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H E A D L I N E S
Calls to review UCF Courses taught by Anti-Islam Professor
AMP Report: On June 17, 2013, the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-FL), along with other community organizations, called on the University of Central Florida (UCF) to review the accuracy and objectivity of information offered to students in courses taught by Dr. Jonathon Matusitz. CAIR-FL says Matusitz, an associate professor in the UCF Nicholson School of Communication, is “membership director” for the anti-Muslim hate group ACT! for America and bizarrely claims Germany will “become an Islamic republic by 2050.” Read More
Are we living in Orwell’s1984 Oceania surveillance state?
AMP Report: Perhaps, Georg Orwell’s worst nightmare has come true in the wake of whistleblower Edward Snowden’s startling revelations of secret government surveillance. Writing under the title, “So Are We Living in 1984?” Ian Crouch of New Yorker argued that Edward Snowden, sounded, in the Guardian interview in which he came forward, like he’d been guided by Orwell’s pen. Read More
Republican Congressman broad-brushes American Muslims
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: The American Muslim community was alarmed by Republican Congressman Mike Pompeo’s statement that the Muslims here have not condemned acts of terrorism against the U.S. and therefore are complicit in those and any future attacks. Read More
The NSA Black Hole: 5 basic things we still don’t know about the agency’s snooping
Last week saw revelations that the FBI and the National Security Agency have been collecting Americans’ phone records en masse and that the agencies have access to data from nine tech companies. But secrecy around the programs has meant even basic questions are still unanswered. Read More
We’re all under surveillance now: Obama’s NSA is monitoring Verizon calls
By Steven Rosenfeld: The Obama Administration has continued the Bush Administration domestic spying program of ‘warrantless wiretapping’ of Americans’ phone lines, according to a top-secret federal court order obtained by The Guardian, a British news organization. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which is based in Washington, D.C., and operates inside the Justice Department, ordered Verizon to turn over to the National Security Agency daily records of: “all call detail records or ‘telephony metadata’ created for Verizon for communications (i) between the United States and abroad; or (ii) wholly within the United States, including local telephone calls.” The order does not include Verizon calls made in foreign countries. Read More
Missouri Governor Vetoes Anti-Islam Bill
AMP Report: Missouri Governor Jay Nixon today (June 3, 2013) vetoed an anti-Islam bill (SB 267) passed by the state’s legislature. In a statement announcing the veto, Governor Nixon said: ““Senate Substitute for Senate Bill No. 267 seeks to introduce a solution to a problem that does not exist and, in so doing, puts in jeopardy some of the very liberties that the bill purports to protect….” Read More
President Obama’s speech on national security policy draws mixed reaction
AMP Report: President Obama’s May 23rd speech on national security has drawn mixed reaction. In his speech president outlined his administration’s views on issues that included drone warfare, the Guantanamo Bay detention camp and efforts to combat violent extremism. He also expressed opposition to “boundless global war” as a pillar of American foreign policy. The top Republican on the Senate Intelligence panel, Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, dismissed the speech as rewarding detainees at Guantanamo who are carrying out hunger strikes. Human rights groups said moving toward a smaller, more transparent drone program would be a positive step, but called on the president to do more. Read More
State Department report recognizes rising Islamophobia
AMP Report: The State Department, in a new on international religious freedom, has recognized rising Islamophobia. The International Religious Freedom Report pointed out that “Anti-Muslim rhetoric and actions were clearly on the rise–particularly in Europe and Asia.” Read More
A word of truth on Jihad and Islam
By Nihad Awad: The constant misuse of terms like “jihad” and “radical Islam” is offensive to the truth and is counterproductive to our nation’s efforts to achieve security. It is time we all speak a word of truth by applying the proper labels to criminals and their acts of violence, no matter their religious background. Read More
American Islamic Congress and pro-Israel funders promote Islamophobes
