. As a recognized student group, the MSU strives to be a positive addition to the UCI campus as well as the larger community.
CONTACT: msu.uci@gmail.com
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ACTION: URGE SEN. SCHUMER TO RETRACT CALL TO 'STRANGLE' GAZA - TOP
(NEW YORK, NY, 6/14/10) - CAIR-NY is calling New York Muslims and all people of conscience to contact Senator Charles Schumer and demand that he retract his statement condoning Israel's blockade of Gaza which has left 1.5 million residents, including women and children in a humanitarian crisis.
Last week, the senator at a leadership meeting of Institute for Public Affairs for the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America said it "makes sense" to "strangle [Gaza] economically."
SEE: Schumer Says It 'Makes Sense' To 'Strangle [Gaza] Economically' Until It Votes The Way Israel Wants
"Senator Schumer's statement in support of the illegal blockade of Gaza is unconscionable, reprehensible and in blatant disregard for the sanctity of human life," said CAIR-NY Community Affairs Director Faiza N. Ali. "Economically strangling an entire population is collective punishment at its worst and only serves to block moves toward a just resolution."
IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUESTED: (As always be firm but polite. Please post, copy and distribute widely)
Call Senator Charles Schumer at 212-486-4430 or fax him at 212 486-7693.
Comment on his Facebook wall by clicking here: http://www.facebook.com/chuckschumer
(You must hit "like" to his page first in order to leave a comment.)
Sample Message:
As a New Yorker and registered voter, I write to urge you to retract your statement that it "makes sense" to "strangle [Gaza] economically." We urge you to join the repeated calls of the international community and condemn the collective punishment of 1.5 million people, including women and children. Anything less would be a blatant disregard for the sanctity of human life and a just resolution to the Middle East crisis.
CONTACT: CAIR-NY Civil Rights Director Aliya Latif, 212-870-2002, 732-429-4268, E-Mail: alatif@cair.com; CAIR-NY Community Affairs Director Faiza N. Ali, 212-870-2002, 718-724-3041, E-Mail: fali@cair.com
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'KING' OF ISRAEL: REP. RIPS BAM, UN FLOTILLA PROBE - TOP
Rebecca Harshbarger and S.A. Miller, New York Post, 6/14/10
Rep. Pete King says President Obama's weak Mideast policy is forcing House Democrats to make the difficult choice of either supporting Obama or supporting Israel.
"I hope they put our relationship with Israel above their relationship with Obama," King (R-LI) said yesterday. (More)
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CAIR APPLAUDS PAYPAL'S DECISION TO DROP ANTI-ISLAM HATE SITE - TOP
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 6/14/10) - The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today applauded a decision by PayPal, the leading online payment service, to drop the anti-Islam hate site "Atlas Shrugs," whose owner claims that "Hitler and the Nazis were inspired by Islam" and that Islam "mandates" lies and deception.
Far-right anti-Islam extremist Pamela Geller, who is also head of the hate group Stop the Islamization of America (SIOA), posted the text of an e-mail she received from PayPal's Acceptable Use Policy Department that stated:
"[A]fter a recent review of your account, it has been determined that you are currently in violation of PayPal's Acceptable Use Policy. Under the Acceptable Use Policy, PayPal may not be used to send or receive payments for items that promote hate, violence, racial intolerance or the financial exploitation of a crime."
PayPal reportedly sent similar notices to SIOA and to the Freedom Defense Initiative (FDI), another group Geller helped establish.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office recently refused to grant SOIA a trademark because: "The applied-for mark refers to Muslims in a disparaging manner because by definition it implies that conversion or conformity to Islam is something that needs to be stopped or caused to cease."
Geller recently posted images on her blog purporting to depict Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Several of those images show the prophet as a pig. Another image, headlined "Piss Be Upon Him," shows one of the controversial Danish cartoons of the prophet covered in urine. ("Piss Be Upon Him" is designed to mock the traditional phrase "Peace Be Upon Him" that Muslims use when mentioning any prophet of God.)
She has in the past referred to President Obama as a “ball s**ker” and posted a photoshopped image of him urinating on an American flag.
