Muslim American News Briefs, June 16, 2007
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
CAIR HELPS REUNITE VA MUSLIM FAMILY
On Tuesday, June 12, CAIR-MD/VA called on immigration officials to explain why the child of a Virginia father who is a U.S. citizen and a mother who is a permanent resident has been denied entry to this country for two years.
SEE: CAIR-MD/VA - 3-Year-Old Child of VA Muslim Citizen Barred from U.S.
It was suspected that the denial may have been related to the child's name, "Ahmedyassine," which is similar to that of a Palestinian leader assassinated by Israel. The child has been living with an aunt in Morocco while the immigration approval process was stalled. Yesterday, immigration authorities said the child could join his family in Virginia.
SEE: U.S. to Let Toddler Reunite with Family (AP)
SEE ALSO: Video - Boy Had Been Denied Entry Into U.S. (NBC4)
Many Muslims report that they are facing similar issues with immigration delays. CAIR yesterday released its annual report on the status of Muslim civil rights in the United States. The report indicated that immigration issues such as citizenship and naturalization delays were a top concern for American Muslims in 2006.
SEE: Report - Citizenship Delays Were Top Issue for U.S. Muslims in 2006
"We are thankful that this family will be reunited after such a long period of forced separation," said CAIR-MD/VA Civil Rights Manager Morris Days. "We urge government officials to examine the cause for these delays and to take appropriate measures to make sure that all immigrants are treated fairly, regardless of religion or national origin."
***
* CAIR-OK: Muslim Civil Liberties Group Opens Office
* CAIR-Seattle: ‘Hate Radio’ Promotes Fear (Seattle P-I)
* CAIR: Immigration Bias Concerns U.S. Muslims (News Journal)
- CAIR Reports Bias Rise (Washington Times)
- CAIR: Anti-Muslim Discrimination on Rise (VOA)
* CAIR-CA Co-Sponsors Lecture: ‘Less Safe, Less Free’
* MI: Muslims Plan Peace Rally Today (Free Press)
- NY: 'Muslim' Does Not Mean 'Terrorist'
* NY: Man Wins Right To Sue Mueller, Ashcroft (NY Sun)
* Canada: Comic Finding Muslim Jokes a Tough Sell
* Somalis Yearn for Islamic Rulers to Return (Independent)
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HADITH OF THE DAY: EQUALITY FOR ALL - TOP
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "All people are equal as the teeth of a comb."
At-Tabarani
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CAIR-OK: MUSLIM CIVIL LIBERTIES GROUP TO OPEN OKC OFFICE - TOP
David Page, Journal Record, 6/15/07
http://www.journalrecord.com/
While living in California, Lobna Hewedi worked as an office manager for a chapter of the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations.
She moved to Oklahoma in late 2005 to get married, and after becoming involved in the community, she started forming a state chapter of the Muslim civil liberties organization.
The chapter was approved by the national organization known as CAIR earlier this year and was launched with a sold-out fundraising dinner in May.
The state chapter is in the process of hiring a full-time executive director. After the executive director is hired, CAIR-OK plans to open an office in Oklahoma City. The staff may be expanded later.
"The executive director will recruit members," she said. "Right now we are working on a volunteer basis."
CAIR has 32 other chapters in the U.S. and Canada.
"We will work hand-in-hand with people of other faiths to build a more solid foundation of interfaith relations in our state," said Hewedi, CAIR-OK chairwoman.
CAIR's mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding. The group supports free enterprise, freedom of religion and freedom of expression.
"We want to promote a positive image of Islam and promote civil rights for all Americans regardless of their faith," Hewedi said.
She said CAIR-OK will also work with local law enforcement agencies, educational institutions and houses of worship to foster mutual understanding and tolerance. (MORE)
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CAIR-WA: WE NEED TO HEAR MORE VOICES OF REASON ON THE AIR - TOP
Susan Paynter, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 6/14/07
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/paynter/319878_paynt15.html
The ears of 27-year-old Arsalan Bukhari rang with what they heard as hate speech when a Seattle radio show seemed to issue an open invitation to refuse jobs to Muslims based solely on their religion.
But then, long before KIRO 710 radio host Dori Monson asked listeners earlier this month why employers shouldn't be free to discriminate against Muslims, the ears of the young Shoreline man and Seattle U. grad who has lived here since fifth grade had already been pretty well cuffed sore by roundhouse punches like these.
For his part, Monson figured the question, while provocative, was fair game. It had been posed by a listener and business owner named Steve in Mill Creek. Out on the golf course just after the improbable plot against JFK Airport was foiled, Steve and his buddies grumbled in agreement that business owners really ought to be able to exclude followers of Islam from employment protections against religious discrimination. They reasoned that is because "almost all of the world's terrorism is connected to Muslims."
