Hadith: Obey Only What is Good
Breaking: CAIR Applauds Pentagon Decision to Drop Franklin Graham
CAIR: Fla. House Leader Tries to Block Muslim Prof's Nomination
CAIR Video: One Man's Fight Against 'Islamophobia'
Audio: Franklin Graham Says He's 'Offended' by Islam
TN: Judge Sentences Mosque Bomber to Six Years in Prison
Clarion Fund's New Anti-Iran Film to Star Iranian Fraudster
CAIR-MN Welcomes Wrestling Federation's Apology for Racist Skit
CAIR: Va. DMV Revokes License Plate Over Racist Meaning (Times-Disp)
DMV Recalls Plate with Coded Racist Message (Wash Post)
Action: Ask Arizona Governor to Veto Anti-Immigrant Bill
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HADITH OF THE DAY: OBEY ONLY WHAT IS GOOD - TOP
A military commander appointed by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once issued an improper order to his troops. When the soldiers asked the Prophet about how they should have reacted to the order, he said: "(There is) no obedience (required) for evil deeds, obedience is required only in what is good."
Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 9, Hadith 363
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CAIR APPLAUDS PENTAGON DECISION TO DROP FRANKLIN GRAHAM - TOP
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 4/22/10) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today applauded the Pentagon's decision to disinvite a scheduled speaker, controversial Christian evangelist Franklin Graham, who has called Islam a "very evil and wicked religion" and this morning said Muslims are "enslaved by Islam."
SEE: Graham: Army Disinvites Him to Pentagon Prayer Day
CAIR had earlier today called for such a move on the part of military officials. Graham was scheduled to speak May 6 – the National Day of Prayer - at the Pentagon.
"We applaud this decision as a victory for common sense and good judgment," said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad. "Promoting one's own religious beliefs is something to be defended and encouraged, but other faiths should not be attacked or misrepresented in the process."
In an interview today about the controversy on Fox News, Graham refused to revise his past comments that Islam is evil and claimed that Muslims are "enslaved by Islam."
SEE: Fox Hosts Franklin Graham Who Attempts to Convert Muslims Away from "Evil" Islam
In a 2009 CNN interview, Graham stated in part: "[T]rue Islam cannot be practiced in this country. You can't beat your wife. You cannot murder your children if you think they've committed adultery or something like that, which they do practice in these other countries. . .I don't agree with the teachings of Islam and I find it to be a very violent religion."
SEE: Franklin Graham Repeats Attacks on Islam (Video)
In 2002, Graham said terrorism is part of "mainstream" Islam and claimed the Quran, Islam's revealed text, "preaches violence."
In 2001, Graham stood by remarks he made about Islam at the dedication of a chapel in North Carolina. At that event, he said: "We're not attacking Islam but Islam has attacked us. The God of Islam is not the same God. He's not the son of God of the Christian or Judeo-Christian faith. It's a different God, and I believe it is a very evil and wicked religion."
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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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FLORIDA HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER WEIGHED IN ON JACKSONVILLE MUSLIM PROFESSOR'S NOMINATION - TOP
Tia Mitchell, Florida Times-Union, 4/22/10