On her personal blog, Geller has written of President Obama: "[O]ne thing is for sure: Hussein is a muhammadan [sic]." Geller also wrote: "[I]t is well known that Obama allegedly was involved with a crack whore in his youth."
Geller has been vocal in her criticism of the black population in South Africa and seemingly supportive of the slain South African apartheid leader Eugene Terre'blanche. Following Terre'blanche's recent murder, Geller wrote: "All I see in South Africa is Black supremacism. Terreblanche [sic] may have been a white supremacist, but he's the dead one."
Her blog has in the past featured categories such as "Advancing Islamic Lies" and "Islam 2008: Religion of Barbarism." She was recently involved in a Florida conference that invited extremist anti-Islam Dutch politician Geert Wilders to speak.
In one 2009 blog post, Geller wrote in reference to Islam's Prophet Muhammad: "And frankly I find the whole new 'Abrahamic' narrative really galling. 1,400 years ago some maniaic [sic] decided to spin the origin of a 5,767 year old religion to advance their own evil end and said it was Ishmael that Abraham was to kill and now it's taken as.....gospel? Puhleeeze."
She also claims Muslim groups "control information and how it is processed at senior levels of the CIA, the FBI, the Pentagon, and the various branches of the military."
Geller once called for the destruction of Islam's Dome of Rock in Jerusalem. She wrote: "The dome has got to go. It is sitting atop the great Jewish temple. The dome has got to go."
Recently, Geller and the deputy head of SOIA, anti-Islam blogger Robert Spencer, offered support for a call to wipe the nation of Pakistan off the map using India's nuclear weapons. They both used their blogs to promote a video urging the mass killing of all Pakistanis.
Geller wrote of the girl featured in that video making the call to genocide: “Perhaps with an online Colb. (collaboration) we can run her for president in ‘16. She gets it.”
Spencer wrote: “The girl is right: do not fear. Fight back against the jihad. Fear hands the jihadis a weapon.”
SEE: Pamela Geller: The Looniest Blogger Ever
Geller has even been criticized by other Islamophobes for her extremism and for supporting far-right fascist groups in Europe. In fact, SIOA is an outgrowth of a similar group in Europe that seeks to block the construction of mosques on that continent. That group, Stop the Islamization of Europe, also "considers Islamophobia to be the height of common sense" and, like Geller, claims that Islam "considers lying to be not only acceptable, but obligatory."
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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HOW INFLUENTIAL WILL ANTI-MUSLIM GROUPS BECOME? - TOP
Washington Post, 6/14/10
What is the future of the anti-Muslim movement in the United States?
For years there has been a small but passionate group of people concerned with the influence of Islam, and their activism seemed to be largely focused on blogging and lobbying political conservatives. But their presence -- and the arguments they raise -- seem to be coming into the broader sphere of late.
There's the fight over a mosque at the Ground Zero site, and this weekend the on-line electronic payment firm PayPal reportedly cut off the anti-Muslim blog Atlas Shrugs, saying it's a hate site. (More)
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CAIR: BEATING OF CALIF. MUSLIM WAS HATE CRIME - TOP
KGO-TV, 6/13/10
View the video
SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- The Bay Area Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) says hate crimes are on the rise and now, a Sunnyvale man is asking the FBI to investigate an attack on him.
The man is Muslim-American and says that on Friday, he was beaten by two teenagers who called him a terrorist.
"There's no doubt about it. It was a hate crime," he told ABC7.
He says he was assaulted by the teenagers around 1 p.m. Friday afternoon as he stood on Sycamore Terrace, just off El Camino Real. He was waiting for a ride and was wearing a small cap and had a Koran in his hands.
"Two youths came up to me and asked me if I was Jewish and I said, 'No, I'm Muslim,' and they said, 'Oh, so you're a terrorist,' and I go, 'No, I'm not a terrorist,'" he recalled. "And, they go, 'No, you're a terrorist.' And, they turned like they were walking away and all of sudden they just turned around and started punching me."
