Muslim American News Briefs, June 9, 2007
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In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
* Hadith: Tears
Are a Mercy from God
* CAIR-Seattle: Radio Host Discusses Denying
Jobs to Muslims
* CAIR-Chicago Files Bias
Complaint for Muslim Worker
- CAIR-Chicago
to Co-Sponsor Civic Engagement
Workshop
- CAIR-CA
President Honored for Civil Rights
Work
* CAIR: New York is Hell for Young
'Osama' (Reuters)
* CAIR-CA: New Immigration Reform
Group Forms (NC Times)
- VA:
Immigrant Released After Four Years
in Jail (AP)
* CAIR-OH: Occupation, Not
Islam, 'Drives Suicide Attacks'
* State Dept Desperate for
Envoys to Learn Arabic (Wash Times)
* Muslims Look Online for
Spiritual Guidance
* 'USS Liberty' Veterans Demand
Investigation (AZ Republic)
- Time
for the Truth About the Liberty (SD
Union Trib)
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HADITH OF THE DAY: TEARS ARE A MERCY - TOP
A dying child was once placed in the lap of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be
upon him). Tears flowed from the Prophet's eyes. When he was questioned
about crying for the child, the Prophet said: "(Tears are a form of)
mercy that God has lodged in the hearts of His servants, and God is merciful
only to those of His servants who are merciful (to others)."
Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Hadith 373
The Prophet also said: "If, through fear of (displeasing) God, tears -
even the size of a fly's head - fall from any believer's eyes and drop on
some part of his cheek, he will be kept away from Hell by God."
Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 1433
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CAIR-SEATTLE: RADIO HOST DISCUSSES DENYING JOBS TO
MUSLIMS - TOP
(SEATTLE, WA, 6/8/07) - The Seattle chapter of the Council on
American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Seattle) today expressed concern about
a June 4 program on KIRO-AM radio in which host Dori
Munson and callers discussed denying employment to American Muslims
because of their faith.
To listen to the segment, go to:
http://www.cair.com/audio/06072007.asp
"Denying anyone employment because of their religion is un-American and
illegal," said CAIR-Seattle President Arsalan Bukhari. "Debating
such bigoted topics does a disservice to Americans of all faiths."
CAIR, America's largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 33 offices and
chapters nationwide and in Canada. 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.
ACTION REQUESTED: (As always, be POLITE.)
Send polite comments expressing your concerns about suggesting the
un-American and illegal denial of employment based on an applicant's faith
to:
Mr. Dave Pridemore
General Manager
KIRO-AM
1820 Eastlake Ave E
Seattle, WA 98102-3711
Tel: (206) 726-7033
Fax: (206) 726-5446
E-Mail: dpridemore@bonneville.com
Copy to: dmonson@710kiro.com, ekelly@bonneville.com,
dcarter@bonneville.com, info@cair.com,
arsalan@cairseattle.org
KIRO ADVERTISERS:
http://www.kiro710.com/sectional.asp?id=8000
CONTACT: CAIR-Seattle President Arsalan Bukhari, 206.931.3655, E-Mail: arsalan@cairseattle.org
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CAIR-CHICAGO FILES BIAS COMPLAINT FOR
MUSLIM WORKER - TOP
(CHICAGO, IL, 6/8/07) - The Chicago chapter of the Council on
American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago) has filed a complaint with the
Chicago Commission on Human Relations on behalf of a Muslim employee who
allegedly suffered discrimination in the workplace.
The employee, who is of Indian heritage, says colleagues and a supervisor at
Network Video Production in Chicago denigrated his faith and national origin
through bigoted comments. He also alleges that his employer decreased his
work assignments and delayed sending paychecks after he complained about one
of those comments. According the Muslim worker, this alleged retaliation
made it impossible for him to maintain a living wage, and he was therefore
forced to resign.
Even after resigning from the company, the Muslim worker claims staff of his
former employer harassed and intimidated him when they encountered each
other at other work sites.