A prominent South Florida legislator with ties to the anti-Islam movement called at least two Jacksonville City Council members to discuss the nomination of a Muslim professor to the city's Human Rights Commission.
Also, the pro-Israel Anti-Defamation League sent council members a letter outlining its opposition to the nomination of University of North Florida professor Parvez Ahmed. The group said Ahmed had "propagated anti-Israel conspiracy theories and has defended the terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah publicly." (More)
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CAIR VIDEO: ONE MAN'S FIGHT AGAINST 'ISLAMOPHOBIA' - TOP
CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad takes on the critics of the Islamic faith. (ABC News, 4/20/2010)
View the video.
SEE ALSO:
Audio: Franklin Graham Says He's 'Offended' by Islam - TOP
WTOP, 4/21/10
During an interview by WTOP radio in Washington, D.C., Pentagon speaker Franklin Graham said he is "offended" by Islam.
Listen to the interview.
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JUDGE SENTENCES MOSQUE BOMBER TO SIX YEARS IN PRISON - TOP
Clay Carey, THE TENNESSEAN, 4/22/10
The last of three men sentenced to prison for the 2008 firebombing of a Columbia mosque will spend the next four years behind bars. (More)
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CLARION FUND'S NEW ANTI-IRAN FILM TO STAR IRANIAN FRAUDSTER - TOP
Tikun Olam, 4/21/10
Eli Clifton writes that Clarion Fund's new anti-Iran film is to be called (quite creatively) Iranium. I wrote about it a few weeks ago when news of it first surfaced. But now the Aish HaTorah-affiliated Clarion has a website for the film which reveals some interesting and damaging information. (More)
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CAIR-MN WELCOMES WRESTLING FEDERATION'S APOLOGY FOR RACIST SKIT - TOP
Discriminatory Muslim-Iranian skit will no longer be performed at wrestling shows in metro-area public schools
(ST. PAUL, MN, 4/22/10) -- The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) today welcomed an apology from the American Wrestling Federation (AWF) after the civil rights organization expressed concerns about a racist skit performed at St. Michael-Albertville High School and other metro-area public schools.
SEE: Wrestling for School Dollars (Star Tribune)
The skit involved a wrestler playing the role of a Muslim-Iranian, marching into the wrestling ring to Arabic music and making a show of unrolling his carpet and praying as the crowd booed. The Muslim-Iranian character then insulted the audience and America by making comments such as, "All you ignorant Americans make me sick to my stomach."
In a letter to the AWF, CAIR-MN Assistant Civil Rights Director Zahra Aljabri wrote:
"The highly stereotypical and crude depiction of a Muslim-Iranian wrestler in your show propagates an inaccurate and bigoted depiction of Muslims and Iranians. Not only was the Muslim-Iranian wrestler portrayed in a way where he would be perceived as a bad/evil character, correlating this character with unpatriotic rhetoric is offensive to the nearly 100,000 Muslims in Minnesota and nearly 7 million Muslims in the United States. To promote your show as a 'family friendly' event suitable to be performed at a public high school is appalling and discriminatory."
Following intervention by CAIR-MN, the AWF issued an apology.
In a letter to CAIR-MN, AWF Directors wrote: "On behalf of everyone involved with the American Wrestling Federation, we wholeheartedly apologize for the characterization portrayed at the event. In addition, we will be issuing a public apology to the school and community as a whole."
AWF Directors also agreed to ban the Muslim-Iranian character from future shows and instructed the show's wrestler to "not employ any ‘Iran vs. America' dramatics nor use any religious themes as part of his performance."
"We commend the American Wrestling Federation for its prompt and professional handling of this matter," said CAIR-MN Civil Rights Director Taneeza Islam. "This positive outcome highlights the federation's desire to promote non-discriminatory shows."
CAIR-MN and leaders of the AWF are planning to meet next week to discuss the incident.
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-MN Civil Rights Director Taneeza Islam, Esq., 651-587-4712, E-Mail: tislam@cair.com; CAIR-MN President Lori Saroya, 612-327-6700, E-Mail: lsaroya@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-488-8787, 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com
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DMV REVOKES AN SCV LICENSE PLATE OVER RACIST MEANING - TOP
Richmond Times-Dispatch, 4/22/10
The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles revoked a Sons of Confederate Veterans special license plate yesterday because its characters contained racist and neo-Nazi meaning.
The state DMV received five complaints about the plate, "14CV88," agency spokeswoman Melanie Stokes said.
A photo of a truck with the plate came to light when it was posted on the Internet. The truck has a Confederate flag on its rear window and a picture of the World Trade Center attack with "Everything I ever needed to know about Islam I learned on 9/11" on its tailgate.
DMV would not identify the holder of the plate, which was issued in 2005.
"The number 88 may refer to the Nazi salute 'Heil Hitler' based on a doubling of the eighth letter of the alphabet," the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Washington said in a statement. (More)
SEE ALSO:
DMV RECALLS PLATE WITH CODED RACIST MESSAGE - TOP
Brigid Schulte, Washington Post, 4/22/10
Virginia's Department of Motor Vehicles is so accustomed to drivers trying to sneak lewd, gross, hateful or racist messages onto personalized license plates that it has a rigorous process to root them out.
A manager in the Personalized Plates Work Center reads through every application, putting any suspicious combination of letters and numbers into a computer program that analyzes the potential plate for hidden meaning. Questionable messages go to a 20-person Word Committee for review and a vote. Among the few printable examples of rejected license plates, according to Melanie Stokes, a member of the Word Committee, are "JERKA55," "IPOOPD," and "HORNI1." (More)
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CAIR ACTION: ASK ARIZONA GOVERNOR TO VETO ANTI-IMMIGRANT BILL - TOP