Pooh-poohing what he trivializes as "political correctness," Monson says his show is a place where people expect to speak freely about what's getting their goats. He told me he even goes so far as to say that such "honesty" promotes better understanding.
Now, I'm an opinionated fan of the First Amendment, myself, and have been known to pose a few prickly questions.
But I wonder, if your aim is to shed a little light, do you do it by striking a match in a gasoline-soaked garage? It's a piece of cake to champion multicultural acceptance when things are going well but a real challenge at a time like this when fear of the "other" is electric in the air.
"We were attacked by 'those type of people' so, of course we should (be free to discriminate against them)," one woman caller to Monson's show said. "Are we going to take that risk (to hire them)? They could be working at my job!" . . .
As president of the Seattle Council on American-Islamic Relations, Bukhari often hears complaints of job discrimination and harassment against Muslims in Seattle.
He says this kind of radio talk feeds more of the same, validating fear and unfairness.
"An employer hears about the JFK thing, then hears the show and says, 'Hey, I'm not going to hire any of those Muslims,' " he said.
But Muslims are your professors, your doctors and IT workers, your lawyers and neighbors. Many work at Microsoft and Boeing. Nearly 60 percent of Muslims in America have bachelor's degrees, compared with about 17.5 percent of all Americans. (MORE)
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CAIR: IMMIGRATION BIAS CONCERNS U.S. MUSLIMS - TOP
Newark mosque's new leader denied a visa to enter country
Summer Harlow, News Journal, 6/15/07
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070615/NEWS/706150409
After a year's search, worshippers at the Masjid Ibraheem, or Mosque of Abraham, in Newark finally found the right religious leader.
Jamal Zahabi is dedicated to the community and has found time to teach prison inmates. A Canadian citizen, originally from Lebanon, he has a knack for bringing together Muslims from various nations, and bridging the gap between Muslim and non-Muslim communities, they said.
Then the U.S. immigration system got in the way, refusing Zahabi entry into the country.
The mosque has hired a lawyer to fight for a visa for Zahabi.
Immigration problems such as this one are among the top complaints of anti-Muslim bias outlined in a report released Thursday by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a leading U.S. Muslim group. Nationally, complaints to the council jumped 25 percent between 2005 and 2006, according to the group's annual civil rights report.
Jamil Tourk, president of the Islamic Society of Delaware, said his mosque was denied its imam, or religious leader, "because of his name and what he does. Of course we're going to conclude it's profiling and discrimination."
According to the council's report, of the 2,467 cases, 729, or roughly 30 percent, were legal- or immigration-related. That's up from about 14 percent of cases in 2005.
"The findings in this report should serve as a reminder that discrimination is still a major issue in our nation," Arsalan Iftikhar, the report's author, said in a statement.
The council report also noted 167 anti-Muslim hate crime complaints in 2006, a 9.2 percent increase over 2005. The data did not specify if any of the complaints involved incidents in Delaware. (MORE)
SEE ALSO:
CAIR REPORTS BIAS RISE - TOP
Julia Duin, Washington Times, 6/15/07
http://washingtontimes.com/national/20070614-112407-2989r.htm
Anti-Muslim bias is higher than ever, an Islamic civil rights group said yesterday, based on figures showing a 25 percent increase in complaints during 2006.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations cited 2,467 complaints in 2006, up from 1,972 complaints in 2005, primarily about delays in citizenship and naturalization requests. Many Muslims who have taken citizenship exams, CAIR said, have to wait far longer than the 120 days mandated by federal law for their naturalization background checks.
"Instead of 120 days, it's taking five years," said Nihad Awad, CAIR's executive director. "If the government has to take five years for security measures, that's a major blow for our people."
Muslims aren't the only immigrants affected, said CAIR legal director Arsalan Iftikhar, but "there is a disparate impact on people from Muslim and Arab nations who are affected by this."
The long waits make it difficult for immigrants to travel abroad and apply for government jobs, such as language interpretation.
Muslims across the country have filed hundreds of lawsuits against the Federal Bureau of Investigation, claiming the agency is unnecessarily delaying completion of their background checks. Most of the 62,000 names sent to the FBI each week -- half of which are for citizenship requests -- do not trigger alarms. Of those that do, the FBI must cross-check the names against additional databases, a process that can take years.
In February, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a class-action lawsuit in California against the federal government, saying "its practice of indefinitely delaying citizen applications" violated due process rights.
The Immigration and Naturalization Service was heavily criticized when post-September 11 investigations found lax enforcement had allowed the hijackers to remain in the country, some on expired visas. Since then, federal agents have been given many more databases to check before they approve a citizenship request.