"Every American employee deserves a workplace free of religious or
ethic discrimination," said CAIR-Chicago staff attorney Rima Kapitan.
"Companies have a legal obligation to prevent a hostile work
environment and to refrain from retaliating against workers who assert their
rights."
Kapitan says CAIR offers a booklet, called "An Employer's Guide to
Islamic Religious Practices," designed to prevent just such incidents.
CAIR, America's largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 33 offices and
chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to promote justice,
enhance the understanding of Islam, and empower American Muslims.
CONTACT: CAIR-Chicago Executive Director Ahmed Rehab, (847) 971-3963 or
(312) 212-1520, E-Mail: director@cairchicago.org;
CAIR-Chicago Communications Coordinator Reem Rahman, E-Mail: communications@cairchicago.org
SEE ALSO:
CAIR-CHICAGO TO CO-SPONSOR CIVIC
ENGAGEMENT WORKSHOP AT INDO-AMERICAN CENTER - TOP
* Come learn about how the American government and political system work.
* Come learn about organizing and mobilizing our community.
* Come learn about the current debate on immigration and healthcare reform.
WHAT: Empowering Ourselves: Strengthening Our South Asian Voice
WHEN: Saturday, June 9, 2007, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
WHERE: Indo-American Center 6328 N. California, Chicago
Sponsored by: Albany Park Neighborhood Council, Apna Ghar, Council on
American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)-Chicago, Indo-American Center,
Indo-American Democratic Organization, South Asian American Leaders of
Tomorrow, South Asian Progressive Action Collective, South Asian American
Policy and Research Institute
CONTACT: Sadiya Ahmed, gov.relations@cairchicago.org
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CAIR-SV PRESIDENT HONORED FOR CIVIL
RIGHTS WORK - TOP
(DAVIS, 6/8/2007) - CAIR-Sacramento Valley (CAIR- SV) President Dr.
Hamza El-Nakhal recently received the 2007 Thong Hy Huynh Community
Education and Awareness Memorial Award. The Davis City Council presented El-Nakhal
with the award recognizing him for "promoting positive human relations,
civil rights, and cultural awareness."
El-Nakhal's name will be placed permanently on a plaque at Davis City Hall
recognizing him for his work in the City of Davis.
Thong Hy Huynh was stabbed to death in a racially-motivated attack at Davis
Senior High School in 1983. The city of Davis gives awards to extraordinary
individuals who make a difference in "promoting dialogue, diversity,
and acceptance."
CONTACT: E-Mail: sacval@cair.com
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CAIR: NEW YORK IS HELL FOR YOUNG OSAMA
- TOP
Chris Reiter, Reuters, 6/8/07
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N06394027.htm
After years of being taunted as "bin Laden" and
"terrorist" at school, Osama Al-Najjar attempted suicide last July
at the age of 15.
Now 16, he is an extreme example of the difficulties facing some Arabs in
New York, the city hit hardest by the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
"They destroyed everything nice in our life with what they did to
him," said Suad Abuhasna, Osama's mother, referring to racist abuse she
said was heaped on her son while he was a student at Tottenville High School
in Staten Island.
Osama is now officially known as Sammy. He changed his name in December to
escape the stigma attached to the name he shares with al Qaeda leader Osama
bin Laden.
"I just wanted to make his life easier," said Suad, who immigrated
from Jordan with her husband and four children in December 1999. Her eldest
son has served in the U.S. Navy in the Iraq war.
Leaders of the Muslim community -- which numbers about 600,000 in New York
City and is among the fastest growing groups in the city, according to a
Columbia University study -- say Osama's case highlights an increasing
distrust and fear of Islam among Americans since 9/11.
"There's become this culture of Islamophobia in American society,"
said Arsalan Iftikhar, national legal director of the Council on
American-Islamic Relations.
"Unfortunately, kids are not immune."
Among the efforts in New York to bridge the gap between Americans and the
Arab world is a new bilingual Arab-English school. But that too has faced
opposition.
