Opinion Editorials, May 2009

CAR, WASHINGTON, D.C. - May 3, 2009

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today call on members of the Jewish community to condemn the anti-Islam hate of a speaker who was recently given a standing ovation at a Florida synagogue.  CAIR said the speech by Dutch anti-Islam extremist politician Geert Wilders took place at a “large synagogue in Palm Beach.” In the speech, Wilders went through his usual laundry list of hate-filled views, including his claim that “Islam is not a religion” and “the right to religious freedom should not apply to this totalitarian ideology called Islam,” all to the applause of the audience. Wilders also called for stopping immigration from Muslim countries and urged “voluntary repatriation” to those countries.

Anti-Islam Hate Applauded at Florida Synagogue
 
“A synagogue should be the last place that Geert Wilders’ Nazi-like propaganda would find a warm reception,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. “Members of the Jewish community know all too well what happens when a religious minority is demonized by demagogues. Wilders uses the same scurrilous attacks on Muslims and Islam that the Nazis used against German Jews and Judaism in the 1930s.”  He added that Wilders’ message of hate received a warm welcome at another American synagogue. In Massachusetts, Wilders warned worshipers about the “dangers” of Islam and the Quran, Islam’s revealed text. His Islamophobic hate speech was again applauded by the audience.

Geert Wilders' Nazi-Like Message Applauded at Mass. Synagogue 
 
Hooper also noted that CAIR this week called on GOP leaders to demand that Rep. Adam Hasner, the head of Florida’s House Republicans, step down from his leadership post for co-hosting an event at which Wilders made the same anti-Islam remarks.
 
Fla. House GOP Leader Hosts Event Denying Religious Freedom
 
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 4/26/09) - The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called on GOP leaders to demand that Rep. Adam Hasner, the head of Florida’s House Republicans, step down from his leadership post for co-hosting an event at which the speaker said Islam should not be recognized as a legitimate faith and Muslims should not have religious freedom.  In his address to the so-called “Free Speech Summit” in Delray Beach, Fla., Dutch anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders said: “Islam is not a religion. Islam is a totalitarian political ideologue. Islam [sic] heart lies at the Quran, and the Quran is a book that calls for hatred, that calls for violence, for murder, for terrorism, for war, and submission…We should also stop pretending that Islam is a religion...the right to religious freedom should not apply to Islam.” 

SEE: Tell GOP Lawmakers to Reject Rep. Hasner's Hate Event (United Voices).  Wilders also called for stopping Muslim immigration to the West, for removing Muslims from Western countries, for citizen loyalty oaths, for stopping the building of mosques, for closing down Islamic schools because they are “fascist” institutions, and for getting rid of “weak leaders.” He added that “we need strong leaders like here are [sic] today Allen West and Adam Hasner.”
http://www.cair.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?ArticleID=25885&&name=n&&currPage=1
 
CAIR: New FBI Guidelines Used to Target U.S. Muslims
 
On March 17, 2009, the American Muslim Task Force (AMT) announced that it was considering suspending outreach ties with the FBI. The announcement came after continued civil rights abuses perpetrated by the bureau, abuses that have gone largely unchecked by Congress and the courts, and unnoticed by the American public.  After more than eight years of dialogue between the American Muslim community and the FBI, that agency continues to employ pressure tactics against the Muslim community. The dialogue has frequently been one-sided, with the Muslim community airing serious legitimate grievances that seem to fall on deaf ears.
http://www.cair.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?ArticleID=25880&&name=n&&currPage=1&&Active=1
 
Urgent- Contact Congress Now, Support Hate Crimes Prevention Act, HR 1913!
 
Since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the Arab-American community has been subjected to numerous documented hate and bias-motivated crimes.  This is well-documented in the 2003 - 2007 Report on Hate Crimes and Discrimination Against Arab Americans

(See: http://www.adc.org/PDF/hcr07.pdf) and the earlier Report on Hate Crimes and Discrimination Against Arab Americans: The Post-September 11 Backlash

(See: http://www.adc.org/hatecrimes/pdf/2003_report_web.pdf ). 

Incidents similar to these could be more effectively investigated and prosecuted if HR 1913 were passed into law. http://capwiz.com/adc/issues/alert/?alertid=13232571