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Executive Editor: Abdus Sattar Ghazali
Chronology of Islam in America (2015)
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
February 2015 page two
Obama’s remarks on religious intolerance in India provoke outrage
Feb 7: President Obama’s comments that religious conflict has produced “acts of intolerance” in India that would have shocked Gandhiji, provoked a stream of outrage in India.“Michelle and I returned from India -- an incredible, beautiful country, full of magnificent diversity,” Obama said, “but a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other peoples of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs.” The “acts of intolerance” would have “shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation,” Obama said, employing the honorific used in India for the revered freedom fighter. India’s finance minister Arun Jaitley said that India has "a huge cultural history of tolerance; any aberrations do not alter that history." Obama had also referred to the country’s history of religious conflict during his final speech in New Delhi on January 27. Addressing young people at Siri Fort Stadium Obama warned that “India will succeed so long as it is not splintered along the lines of religious faith -- so long as it's not splintered along any lines -- and is unified as one nation.” The speech had invoked strong reactions in India. The Congress party called it an indictment of the ruling National Democratic Alliance ’s record on religious freedoms, in the wake of reports of forced conversions of Muslims to Hinduism by groups allied to the Bhartia Janta Party (BJP).BJP President Amit Shah told The Hindu newspaper the party “agreed” with Mr. Obama on the importance of communal harmony while Home Minister Rajnath Singh said he “endorsed” Mr. Obama’s comments, but added that it was “really unfortunate” he had made the remarks. The Hindu said it is significant that President Obama had chosen to make the statements twice in a span of ten days. [AMP Report]
CA Assembly Melendez criticized for 'Islamic savages' tweet
Feb 12: California Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez is facing criticism from Islamic groups after she tweeted with the hashtag “Stand Up Against Islam” while lamenting the death of an American aid worker. Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore, tweeted that Kayla Mueller was “murdered by Islamic savages.” Mueller was taken hostage by Islamic State militants and her death was confirmed by her family this week. “There MUST be consequences,” Melendez wrote. She ended her tweet with #standupagainstIslam. Hashtags are labels using the pound sign or hash mark to make it easier to find Twitter posts about a particular topic or thought. The tweet was still visible on Melendez’s account as of this afternoon and the assemblywoman issued a statement defending it. The Greater Los Angeles Area office on the Council on American-Islamic Relations called Melendez’s tweet irresponsible. “Statements like these cause mistrust and fear of Islam and Muslims,” said CAIR spokesman Haroon Manjlai. “It is unbecoming of a public elected official to issue such bigoted statements.” “Hate rhetoric can and does lead to hate crimes against people. We call on Assemblymember Melendez to retract and apologize for her anti-Muslim comment and for smearing the faith of more than 1.6 billion Muslims.” [The Press Enterprise]
California Assembly member urged to Apologize for "#�standupagainstIslam" Tweet
Feb 13: Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez was urged to apologize and retract an online comment she made about Islam. Melissa took to Twitter earlier this week to voice her outrage over the killing of American humanitarian aid worker Kayla Mueller, who was taken hostage by the ISIS prior to her death. She tweeted: “Gut wrenching news today. American Kayla Mueller murdered by Islamic savages. There MUST be consequences. MM #standupagainstIslam” Sarah Moussa, chair of the state Democratic Party’s Arab American Caucus, said Melendez’s comments painting all members of the Islamic faith with a broad brush were “profoundly misguided and deeply offensive.” “She is a state Assembly member, and a comment like that reaches the entire nation,” Moussa said, also noting the shooting near Chapel Hill. “It’s been a really sad and challenging week, and comments (like) these are very sad and concerning to us.” Basim Elkarra, executive director of the Council on American Islamic Relations in Sacramento, characterized the hashtag, #standupagainstIslam, as “hateful,” and called on Melendez to apologize and then meet with her Muslim constituents. “It’s one thing to stand against terrorists,” he said, “but to stand against Islam, the faith of 1.6 billion people worldwide, is another.”Elkarra said anti-Islamic rhetoric has consequences, and noted that Melendez’s tweet came on the same day that three Muslim students of Arab descent were killed near the University of North Carolina. Their families have called their shootings a hate crime. “Hate ... has consequences,” said Elkarra, who said he was familiar with one of the victims. “It comes at a cost for our community.” The Greater Los Angeles Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-LA) also called on California State Assembly member Melissa Melendez to apologize for an “irresponsible” tweet using the hashtag #standupagainstIslam that seemed to equate the actions the ISIS terrorist group with all Muslims. Haroon Manjlai, CAIR-LA’s Public Affairs Coordinator said: “Statements like these cause mistrust and fear of Islam and Muslims. It is unbecoming of a public elected official to issue such bigoted statements. Hate rhetoric can and does lead to hate crimes against people. We call on Assembly member Melendez to retract and apologize for her anti-Muslim comment and for smearing the faith of more than 1.6 billion Muslims.” [Sacramento Bee/CAIR]
Dearborn woman: I saw Muslim man attacked at Kroger