Fear of Islam and Arab culture has been evident in the divisiveness over the
founding of the Khalil Gibran International Academy, a publicly funded Arab
studies school scheduled to open in Brooklyn this fall. (MORE)
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CAIR-CA: NEW IMMIGRATION REFORM GROUP
FORMS - TOP
Edward Sifuentes, North County Times, 6/8/07
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/06/08/news/top_stories/21_54_286_7_07.txt
A diverse group of religious leaders, labor unions, legal advocates and
community leaders joined Thursday to call on Congress to pass immigration
reform that would help legalize illegal immigrants, keep migrant families
together and protect immigrants' rights.
The group, called the Immigrant Rights Consortium of San Diego County, is
made up of 25 organizations. They include the American Immigration Lawyers
Association of San Diego, the American Jewish Committee of San Diego, the Council
on American-Islamic Relations of San Diego, the Interfaith Committee for
Worker Justice and several others. (MORE)
SEE ALSO:
VA: IMMIGRANT RELEASED AFTER
NEARLY FOUR YEARS IN JAIL - TOP
Associated Press, 6/8/07
http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/virginia/dp-va--immigrantrelease0608jun08,0,2902297.story
A Middle Eastern man jailed for nearly four years on an immigration
violation was released from jail Friday.
Majed Talat Hajbeh was taken by federal immigration officials from the
Piedmont Regional Jail in Farmville to a processing center in Fairfax
County, a jail official told The Virginian-Pilot. Hajbeh's daughter
confirmed to the newspaper that he was being released.
Last month a federal judge ruled that Hajbeh had to be released because the
government, which wants to deport him, had taken too long to find a country
that would take him.
U.S. District Court Judge Jerome B. Friedman said in his order issued May 25
that the government violated Hajbeh's constitutional rights and that he must
be released by June 8.
Hajbeh was expected to attend a prayer meeting at a Fairfax mosque Friday
afternoon, said his daughter, Sumaya Hajbeh.
Hajbeh was arrested and detained in 2003 in a sweep of suspected immigration
violators. An immigration judge ordered him deported, reasoning that Hajbeh
entered incorrect information on papers when he entered the United States in
1993. Hajbeh said he made a mistake when he checked "single"
instead of "married."
The judge did not take into account that Hajbeh was acquitted in federal
court of a criminal charge of falsifying the document. (MORE)
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CAIR-OH: OCCUPATION, NOT ISLAM,
'DRIVES SUICIDE ATTACKS' - TOP
Marilyn H. Karfeld, Cleveland Jewish News, 6/8/07
http://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/articles/2007/06/08/news/local/islam0608.txt
In the wake of Sept. 11, Robert Pape, a professor in international security
affairs at The University of Chicago, speculated on TV news shows on the
causes of suicide terrorism.
"Like everyone else, I jumped to the conclusion that it was radical
Islam," he says. "I even bought a Koran to see what's wrong with
Islam."
After searching for data on suicide terrorism and finding that the
government did not begin to track such attacks until 2000, Pape began to
collect his own information. He compiled data on 462 suicide bombings from
1980 to 2004 and later updated his findings to 2006. His book Dying to Win:
The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism was published in 2005.
Contrary to his initial impression, Pape discovered that half of the 462
suicide attacks were by people who were secular or even anti-religious. The
world leaders in suicide bombings were members of the Tamil Tigers of Sri
Lanka, a Marxist and Hindu group.
Over 30% of Muslim suicide bombers were not Islamic fundamentalists, Pape
learned. For instance, some belonged to an anti-religious extremist Marxist
group in Turkey, the Kurdish Workers Party or PKK.
"Over 95% of all suicide attacks are not religious," Pape says.
Rather, they are driven by the political goal of compelling foreign combat
forces, with their tanks and fighter aircraft, to leave territory "the
terrorists consider their homeland or they prize greatly."
Only 5% are random, isolated attacks, the products of any ideology, religion
included, Pape adds.
"Every suicide campaign since 1980 has been carried out by groups
seeking self-determination for territory," he says.