By Max Blumenthal: Despite its claim to promote tolerance, the American Islamic Congress has depended on substantial support from the very same elements that fought tooth and nail to sabotage the Islamic Society of Boston, and which seem determined to undermine Muslim communal organizing efforts across the country…According to Internal Revenue Service 990 information filings, the AIC is funded largely by a pool of right-wing donors responsible for bankrolling key players in America’s Islamophobia industry, from Charles Jacobs to Emerson’s Investigative Project on Terrorism and Daniel Pipes’ Middle East Forum. Read More
Greeting card turns veiled Muslim doll into terrorist doll
AMP Report: In the latest sign of rising Islamophobia in the country, the seven-million strong American Muslim community was shocked at the fabrication of a birthday card that depicts a veiled girl doll as a suicide bomber who’ll “Blow Your Brains Out.” Read More
Anti-Islam bill dies in Florida Senate
May 3, 2013 – The Florida Senate today dropped a controversial anti-Islam bill that Muslim, Jewish and civil rights leaders criticized as “unconstitutional and unnecessary.” The bill was based on a template promoted by an anti-Muslim extremist. Read More
Muslim Day at the Capitol in Sacramento
SACRAMENTO, CA – More than 150 members of the California Muslim community converged on April 30 at the Capitol in Sacramento to participated in “Muslim Day.” This was the second Muslim Day at the Capitol sponsored by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. The event is aimed at promoting community engagement in local politics and to discuss issues of interest to the Muslim community with legislators. Read More
FBI urged to probe Oklahom mosque vandalismas part of Boston ‘backlash’
AMP Report: The Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-OK) has called on state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate a second incident of vandalism targeting a mosque in that state to determine whether it is backlash from the recent Boston Marathon bombings. Read More
U.S. Muslims fear backlash after the Boston
bombing suspects were identified as Muslim
April 19, 2013 – Several prominent American Muslim civil advocacy groups held a news conference in Washington today to condemn the Boston marathon bombings as the world learned the two suspects were natives of Chechnya, a predominantly Muslim region. The FBI identified Chechen brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev as the bombing suspects. Tamerlan died in a blazing shootout with police and Dzhokhar eluded capture, triggering a massive manhunt. Read More
The politics of anti-Sharia legislation:
Florida, Oklahoma poised to pass anti-Islam bills
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: As anti-Muslim bigotry creeps into state legislatures around the country, Florida and Oklahoma law makers are poised to pass the so-called anti-Sharia bills. On April 8 Oklahoma legislature moved one step closer to passing anti-Sharia bill when the state Senate approved on a 40-3 vote the bill HB 1060 prohibiting the use of foreign or religious laws in state courts. On the same day a committee of Florida Senate committee passed an anti-Sharia bill. Read More
Muslims hope for positive relations with new Pope
By Nihad Awad: Muslims have interacted with the Roman Catholic Church and its leaders — sometimes negatively and sometimes positively — for hundreds of years. These interactions have included negative periods of needless and counterproductive conflict, as well as positive cooperation on issues of importance to families of all faiths. Read More
UMA honors American Muslim women political activism
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: “American Muslim Women: Building Alliances, Upholding Democracy and Defending Civil Rights” was the theme of 32nd annual convention of the United Muslims of America (UMA). The convention, held on February 23, 2013, at the Chandni Restaurant, in Fremont/Newark, drew large crowd from different ethnic and faith groups. The UMA is perhaps the first American Muslim organization which acknowledged and honored the contributions of Muslim women, particularly in the post-9/11 America when the seven-million strong Muslim American community became target of institutionalized profiling, bigotry, discrimination and hate. Read More
29 Anti-Islam Bills Introduced Nationwide in 2013
This year’s the anti-Islam or anti-sharia bills look very different than those of the past several years. According to Gavel to Gavel, in 2013 heavily modified bills were introduced which exempt contracts, Native American tribes, avoids using word “sharia.” After criticism that: a) past versions would effectively cripple businesses who have to sign international contracts and b) that bans on references to the law and court decisions of other nations would make the judicial determinations of tribal courts in the U.S. enforceable, most such bills have been completely rewritten. Specifically, most now specify the prohibition on the use of foreign law/sharia. Read More
Is the FBI’s Community Outreach Program a Trojan Horse?
