RALLY TO PROTEST RACIAL PROFILING AT THE BORDER - TOP

DETROIT (WWJ) -- A rally will be held in Southwest Detroit this weekend to protest treatment of certain ethnic groups crossing borders into the United States.

Dawud Walid, Executive Director of the Council on American Islamic Relations, explained that the event will focus on racial profiling by border authorities.

"We want to show to the broader public how the rules and regulations, in terms of profiling, are being bent and that minority communities, people of color, are bing negatively effected in terms of the enforcement or mis-enforcement of certain governmental policies," said Walid. (More)

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CAIR-NY TO SPEAK AT SIKH COALITION 9/11 HEARINGS IN NEW YORK CITY - TOP
SiliconIndia, 8/19/11

Fremont: As the 10-year anniversary of September 11th approaches, the Sikh coalition is organizing a Community hearing on 20 August. This hearing will be on the discriminatory impact of 9/11 on Muslims, Arabs, South Asians, and Sikhs in New York City.

The event that commences at 1.00 Pm will witness over 25 victims, advocates and government officials from the US Justice Department, US Department of Homeland Security, New York City Council, New York City Commission on Human Rights, Center for Constitutional Rights, Sikh Coalition, National Network for Arab American Communities, and the Council on American Islamic Relations. (More)

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CAIR-ST. LOUIS: "INALIENABLE RIGHTS: FROM PEARL HARBOR TO 9/11" OPENS 9/9- TOP
St. Louis Chinese American News, 8/19/11

ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI - "Inalienable Rights: From Pearl Harbor To 911," an original play written by Lee Patton Chiles and produced by Gitana Productions, explores the two major attacks on American soil, sixty years apart, that created the greatest national emergencies in our history. The play opens on September 9 and runs through September 25 at the Regional Arts Commission in the University City Loop.

"As we mark the 10th anniversary of the 911 terrorist attacks, we want to explore the meaning of citizenship, how far we're willing to limit the rights of our citizens in times of national emergency, and the ways that fear can prejudice everyone against people who look like the other'," said Cecilia Nadal, executive director of Gitana Productions.

After Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, 70,000 U.S. born citizens of Japanese decent were rounded up and held in Internment Camps. After 9/11, Arab Americans and others who appeared to be of Middle Eastern descent but who were U.S. citizens also were racially profiled and often became "persons of interest," their rights seriously curtailed.

"Both groups suffered from looking like the enemy," said Nadal. "We know that fear leads to actions that may be in conflict with our most cherished principles."

On Sunday, September 11 following the 3:00 PM performance there will be a panel discussion including Wendy Roll, President of the Japanese American Citizens League and the daughter of Japanese American parents who were placed into an internment camp here in the USA following Pearl Harbor. City of St. Louis Alderman, Terry Kennedy will join the panel with Abbas Ali and Nasreen Bibi, members of the Council on American Islamic Relations. (CAIR St. Louis) (More)

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U.S. MUSLIMS EXPERIENCING ANXIETY OVER ROLES (DENVER POST) - TOP
Profiles by Eric Gorski, Photos by Joe Amon, 8/19/11

For American Muslims, the decade since 9/11 has been one long struggle for identity.

The attacks carried out by men who claimed to be acting in the name of Islam happened as the majority of U.S. Muslims were quietly living their lives and comfortably assimilating.

Then came the aftershocks: the Muslim condemnations of extremism, the complaints that that wasn't enough, the evangelist who called Islam an evil and wicked religion, the Patriot Act, two wars.

Yet in the years since 9/11, surveys of American Muslims have portrayed not an isolated community but one that is loyal to the U.S., happy and hopeful for the future -- although concerned about discrimination, dubious about the FBI and irrevocably changed by that dark morning. (More)

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CAIR-MN: CITY COUNCIL WEIGHS PERMIT FOR NEW MOSQUE - TOP
John Croman, 8/19/11

PLYMOUTH, Minn. -- The city council in this western suburb of Minneapolis will take up a request for a new community center and mosque Tuesday.

The proposal has drawn some ugly comments and in the local newspaper and similar emails and voice messages to council members.

"I'm surprised that some of these people actually sign their names to what they say," Councilman Member Bob Stein told KARE Thursday.

"Right now we're getting a lot of feedback from both sides. I'd say it's running about 50 percent for and 50 percent against."

The North West Islamic Community Center, or N.W.I.C.C., is proposing to convert an old post office into a place to gather and worship. The organization purchased the building from the U.S. Postal Service, which was planning to close the site located near city hall. (More)

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NY TIMES EDITORIAL: SHARIA TAKEOVER IS 'BALONEY' - TOP
New York Times, 8/19/11

Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey often goes too far, whether it's bullying teachers or rejecting much-needed federal financing for a tunnel under the Hudson. Last month, however, the bluster was aimed at the right targets: ignorance and religious intolerance. He erupted in outrage at critics who attacked his decision to nominate Sohail Mohammed, a Muslim lawyer, to be a state judge.

The nastiest commentary came in January when Mr. Christie announced his choice. One anti-Muslim blogger wrote that it meant New Jersey had "taken its first step toward becoming the Shariah state." Another wrote that Mr. Christie (who insists he isn't running for president) was "off the list." (More)

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NEW YORK LAW SCHOOL SHARIA LAW SYMPOSIUM - TOP
New York Law School, 8/16/11

New York, NY (August 16, 2011)--The New York Law School Law Review, the Center for International Law at New York Law School, and the Muslim Bar Association of New York (MUBANY) will bring together legal experts to discuss the place of Islamic law in the United States today and in the future at a symposium, "Sharia in America: Principles and Prospects." The conference will take place on Thursday, August 25, 2011, from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m., and Friday, August 26, 2011 from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. at New York Law School, located at 185 West Broadway.

"This conference presents a unique and timely offering of real experts on Islamic law--in the midst of so much demagoguery and misinformation--to give facts, dispel myths, and answer the public's questions about 'Sharia in America,'" Sadiq Reza, Professor at New York Law School and conference organizer, said.

The symposium--featuring commentary by leading authorities in Islamic, American, and Jewish law--will address the realities, possibilities, and problems of Islamic law, or "Sharia," in American courts and American life in light of recent attention, misinformation, and hyperbole in the media. Speakers will address how recent Sharia bans at the state level inflame negative views of Muslim Americans and pose risks to the equal protection of Muslims as well as to U.S. national security. They will also discuss where Islamic law exists (or does not exist) in American courts in comparison to Jewish law, and what that means for legal practitioners. The conference is aimed at disseminating accurate information to and fostering informed discussion among policy makers, the media, legal practitioners. Papers will be published in a forthcoming issue of the New York Law School Law Review.

"The Sharia in America symposium presents an opportunity to foster dialogue on an important and provocative subject that is gaining attention not only within the legal academy, but among policy makers, the media, and the general public," Marcey Grigsby '06, Faculty Publisher of the Law Review, said. "The Law Review is excited to provide a forum, both at the live event and later in print and online, to explore the important legal and other issues at stake." (More)