"We work extremely hard to process more than 7 million requests for applications and petitions for immigration services a year," said spokeswoman Chris Rhatigan of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which took over many INS functions since the Homeland Security Department's founding. (MORE)
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CAIR: AMERICAN MUSLIM GROUP SAYS ANTI-MUSLIM DISCRIMINATION ON RISE IN US - TOP
Stephanie Ho, Voice of America, 6/14/07
http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-06-14-voa66.cfm
An American-Muslim group says incidents of hate crimes and other discrimination against Muslims in the United States are on the rise. The group said Muslims especially face delays in their efforts to attain U.S. citizenship. VOA's Stephanie Ho reports from Washington.
The 2007 annual report of the group CAIR, or the Council on American-Islamic Relations, reports what it says is an increase in anti-Muslim discrimination and harassment in the United States. The group's executive director, Nihad Awad, says this finding continues a trend that his group pointed out in its first report 10 years ago.
"We notice there is 25 percent increase in the total number of complaints of anti-Muslim bias from 2005 to 2006," said . "We see this as an alarming sign because we have not witnessed a major decrease in these cases since we started reporting this."
The study says there were more than 2,400 incidents of anti-Muslim violence, discrimination and harassment in the United States last year, compared to more than 1,900 in 2005.
Report author Arsalan Iftikhar says he is especially concerned with what he says are unfair delays Muslims face in their quest to become naturalized American citizens.
"One of the most significant increases we've seen in the types of alleged abuse was the concept of citizenship delays," said Arsalan Iftikhar. (MORE)
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CAIR-SAN DIEGO CO-SPONSORS LECTURE: ‘LESS SAFE, LESS FREE’ - TOP
(SAN DIEGO, CA, 6/15/07) - The San Diego Public Library, in partnership with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of San Diego and Imperial Counties, the San Diego office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-San Diego) and the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), will host a speaking engagement featuring Georgetown Law Professor David Cole on Tuesday, June 26, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. This event will be at the Lyceum Theater located at Horton Plaza, Downtown San Diego. This event is free to the public.
WHAT: Lecture: "Less Safe, Less Free: Why we are losing the war on terror."
WHEN: Tuesday, June 26, 2007, 7 p.m.
WHERE: Lyceum Theater 79 Horton Plaza, San Diego, CA (Lyceum Theater offers 4 hr parking validation)
CONTACT: San Diego Public Library, Tel: 619-236-5800, E-Mail: weblibrary@sandiego.gov; CAIR San Diego Public Relations Director Edgar Hopida, 619-913-0719, E-Mail: ehopida@cair.com
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MI: AREA MUSLIMS PLAN PEACE RALLY TODAY - TOP
Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press, 6/15/07
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070615/NEWS02/70615017/1001/NEWS
Muslims are planning to rally today in Dearborn to call for peace and unity in the Middle East.
The bombing of a holy Shi'ite mosque in Iraq this week has renewed concern among local Muslims about the divide between Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims. There is also infighting in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories that has concerned Arab-Americans and Muslims in metro Detroit.
The rally will start at 3 p.m. at the Karbalaa Islamic Education Center on Warren Avenue. The Shi'ite mosque is headed by Imam Husham Al-Husainy.
"We want to condemn what's going on over there," Husainy said.
The rally is the latest event being held by area Muslims to show unity. A similar rally was held last week in front of City Hall.
"We want to stand united against violence and terrorism," said Bilal Dabaja, 22, of Dearborn.
SEE ALSO:
NY: MUSLIM DOES NOT MEAN TERRORIST - TOP
Press & Sun-Bulletin, 6/15/07
http://www.pressconnects.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/2007061
5/OPINION/706150340/1005/OPINION
My name is Ayana I. Muhammad. I am 17 years old and have lived in Hancock
for 11 years. On June 6, I found out through an article in the New York Post
that I was a terrorist. How can this be? Is my life over? This is such a
nightmare! I thought that I was on my way to college to become a nurse. I
didn't know that being Muslim meant that I was now a terrorist. I've never
committed a crime in my entire life. The word "Islam" comes from
the root word salaam meaning peace. Why can't we all just live our lives? No
one else is being targeted because of a religion they practice or the
clothes they wear. Nowadays you can be Goth, you can be a Wiccan, a
Buddhist, Bahai. It seems that you just can't be a Muslim without being a
terrorist.
If only we could see each other for who we are and not what people or the
media portray us to be. I'm just a regular teen who volunteers with a local
Girl Scout troop because I want to make a difference. I work with Muslims
and people of different faith groups for good causes, and I never
differentiate between them. Last summer, my Muslim community did relief work
assisting flood victims at the local Maple Lane Church. Is assisting your
displaced neighbors an act of terrorism? Does volunteering to work with
local Girl Scouts or the Red Cross a commendable act or an act of a
terrorist? The answer is clear -- even for a 17-year-old. How about for you?