Pape spoke to the CJN before addressing the annual banquet and fundraiser of
the Cleveland chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
The following day, he spoke to the counter-terrorism task force of the
Cleveland field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. (MORE)
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STATE DESPERATE FOR ENVOYS TO LEARN
ARABIC - TOP
Nicholas Kralev, Washington Times, 6/8/07
http://washingtontimes.com/world/20070607-113726-6722r.htm
The State Department, in an unprecedented move highlighting its desperate
need for Arabic speakers, is allowing U.S. diplomats to curtail their
current assignments anywhere in the world and begin Arabic language training
in September.
Foreign Service officers who are interested in learning Arabic or improving
existing skills have until the end of July to apply for more than 100
positions in Arabic-speaking countries that will open in the next two years.
Asked why the program has been initiated only now -- nearly six years after
the September 11, 2001, attacks and more than four years into the Iraq war
-- department officials cited a lack of resources.
In a cable to all State Department employees worldwide on Wednesday, George
M. Staples, director-general of the Foreign Service, urged them to seriously
consider learning "one of the more difficult foreign languages for
English speakers to master."
"We recognize that we must improve our ability to understand and
influence an area of continuing importance to our nation's well-being,"
Mr. Staples wrote in the cable, a copy of which was obtained by The
Washington Times.
The department "will consider breaking any tenured employee out of
his/her current assignment for a September 2007 language start: for either
the two-year program or one-year to improve or take existing Arabic language
skills beyond your current level," he wrote. (MORE)
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MUSLIMS LOOK ONLINE FOR SPIRITUAL
GUIDANCE - TOP
Sites such as 'Ask an Imam' provide answers
Peter Cox, Columbia News Service, 6/9/07
http://www.statesman.com/life/content/life/stories/faith/06/09/0609imams.html
A young Muslim from the United States earnestly asks, "I have been
wanting to get a tattoo of the crescent moon and star, then found out it is
against Islam to get a tattoo. But what if the tattoo is religious?"
"Is it permissible for a Muslim to play in the NHL?" asks another
from Canada.
And from South Africa, this question: "Is it permissible for a Muslim
to sell cigarettes, tobacco or such related products?"
The answers to these queries, according to Imam Mufti Ebrahim Desai, are,
"No," "No" and "It is makrooh," meaning yes,
but it is frowned upon. Desai is an imam at a madrasa in Comperdown, South
Africa. His answers were not given in a face-to-face meeting outside of his
mosque or in his office. Rather, they were offered on his popular Web site,
"Ask the Imam."
Increasingly, young Muslims are finding answers to their religious questions
online. For inquiries that might not be directly answered by the Quran,
Muslims turn to imams for advice, much the way Catholics would turn to a
priest. During the past 10 years, dozens of Internet imams have emerged. . .
Islamicity now has two Islamic scholars answering questions: one in
California and one in India. The site started with just one imam, but the
number of daily questions has ballooned during the last decade. Aleem said
that the imams were chosen in part to connect with Muslims who do not live
in an Islamic country.
"We wanted the imam to understand Muslims in a minority
perspective," he said. "Most of our questions come from Muslims in
the West." (MORE)
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'USS LIBERTY' VETERANS DEMAND
INVESTIGATION - TOP
Arizona Republic, 6/3/07
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/viewpoints/articles/0603liberty0603.html
Conclusions submitted in October 2003 to the Office of the U.S. Secretary of
Defense by the USS Liberty Veterans Association, Inc., in demanding a
congressional investigation into the aborted rescue during the attack of the
USS Liberty and subsequent alleged cover-up.
The group also calls for a new Naval Court of Inquiry and that June 8 be
officially recognized as USS Liberty Remembrance Day.