By Mike German: As the nation’s predominant federal law enforcement agency, the FBI has a duty to communicate with the public—both to provide information about FBI activities and to hear grievances—so it can address specific community concerns. The FBI’s community outreach program, organized under its Office of Public Affairs, was established to fulfill this obligation, and much of its work is laudable. But the FBI documents we received show that at least since 2005, in an increasingly formal and systematic process that lasted well into 2011, the FBI used community outreach programs to collect information about First Amendment-protected activity for intelligence and investigative purposes. Read More
Camouflaged Bigotry: Anti-Islam bill re-introduced in Florida
By DAVID BARKEY: The neutrally titled and worded “Application of Foreign Law” bill, which applies to family law provisions, is nothing more than camouflaged bigotry. It is based on model language drafted by a controversial attorney, David Yerushalmi, who has a record of espousing anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant and racist views. Read More
Muslims need not apply: The politics of religious freedom
By Elizabeth Shakman Hurd: The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is being sued for religious discrimination. And for good reason. The government watchdog agency was created in 1998 to officially promote and protect religious freedom abroad, but it actually suppresses religious freedom, rather than supporting it. It should be shut down. Read More
American Muslims are Indebted to Dr. King
By Nihad Awad: In my position as the leader of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest American Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, I am eternally grateful for the vision, struggle and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He did not struggle only to free his own generation, and his work will continue to bless many generations to come in America and around the world. Read More
2012: Another hard year for American Muslims
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: (i) A woman tells police she shoved a man to his death off a New York subway platform into the path of a train because she hates Muslims and thought he was one. (ii)A former Marine from Indiana admits that he broke into a mosque in Ohio and set fire to a prayer rug because he wanted revenge for the killings of American troops overseas. (iii) New York Times says the 9/11 attacks have led to what’s essentially a separate justice system for Muslims. In this system, the principle of due process is twisted and selectively applied, if it is applied at all. (iv) In the spirit of interfaith, the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), a leading civil advocacy group holds its annual convention at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, California amid fierce criticism of the church by Islamophobes. These episodes reflect the dilemma of the seven-million strong American Muslim community which remains under siege more than 11 years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on New York Trade Center and Pentagon. Read abridged version /// Read Full Version
A Muslim is attacked in Florida
Islamophobic hate crime in New York City
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: The seven-million strong American Muslim community was shocked Saturday (December 29, 2012) at the horrendous murder of Sunando Sen, who was pushed by a women to his death on the tracks of a New York subway station because she thought he was Muslim. Read More
FBI monitored OWS: Treated the movement as a potential terrorist threat
By Democracy Now: The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund through a Freedom of Information Act request has obtained heavily redacted FBI records which reveal that the FBI monitored Occupy Wall Street from its earliest days and treated the nonviolent movement as a potential terrorist threat. Internal government records show Occupy was treated as a potential threat when organizing first began in August of 2011. Democracy Now interviewed Mara Verheyden-Hilliard of the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund. “We can see decade after decade with each social justice movement that the FBI conducts itself in the same role over and over again, which is to act really as the secret police of the establishment against the people,” Verheyden-Hilliard says. Read More
NRA’s bizarre press conference: Arms guards at schools to boost gun sales
Sandy Hook School massacre shocks the nation
New York State Court of Appeals verdict illustrates a separate system
of ‘justice’ invented for Muslims in the US after 9/11
AMP Report: A fascinating new ruling unwittingly illustrates the separate system of ‘justice’ invented for Muslims in the US after 9/11, reports Glenn Greenwald of The Guardian (UK) newspaper. Read More
FBI: Anti-Muslim hate crimes still up
By Mark Potok: Hate crimes against perceived Muslims, which jumped up 50% in 2010 largely as a result of anti-Muslim propagandizing, remained at relatively high levels last year, according to 2011 hate crime statistics released today by the FBI. Read more
UN General Assembly votes overwhelmingly to recognize Palestinian state
AMP Report: The 193-nation U.N. General Assembly on Thursday overwhelmingly voted to recognize a Palestinian state. There were 138 votes in favor, nine against and 41 abstentions. Three countries – Australia, Britain and Germany – did not take part in the vote to upgrade the Palestinian Authority’s observer status at the United Nations to “non-member state” from “entity.” Read More
Where Liberty Lies: Civil Society and Individual Rights after 9/11
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: During the last decade when the civil rights of citizens were violated in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, the Congress has proved to be a source of law violations and abuse of the civil rights, says Professor David Cole of the Georgetown University Law Center. Read More
U.S. Muslims, Arab-Americans urge president to demand
restoration of Gaza ceasefire broken by Israel
WASHINGTON, D.C., November 15, 2012 –- A coalition of American Muslim and Arab-American civil rights, community and advocacy organizations today called on President Obama to demand that Israel restore the ceasefire that it broke with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Read More
Where is the Humanity for the Gaza Strip?