The man says he suffered cuts and bruises on his face and fears now for his safety. (More)
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PEACE MARCH FOR NEW MOSQUE GETS UGLY - TOP
By Stephen Witt, New York Post, 6/11/10
A peace march to support for a controversial proposal for a mosque in Sheepshead Bay turned ugly on Thursday after residents jeered marchers, most of whom were from outside the area.
“This is a Jewish neighborhood — build a mosque in your own neighborhood,” yelled Stan Yunatanov, who lives across the street from the proposed house of worship and cultural center planned for Voorhies Avenue between East 28th and East 29th streets.
Another woman, who refused to give her name, yelled, “[Muslims] don’t love America. They hate America.” (More)
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ANTI-MUSLIM ATTACKS AT MINNESOTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS REPORTED - TOP
Black Voice News, 6/14/10
The U.S. Department of Education has agreed to look into possible civil rights violations at two Minnesota public schools, after a group based in St. Paul filed complaints against the two districts.
The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) filed the complaints in March, saying Somali and Muslim students were harassed about their race and religion. (More)
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VA. BEACH COUNCILMAN'S MOSQUE LETTER SHAPED PARTLY FROM WEBSITE - TOP
Aaron Applegate, The Virginian-Pilot, 6/12/10
The Letter Councilman Bill DeSteph sent to New York City officials last week objecting to plans for a Muslim community center near the World Trade Center site is almost identical to an online petition by a political advocacy group.
The organization, ACT! for America, is run by Brigitte Gabriel, the mother of DeSteph's girlfriend, a college student. DeSteph and his wife are separated.
Gabriel is an "expert on global terrorism" who speaks against radical Islam, according to her website.
"Brigitte helped me write the letter. The first one I drafted wasn't as clear as I wanted," DeSteph said.
DeSteph said he decided to write to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the City Council after people in Virginia Beach complained to him about the Muslim center plan. (More)
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BACKGROUNDER: BRIGITTE GABRIEL AND ACT! FOR AMERICA - TOP
ACT! for America leader Brigitte Gabriel claims an American Muslim "cannot be a loyal citizen" and that Islam is the "real enemy." She once told the Australian Jewish News: "Every practicing Muslim is a radical Muslim." She also claimed that "Islamo-fascism is a politically-correct word ... it's the vehicle for Islam ... Islam is the problem."
When asked whether Americans should "resist Muslims who want to seek political office in this nation," Gabriel said: "Absolutely. If a Muslim who has -- who is -- a practicing Muslim who believes the word of the Koran to be the word of Allah, who abides by Islam, who goes to mosque and prays every Friday, who prays five times a day -- this practicing Muslim, who believes in the teachings of the Koran, cannot be a loyal citizen to the United States of America."
Gabriel stated: "America and the West are doomed to failure in this war unless they stand up and identify the real enemy: Islam."
SEE: Islam's March Against the West
The FBI has been asked to investigate allegations that ACT! for America has been harassing members of Florida's Muslim community.
In a complaint filed with the Orlando field office of the FBI, a Florida Muslim activist alleges harassment by members of the hate group and its Orlando Coordinator Alan Kornman. ACT! for America is based in Pensacola, Fla.
The complaint states in part:
"I am concerned for my family’s safety as well as for my community’s because of the actions and the threats of Alan Kornman and J. Mark Campbell. I was once threatened by Alan Kornman verbally; my family and I have been stalked and harassed by him and other individuals from his group...
"I urge the FBI to investigate Mr. Kornman and Mr. Campbell, to admonish them and to restrain them or any member of their group from being in the vicinity of any mosque or private gathering of any Muslim community members."
In the letter to the FBI, the Muslim community member offered to provide contact information for other Florida Muslims who have allegedly been harassed by representatives of ACT! for America and claims that Alan Kornman pretended to convert to Islam in order to join in prayers at a local mosque. [Kornman apparently confirmed that claim in aYouTube video.]
Rep. Sue Myrick (R-NC) has been asked to withdraw her support for the hate group after an individual at an ACT! for America information table in Florida was exposed bragging in a YouTube video that he desecrated the Quran, Islam’s revealed text, and urinates in the washing stations Muslims use to perform their ritual ablutions (wudu) for prayer.
