Editorial Note: The following news reports are summaries from original sources. They may also include corrections of Arabic names and political terminology. Comments are in parentheses.

 

Islamophobia in the US:
Thomas Jefferson Hosted First Muslim Dinner in WH,
Islamophobe Geller Publishes Anti-Islam Book

August 13, 2011

Hadith: Ramadan is a Month of Generosity

Thomas Jefferson Held First White House Iftar

CAIR: Security Firm Sued by Seattle Muslim Over Beard Firing

Video: Leading Islamophobe Publishes Anti-Islam Book (CAIR)

Frank Gaffney Says Herman Cain Met with Muslim Brotherhood

CAIR: Iowa Islamic Group Reports Vandalism

CAIR: Photo of Recent Vandalism at Iowa Mosque

CAIR: White House Unveils Plan to Combat Domestic Militancy

CAIR: Locals Key to Anti-Terror Fight (Politico) U.S. Wants Muslim Allies (NY Times)

Gov. Christie: Attacks About Sharia Law Are 'Baloney'

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HADITH OF THE DAY: RAMADAN IS A MONTH OF GENEROSITY - TOP

Ibn 'Abbas said: "The Prophet (Muhammad) was the most generous of people, but he would be his most generous during Ramadan."

Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 1, Hadith 5

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THOMAS JEFFERSON'S RAMADAN IFTAR - TOP U.S. Department of State, 7/29/11

"Ramadan," said President Obama at a White House iftar dinner in 2010, "is a reminder that Islam has always been a part of America. The first Muslim ambassador to the United States, from Tunisia, was hosted by President Jefferson, who arranged a sunset dinner for his guest because it was Ramadan -- making it the first known iftar at the White House, more than 200 years ago."

The dinner to which the president referred took place on December 9, 1805, and Jefferson's guest was Sidi Soliman Mellimelli, an envoy from the bey (chieftain) of Tunis who spent six months in Washington. ...

Mellimelli arrived during Ramadan, and Jefferson, when he invited the envoy to the president's house, changed the meal time from the usual hour of 3:30 p.m. to "precisely at sunset" in deference to the man's religious obligation. (More)

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CAIR: SECURITY FIRM SUED BY SEATTLE MUSLIM OVER BEARD FIRING - TOP

(SEATTLE, WA, 8/3/2011) -- On Thursday, August 4, a Seattle-area Muslim man who was allegedly fired for refusing to shave his religious beard will be available for media interviews about the lawsuit he filed on July 15 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against American Patriot Security, Inc., his former employer.

Read the full complaint.

The plaintiff, Abdulkadir Omar, is represented by The Rekhi Law Firm, PLLC.

WHAT: Media Availability for Plaintiff in Religious Discrimination Lawsuit WHEN: Thursday, August 4, 2011, 11:30 A.M. WHERE: CAIR-WA offices, 671 South Jackson Street, #207, Seattle, Washington 98104 CONTACT: CAIR-WA Executive Director Arsalan Bukhari, E-mail: abukhari@cair.com, Phone: 206.367.4081, 206.931.3655

Omar was reportedly fired from his job as a security guard after working for the company from May 2009 to November 2009. (More)

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VIDEO: LEADING ISLAMOPHOBE PUBLISHES ANTI-ISLAM BOOK (CAIR) - TOP Marjan Asi, Press TV, 8/3/2011

In her new book titled "Stop the Islamization of America: A Practical Guide to the Resistance," self-proclaimed human rights activist Pamela Geller discusses what she says are ways in which the United States is under attack by "Islamic supremacists" and "Shari'ah".

Geller is Executive Director of Stop Islamization of America which is considered by many civil and rights organizations as Islamophobic and listed as a hate group, including the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The book, which is scheduled to be released September 6, discusses ways in which the U.S. is being Islamized without Americans' knowledge such as the Justice Department's so-called fight in favor of Sharia law and the possibility of buying halal meat in grocery stores without knowing it.

One organization that comes under direct attack by Geller in her new book is the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which she states, like many other American Muslim groups, is linked to the Muslim Brotherhood.

But CAIR spokesperson Ibrahim Hooper states Geller's rhetoric is intolerant and hateful, much like the Norway bomber who mentioned Geller in his manifesto as a "decent human being". (Watch the video.)

SEE ALSO:

FRANK GAFFNEY SAYS HERMAN CAIN MET WITH MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD - TOP Scott Keyes, Think Progress, 8/2/2011

Last week, Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain met with Muslim leaders outside Washington, DC in a laudable attempt to make amends for the Islamophobic positions that had come to characterize his candidacy. Cain had previously declared he will not appoint Muslims in his administration -- he later backtracked and said he would only require a special loyalty oath from Muslim appointees -- and argued that Americans have the right to ban mosques.

However, not everyone was pleased with the former pizza executive's recent move.

Last weekend, ThinkProgress spoke with Frank Gaffney, a conservative conspiracy theorist who nevertheless enjoys outsized influence on the right. The Center for Security Policy president had a unique take on the matter: Herman Cain had actually been meeting with the Muslim Brotherhood.