By Hoda Elshishtawy: For the past 48 hours, the Israeli army has escalated air and ground attacks against the Gaza Strip, killing Palestinian men, women and children. Israel is claiming these attacks are about going after militants, but in reality it’s about assassination of Palestinian leaders, destruction of Gazan infrastructure and the gross killings of Palestinian civilians, including women and children. Read More
85 percent Muslims voted for President Obama
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: More than 85 percent of American Muslim voters picked President Obama in Tuesday’s election, according to an exit poll released Friday by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s leading Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization. Read More
After 17 years: Arab American activist removed from terror list
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: The U.S. Treasury Department has de-listed Muhammad Salah as a “specially designated terrorist,” lifting onerous restrictions on the Palestine-origin American now living in Bridgeview, the Chicago Tribune reported. Read More
Voters reject Islamophobic candidates
WASHINGTON, D.C., Nov 7, 2012 – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed the rejection of Islamophobic candidates by voters nationwide. Read More
American Muslims may decide who becomes President
By Nihad Awad: In this close election, it is a small voting bloc that will decide the outcome. On November 6, American Muslims are in a position to determine which presidential candidate will win in key swing states such as Ohio, Virginia and Florida. A recent survey of registered Muslim voters, conducted by an independent research firm for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), indicates that some 25 percent of Muslim voters are still undecided about who to vote for in the presidential election and are therefore still open to appeals from the candidates. Read More
25 percent of Muslim voters undecided in presidential election
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: At least 25 percent of American Muslim registered voters are still undecided about who to vote for in this November’s presidential election, according to a survey released today (Oct 24, 2012). The survey also indicates that 91 percent of registered Muslim voters will go to the polls on November 6. Read More
Muslim Vote 2012 and dilemma on both sides
By Khalid Saeed: Election this year especially in some key battle states like Michigan, Ohio, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Florida seems very close and in situation like this a Muslim block vote can make a big difference both on local level in key battle ground states and on the national levels. Read More
ADC calls for tracking of anti-Arab hate crimes
AMP Report: The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), represented by Legal Director Abed Ayoub, recently attended a meeting of the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Subcommittee of the Criminal Justice Information Services Division (CJIS). The ADC was called by the UCR in response to its request that the Department of Justice should to include “Arab” among the “race” identities that may be recorded on the Hate Crime Incident Report (Form 1-699) in hate crimes data collection pursuant to the Hate Crime Statistics Act (HCSA). Read More
Tracking the American Muslim vote in 2012 election
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Democrats and Republicans are seen by many as the two sides of the same coin since both are aligned with the rich against the American people. For some Democrats are seen as a lesser evil. Gerald Celente says when confronted with the choice between the two evils, you don’t vote for the lesser evil. “Lesser or greater, evil is evil.” However, the seven-million strong American Muslim community – remained under siege since 9/11 tragedy – has decided to actively participate in the nation’s political process in a bid to make its voice heard. Muslim community’s political activism was reflected at the Democratic National Convention where the number of Muslim delegates had quadrupled since 2004. There were more than 100 Muslim delegates representing some 20 states at the Democratic convention in Charlotte, N.C., in September last. That’s up from 25 delegates in 2004. Read More
Alex Odeh: Still Waiting for Justice
October 11, 2012 – Today marks the 27th anniversary of the terrorist attack that killed Alex Odeh, Southern California Regional Director of the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee. On October 11, 1985, Alex Odeh was killed when a powerful pipe bomb exploded as he unlocked and opened the door of the ADC office in Santa Ana, California. In addition to killing Alex, the bomb injured several other victims. Read More