That person states: “Their foot baths, I love pissing in them...The Quran makes worthless toilet paper. It just kind of scratches my a** a little bit...To me, I like desecrating their [Muslims’] holy stuff.”
SEE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn5UfW6GOc4
SEE ALSO: CAIR Asks GOP, N.C. Rep. Myrick to Repudiate Quran Desecration
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-Tampa Executive Director Ramzy Kiliç, 813-486-2529, E-Mail: rkilic@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
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OKLAHOMA STATE REP. AIMS TO STOP 'LIBERAL JUDGES' FROM IMPOSING SHARIA LAW -TOP
Jillian Rayfield, Talking Points Memo, 6/11/10
Oklahoma State Rep. Rex Duncan (R) is pushing for a ballot measure that would prohibit courts from considering international or sharia law when deciding cases. He says the measure is a "preemptive strike" against "liberal judges" who want to "undermine those founding principles" of America.
The "Save Our State" amendment would require Oklahoma courts to use state and federal laws only when ruling, and Duncan explained on MSNBC today that he wants to ensure "that our courts are not used to undermine those founding principles, and turn Oklahoma into something that our founding fathers and our great grandparents wouldn't recognize." (More)
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OKLAHOMA CALLS BAN ON ISLAMIC LAW A 'PREEMPTIVE STRIKE' - TOP
Joel Siegel, ABC News, 6/14/10
...Cohen added that he questions whether the proposed amendment would pass constitutional muster.
"Our federal system and our state system is in part governed by the concept of separation of powers. It's far from clear that the Oklahoma legislature can restrict what a separate branch of government can consider in terms of doing its job – in this case, deciding cases," he said.
"I think this is a political statement against Muslims and, inferentially, in support of United States values," Cohen said.
Duncan said that is not the case. "The only entities that could oppose this measure are those that admittedly support applying international law and sharia law in American courts. If that's what they think they need to be bold enough to say so." (More)
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CAIR-MI: HAVING RESPECT IS RIGHT, NOT A SIGN OF WEAKNESS - TOP
Emily Smalligan, The Battle Creek Enquirer, 6/13/10
James J. Smith's opinion editorial June 6 titled, "Will we become the United States of Islam?" strives to instill an irrational fear of Muslims throughout the United States. He begins with denying the weight of Franklin Graham's slurs against Islam by reinforcing Graham's right to free speech, but the Pentagon's refusal to support Graham's offensive speech did not encroach upon his rights. Graham must face the consequences of wrongfully offending an entire religious population in this country. The military's gesture involving the National Day of Prayer expresses an equally powerful statement that discrimination against any religion, whether it's a minority or majority, is not tolerated.
Smith sarcastically criticizes government officials for "punking out" on Franklin Graham in an attempt to reduce the outrage of Muslims around the world. He inadvertently implies that the existing resentment of Muslims toward the United States is somehow "OK," and so an act to further their resentment is inconsequential rather than acknowledging the ideal of eliminating any and all bad feelings.
Instead, Smith calls them radical Muslims as if the adjective belongs alongside Muslim. I have no intention to imply radical Muslims do not exist, just as I assume there are radical Jews and Christians, for from a religion usually springs some radical followers. Still, most Muslims have had the misfortune of being directly linked with its radical followers as if to assume that all 1.5 billion Muslims share the same ideology and could not possibly disagree. (More)
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CAIR-CHICAGO: KEEPING THE FAITH - TOP
Susan Frick Carlman, The Naperville Sun, 6-13-2010
...The metropolitan region has seen its Muslim population rise recently, adding about 25 percent to the ranks in the past several years.
"The Census Bureau doesn't ask questions about faith affiliation, but I think it's safe to say there are about half a million Muslims in the greater Chicago area," said Amina Sharif, communications coordinator for the Chicago office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
CAIR is coordinating the legal challenge to the County Board's denial of Irshad's permit request. The complaint names Chairman Robert Schillerstrom, ZBA Chairman Robert Kartholl and the 16 members of the two boards who voted against the petition. The defendants late last month filed a motion to dismiss the case. Court dates have not yet been set, Sharif said. (More)
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