According to Gaffney, the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) Center, where Cain met with Muslim leaders last Wednesday, is "a prominent Muslim Brotherhood apparatus in Washington DC." The Center's Imam, Mohamed Magid, is actually, says Gaffney, "the president of the largest Muslim Brotherhood front in the United States." (More)

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CAIR: IOWA ISLAMIC GROUP REPORTS VANDALISM - TOP Thomas Geyer, Quad-City Times, 8/3/2011

CLINTON, Iowa -- Clinton police are investigating an act of vandalism at the Islamic Society of Clinton County.

Anis Ansari, a physician in Clinton who is president of the Islamic Society, said during the afternoon or early evening of July 22, someone threw 16 or 17 rocks through a window.

"The window is hidden from the neighbors," Ansari said. "There was quite a bit of damage. We're having the window replaced at a cost of $1,200.

"It happened during broad daylight," Ansari said. "When people came for evening prayer at 8:30 p.m., they discovered this act of vandalism. We called the police right away."

The Islamic Center, at 1500 2nd Ave. S., is located in the former Lutheran Church of the Atonement building. The church was sold for the center, which opened in March 2006. Two months later, someone threw a boot through the center's sign.

"We are very peace-loving people," Ansari said. "All of our activities are open to non-Muslims. (More)

SEE ALSO:

CAIR: PHOTO OF RECENT VANDALISM AT IOWA MOSQUE - TOP

(See the photo.)

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CAIR: WHITE HOUSE UNVEILS PLAN TO COMBAT DOMESTIC MILITANCY (REUTERS) - TOP Molly O'Toole, Reuters, 8/3/2011

(Reuters) - The White House, citing concerns al Qaeda militants were actively recruiting Muslim Americans to carry out attacks, unveiled a strategy on Wednesday to combat home-grown extremism by reaching out to local communities.

The strategy includes enhancing engagement with relevant local communities, building law enforcement expertise in preventing violent extremism and countering messages that promote militancy. ...

The strategy, which promises to protect civil liberties and avoid stigmatizing any community, said the threat of militancy in the United States was not new and that the government was working to prevent all types of extremism, regardless of its source. ...

"Rather than blame particular communities, it is essential that we find ways to help them protect themselves," it said.

It added that the federal government was often ill-suited to intervene "in the niches of society where radicalization to violence takes place" but could work with community partners to help combat such extremism. ...

The Council on American-Islamic Relations issued a statement of support for the president's plan.

"Any effective strategy must avoid viewing the relationship between the American Muslim community and government agencies solely through the prism of national security," CAIR National Director Nihad Awad said. (More)

SEE ALSO:

CAIR: LOCALS KEY TO ANTI-TERROR FIGHT (POLITICO) - TOP Josh Gerstein, Politico, 8/3/2011

Community-based strategies that have succeeded in fighting drugs and gangs also can prevent Americans from being recruited by Islamic terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda, according to a White House report released Wednesday.

"We're trying to shift the emphasis away from the traditional national security agencies" to agencies such as the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, said Quintan Wiktorowicz, the White House's senior director for global engagement. "Lots of their lessons and experience doing prevention may be lessons learned" from anti-gang and anti-drug programs for the anti-radicalization fight, he said.

"American Muslims support objective and holistic efforts to ensure that all of our nation's citizens are safe from violent extremists," said Nihad Awad of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "Our nation faces a number of threats. Al Qaeda and its allies, white supremacists, violent anti-Muslim extremists and violent anti-government activists all must be confronted." (More)

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U.S. WANTS MUSLIM ALLIES (NY TIMES) - TOP Scott Shane, The New York Times, 8/3/2011

WASHINGTON -- Rolling out a new strategy for combating radicalization, White House officials on Wednesday warned that casting broad suspicion on Muslim Americans is counterproductive and could backfire by alienating a religious minority and fueling extremism.

The administration also promised to identify accurate educational materials about Islam for law enforcement officers, providing an alternative to biased and ill-informed literature in use in recent years, including by the F.B.I. Denis R. McDonough, President Obama's deputy national security adviser, told reporters that Al Qaeda and those it inspired remained the biggest terrorist threat inside the United States. But he said the bombing and shootings in Norway last month, carried out by a right-wing, anti-Muslim extremist, were a reminder that the government could not focus exclusively on any single brand of radicalism.

Mr. McDonough said that Al Qaeda had a "bankrupt ideology," but that accusing the entire Muslim community of complicity in terrorism could "feed the sense of disenchantment and disenfranchisement that may spur violent extremist radicalization." Instead, he said, Muslim Americans should be treated as a crucial ally of the government in combating extremism. (More)

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THE GREATNESS OF GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE: ATTACKS ABOUT SHARIA LAW ARE 'BALONEY' - TOP Jacob Heilbrunn, The National Interest, 8/4/2011

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has never been known for mincing words. But he surpassed himself at a news conference, where he defended his nomination of Sohail Mohammed, a Muslim-American lawyer, to a Superior Court judgeship in Passaic County. "This is crap," Christie said when someone asked him about sharia law. "This is crazy, and I'm tired of dealing with the crazies," he also said. (More)

 

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