Freedom of speech is not freedom to hate
By Khalid Saeed: Freedom of speech is well and good but I believe we the Americans are facing a moral issue and we must face it in an honorable way and not be selective and discriminating when we decide what freedom of speech is and what is not. Read More
What is happening to Muslims will happen to the rest of us
By Chris Hedges: The decision by the European Court of Human Rights last week to refuse to block the extradition of the radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri and four others to the United States on terrorism charges removes one of the last external checks on our emerging gulag state. Read More
Fearing backlash on Christians in Egypt:
American Coptic Church denounces the anti-Islam movie
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Fearing backlash of the American Coptics’ produced anti-Islam movie on the Christians in Egypt, the Los Angeles Diocese of the Coptic Orthodox Church has denounced the movie and emphasized that no religion or group should be blamed for the actions of one. Copts in Egypt constitute the largest Christian community in the Middle East accounting for an estimated 10% of the Egyptian population. Read More
U.S. Muslims condemn killings of American diplomats in Libya
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: American Muslim civil advocacy groups Wednesday strongly condemned the killings of the U.S. Ambassador J Christopher Stevens and three other diplomats and the attack on the American embassy in Egypt. This senseless act of violence occurred amidst angry protests decrying an anti-Islamic film produced in the U.S. that appeared on YouTube. Thousands of Egyptians also protested the film at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo Tuesday. Read More
30 years after Sabra and Shatila massacre
September 16, 2012 marks 30 years since the Sabra and Shatila massacre — one of the bloodiest and most brutal atrocities of our time. On September 16, 1982, shortly after Israeli troops seized control of west Beirut, the right-wing Lebanese militia forces operating under the direction of Israeli forces massacred over one thousand defenseless men, women and children in the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian refugee camps. Read More
American Muslims remain in the dock 11 years after 9/11
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Seven million-strong American Muslim community remained in the dock 11 years after 9/11 with Republican Party’s witch-hunt against Muslims in the U.S. government and meteorite rise in anti-Islam and anti-Muslim rhetoric in the 2012 election campaign. This is an election year and for many hysteria-peddling politicians fear-mongering remains the best tool to exploit the fear among masses fomented by the anti-Islam and anti-Muslim rhetoric by media and extreme right politicians as well as some religious leaders. Read More
Anti-Islam ads on San Francisco buses put Muslims at risk
By Dr. Hatem Bazian: Ads running on San Francisco municipal buses, paid for by noted anti-Islam activist Pamela Geller and her American Freedom Defense Initiative, have sparked controversy about hate speech and fears they could stoke more violence against the American Muslim community. The ads come at a time when American Muslims have suffered at least nine attacks across the nation over a two-week period in August. Read More
The struggle for the soul of the Republican Party:
Michele Bachmann, the extreme right and the politics of fear
Haris Tarin: Rep. Michele Bachmann’s absurd accusations expose the extent to which the Republican Party is struggling with its vocal minority, which has taken the megaphone and the reins and is actively steering the party towards irrelevance and extremism. Yet presidential candidate Mitt Romney has remained silent. Not only has he remained silent, recently he met with the General who was too radical even for President Bush, William Boykin, and has appointed Walid Phares and Michael Bolton as foreign policy advisers. Read More
Norway “extremist” Breivik sentenced to 21 years in prison:
Terrorist remains forbidden jargon for media reports on Breivik
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Norwegian terrorst Anders Behring Breivik was jailed for a maximum term on Friday when judges declared him sane enough to answer for the massacre of 77 people last year. However, terrorist remained a forbidden jargon in major western media reports during Breivik’s months-long trial as well as his sentence. Read More
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