Ayana Muhammad
Hancock
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NY: MAN WINS RIGHT TO SUE MUELLER,
ASCHCROFT - TOP
Sari Krieger, NY Sun, 6/15/07
http://www.nysun.com/article/56633
The FBI director, Robert Mueller, and a former attorney general, John
Ashcroft, must decide whether to challenge yesterday's federal appeals court
ruling affirming one Muslim man's right to bring a suit against them
alleging that he was abused during his detention following the September 11,
2001, terrorist attacks.
Javaid Iqbal, a Pakistani immigrant, says Messrs. Ashcroft and Mueller
approved the harsh treatment that he says he experienced during his
captivity and that they did so based on his religion, race, or national
origin.
Mr. Iqbal spent months at a Brooklyn prison, along with dozens of other New
York-area Muslim immigrants whom the government considered "of high
interest," until he was cleared of any terrorism connection and
deported. Mr. Iqbal says prison staff kept him in solitary confinement and
denied him medical care, adequate meals, possession of a Koran, and
communication with his attorney. He also said they brutally beat him and
left the lights on in his cell for 24 hours a day.
A three-judge panel for the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals denied the
claim made by Mr. Ashcroft and the other government officials that they were
legally immune from the suit based on national security concerns.
"This is unprecedented. This case is basically trying to hold the
highest federal officials of our government accountable for what
happened," said Haeyoung Yoon of the Urban Justice Center, which
represented Mr. Iqbal. (MORE)
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CANADA: COMIC FINDING MUSLIM JOKES A TOUGH SELL - TOP
Ahmed Ahmed presents the lighter side of being a Muslim, but border agents
are not always amused
Sheldon Alberts, CanWest News Service, 6/15/07
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=923402fd-
787e-44d5-9b44-63736980a398
His name is Ahmed Ahmed, and when he's not busy convincing Canadian customs
agents he poses no terror threat, the 36-year-old Californian tells Muslim
jokes for a living.
Funny jokes too, like the one about how he can spot the federal air marshal
on every flight he takes in the United States.
"It's the guy who's reading People magazine upside down and is looking
right at me," Ahmed told a suburban Washington audience this week.
It's a line the Egyptian-born American comedian uses often as he tries to
break the ice with non-Muslim fans still uncertain whether Islam and 9/11
make good fodder for standup shows.
More than five years after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, it seems it's
increasingly okay to laugh.
With reports this week that NBC executives are interested in bringing the
CBC series Little Mosque on the Prairie to the U.S., Muslim-American comics
say they are closer than ever to breaking into the mainstream of U.S. pop
culture.
A feature-length documentary heralding the emergence of Muslim and
Arab-American comedians had its world premiere this week at the prestigious
Silverdocs documentary festival in Silver Spring, Md. (MORE)
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SOMALIS YEARN FOR ISLAMIC RULERS TO RETURN AND TAME
THE WARLORDS - TOP
Steve Bloomfield, Independent, 6/15/07
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/africa/article2659721.ece
The ruins of the old sugar factory in Marere, in the southern interior of
Somalia, tower over the wooden shacks and brick huts which shelter the 2,000
or so people still living here. This used to be the second-largest sugar
factory in the world, employing more than 20,000 people. Now, its rusting
steel frame, chimneys and pipes sunk deep into the tall grass provide a
painful echo of the wreck which Somalia has become.
Everything worth anything has gone, the scrap metal systematically torn off
and shipped to India or old equipment taken by scavengers to be sold off at
the market in nearby Jilib.
"Maybe one day someone will rebuild it," said Abdirizak Hassan
Moalim, squinting into the sun. The 21-year-old has been living in a village
near the sugar factory for two months after fleeing the violence in
Somalia's capital Mogadishu. "It needs to be safe here first
though," he added. "There was a chance under the Courts, but now,
I don't know." Six months after the fall of Somalia's Union of Islamic
Courts (UIC), insecurity has returned to the country.
In this rural district in the south, where in the past 12 months floods have
followed drought, the rule of the gun is back. The government has failed to
take control, leaving Marere and the surrounding areas in limbo.
The UIC controlled Marere and the neighbouring district of Jilib for just
three months at the end of last year. After Somalia's capital, Mogadishu,
fell to the government and its Ethiopian allies at the end of December, the
Courts melted away. (MORE)
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CAIR
Council on American-Islamic Relations
453 New Jersey Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20003
Tel: 202-488-8787, 202-744-7726
Fax: 202-488-0833
E-mail: info@cair.com
URL: http://www.cair.com
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