1. That on June 8, 1967, after eight hours of aerial surveillance, Israel
launched a two-hour air and naval attack against USS Liberty, the world's
most sophisticated intelligence ship, inflicting 34 dead and 173 wounded
American servicemen (a casualty rate of 70 percent, in a crew of 294);
2. That the Israeli air attack lasted approximately 25 minutes, during which
time unmarked Israeli aircraft dropped napalm canisters on USS Liberty's
bridge and fired 30mm cannons and rockets into our ship, causing 821 holes,
more than 100 of which were rocket-size; survivors estimate 30 or more
sorties were flown over the ship by a minimum of 12 attacking Israeli planes
which were jamming all five American emergency radio channels;
3. That the torpedo boat attack involved not only the firing of torpedoes,
but the machine-gunning of Liberty's firefighters and stretcher-bearers as
they struggled to save their ship and crew; the Israeli torpedo boats later
returned to machine-gun at close range three of the Liberty's life rafts
that had been lowered into the water by survivors to rescue the most
seriously wounded;
4. That there is compelling evidence that Israel's attack was a deliberate
attempt to destroy an American ship and kill her entire crew; evidence of
such intent is supported by statements from Secretary of State Dean Rusk,
Undersecretary of State George Ball, former CIA Director Richard Helms,
former NSA Directors Lt. Gen. William Odom, USA (Ret.), Adm. Bobby Ray
Inman, USN (Ret.), and Marshal Carter; former NSA deputy directors Oliver
Kirby and Maj. Gen. John Morrison, USAF (Ret.); and former Ambassador Dwight
Porter, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon in 1967;
5. That in attacking USS Liberty, Israel committed acts of murder against
American servicemen and an act of war against the United States; (MORE)
SEE ALSO:
TIME FOR THE TRUTH ABOUT THE LIBERTY - TOP
Ward Boston Jr., San Diego Union Tribune, 6/8/07
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20070608/news_lz1e8boston.html
Forty years ago this week, I was asked to investigate the heaviest attack on
an American ship since World War II. As senior legal counsel to the Navy
Court of Inquiry, it was my job to help uncover the truth regarding Israel's
June 8, 1967, bombing of the Navy intelligence ship Liberty.
On that sunny, clear day 40 years ago, Israel's combined air and naval
forces attacked the Liberty for two hours, inflicting 70 percent casualties.
Thirty-four American sailors died, and 172 were injured. The Liberty
remained afloat only by the crew's heroic efforts.
Israel claimed it was an accident. Yet I know from personal conversations
with the late Adm. Isaac C. Kidd - president of the Court of Inquiry - that
President Lyndon Johnson and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara ordered
him to conclude that the attack was a case of "mistaken identity."
The ensuing cover-up has haunted us for 40 years. What does it imply for our
national security, not to mention our ability to honestly broker peace in
the Middle East, when we cannot question Israel's actions - even when they
kill Americans?
Today, survivors of Israel's cruel attack will gather in Washington, D.C.,
to honor their dead shipmates as well as the mothers, sisters, widows and
children they left behind. They will continue to ask for a fair and
impartial congressional inquiry that, for the first time, would allow the
survivors themselves to testify publicly.
For decades, I have remained silent. I am a military man, and when orders
come in from the secretary of defense and president of the United States, I
follow them. However, attempts to rewrite history and concern for my country
compel me to share the truth.
Adm. Kidd and I were given only one week to gather evidence for the Navy's
official investigation, though we both estimated that a proper Court of
Inquiry would take at least six months.
We boarded the crippled ship at sea and interviewed survivors. The evidence
was clear. We both believed with certainty that this attack was a deliberate
effort to sink an American ship and murder its entire crew.
I am certain the Israeli pilots and commanders who had ordered the attack
knew the ship was American. I saw the bullet-riddled American flag that had
been raised by the crew after their first flag had been shot down
completely. I heard testimony that made it clear the Israelis intended there
be no survivors. Not only did they attack with napalm, gunfire and missiles,
Israeli torpedo boats machine-gunned at close range three life rafts that
had been launched in an attempt to save the most seriously wounded. (MORE)
SEND LETTERS to: letters@uniontrib.com
COPY to: info@cair.com
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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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