(PHOENIX, AZ, 4/22/2010) -- The Arizona chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-AZ) today called on American Muslims and other people of conscience to ask Arizona Governor Jan Brewer to veto Senate Bill 1070 because it criminalizes immigrants and institutionalizes racial profiling.

SEE: Arizona's Effort to Bolster Local Immigration Authority Divides Law Enforcement (NY Times)
In a statement issued today, CAIR-AZ Chairman Anas Hlayhel said:
"Senate Bill 1070 allows the use of racial profiling. American Muslims have faced the detrimental effects of racial profiling and we stand against the broad and generalized application of this practice. Racial profiling is ineffective policing which will build distrust and fear of law enforcement in the community.
"If signed into law, Senate Bill 1070 would impact even those community members who are legal permanent residents and naturalized citizens, because the bill gives unfettered discretion to law enforcement to identify and stop those perceived to be undocumented and to arrest those who do not have proper documentation of their legal status. Such a broad law enforcement tool leaves room for stereotyping and discrimination against minorities and those perceived to 'look' undocumented."
SEE: Tell AZ Governor to Veto Racial Profiling Bill
CAIR's Legislative Fact Sheet on Racial Profiling
Senate Bill 1070 was passed by the Arizona state legislature and awaits the signature of Governor Brewer. If Arizona's governor does not veto the bill within two days, it will:
Legalize unchecked racial profiling by local law enforcement of anyone they "suspect" is undocumented.
Effectively require all immigrants, even those who are naturalized, to carry identification proving their legal residency in the U.S., and grant police officers authority to enforce federal immigration law and arrest people who cannot produce identification.
Criminalize all undocumented immigrants as "trespassers" in the state of Arizona and would subject all undocumented workers and their families to arrest and conviction for misdemeanors, and in some cases felony charges for the new crime of "trespass" (reminiscent of HR 4437, the 2005 'Sensenbrenner bill').
The repercussions of such a law would be devastating for immigrants and all communities of color in Arizona. Moreover, Senate Bill 1070 will have dangerous consequences in that it will set a national precedent for state and federal law, permanently criminalizing immigrants and legalizing racial profiling by law enforcement.

How will the implementation of Senate Bill 1070 affect the community?
It harms public safety by creating distrust between local law enforcement and immigrant communities.
It amplifies fear among immigrants, which will result in less reporting of crimes in these communities, thereby marginalizing these communities even further.
Our communities will become less safe as community members become more and more unwilling to report crime.
It allows police officers to arrest people without a warrant, thereby undermining constitutional safeguards under the Fourth Amendment.IMMEDIATE ACTIONS REQUESTED (As always, be POLITE and RESPECTFUL):

1. Visit the Presente website and add your name to the petition: http://presente.org/campaigns/arizona
2. Call Governor Brewer TODAY and ask her to veto the bill. Call: (602) 542-4331, E-Mail: http://azgovernor.gov/contact.asp
3. Forward this request to your friends and family.