Feb 13: Dearborn Police said today they are investigating an alleged bias assault by two white men against an Arab-American Muslim man who was shopping Thursday at a Kroger grocery store in the city. The incident sparked fears among Arab Americans in Dearborn that they are not safe from bias attacks even in a city that has the highest concentration of Arab Americans in the U.S. Kathy McMillan Bazzi, 60, of Dearborn told the Free Press that two white men at a Kroger near the corner of Michigan and Greenfield avenues attacked the Arab-American man and taunted his daughter, who wears an Islamic headscarf, or hijab. Bazzi said the pair were passing by the man and his family while making insulting comments about ISIS and Muslims. Bazzi said the men used derogatory words against the Arab-American man. "I hear 'ISIS,' I hear 'terrorist,' I hear 'go back to your country' and 'raghead,'" Bazzi said in an interview Friday with the Free Press. Then, "all of a sudden, the man is punching this Arabic man, fists started flying." Bazzi, a white convert to Islam who wears a hijab and is a lifelong Dearborn resident, said the Arab-American man tried to defend himself with punches and one of his attackers "got all bloodied." Dearborn Police said in a statement released today: "The incident is currently being thoroughly investigated to determine whether it involves a criminal assault and/or whether it was motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender(s) bias." Police did not reveal the name of the victims or additional details about the incident. Bazzi said it took police 20 minutes to arrive, which concerned her since the Dearborn police station is close by, across the street from the grocery. Dearborn Police said in their statement that both police and fire rescue were at the scene within "three minutes after receiving 911 calls of a fight in progress." Bazzi and other Muslims have been increasingly anxious lately, especially after the shooting deaths on Tuesday of three Muslim students in Chapel Hill, N.C. [Dearborn Free Press]
Arson suspected in fire at Islamic center
Feb 13: An early morning fire today at an Islamic center in southeast Houston left the facility's faithful wondering if what appears to be an intentionally set fire was tied to their religion. "I hope it's not a hate crime," said Ahsan Zahid, one of the imam's son's. "Preliminary results say it's arson." Zahid said arson investigators with the Houston Fire Department told him that an accelerant was used in the fire that broke out about 5:30 a.m. at Quba Islamic Institute. Zahid said the fire started behind the back building, in a makeshift wood hallway that connected the back door to a 3,000-square-foot prefabricated metal building used for storage. He was not told what kind of accelerant may have been used. The possibility of religious targeting brought calls for state and federal investigations from the Texas office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "Given the unprecedented level of anti-Muslim rhetoric in our society, it would only be prudent to investigate a possible bias motive for this apparent arson attack," said Ruth Nasrullah, a spokeswoman for the organization. [Texas Chronicle]
Killings of Egyptian Christians and deadly attacks in Denmark condemned
Feb 15: The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today reiterated its condemnation of the ISIS terrorist group following the killing of 21 Egyptian Christians in Libya. CAIR, the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, also condemned two deadly attacks in Denmark, one on a free speech event and the other targeting a synagogue. In a statement, CAIR said: "The heinous killing of innocent Egyptian Christians in Libya shocks the conscience and must be repudiated by those of every faith and background worldwide. The perpetrators of such monstrous acts place themselves outside any faith or ideology. As we condemn the killings in Libya, we also condemn the attacks on faith and freedom of speech in Denmark. These violent and inexcusable actions demonstrate once again that mainstream followers of all faiths must join together in challenging extremism and hate." [CAIR]
Cyber-security firm: NSA-linked spyware found in hard drives worldwide
Feb 16: A top technology security firm announced today that they have uncovered evidence that sophisticated spying software, likely linked to the National Security Agency, was implanted in the hard drives of personal computers across the globe. Researchers with the Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab introduced their findings while presenting at the Kaspersky Security Analyst Summit in Cancun, Mexico, and also published an initial paperMonday on what they consider "the most advanced threat actor" they’ve seen to date. Dubbed the Equation Group, the suite of surveillance platforms has been found in hard drives made by Western Digital, Seagate, Toshiba and other top manufacturers, and located in personal computers in 30 countries, with the most infections seen in Iran, followed by Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Mali, Syria, Yemen and Algeria, Kaspersky said. The targets reportedly included government and military institutions, telecommunication companies, banks, energy companies, nuclear researchers, media, and Islamic activists. Although the firm did not publicly name the source behind the spying campaign, they said the Equation Group "worm" was closely linked to Stuxnet, the cyberweapon the U.S. used to attack Iran's uranium enrichment facility beginning in late 2007. The New York Times reports that, in many cases, the powerful software is able to "grab the encryption keys off a machine, unnoticed, and unlock scrambled contents. Moreover, many of the tools are designed to run on computers that are disconnected from the Internet, which was the case in the computers controlling Iran’s nuclear enrichment plants." As the Times notes, the Russian tech firm is a trusted source among cyber security experts worldwide and is uniquely positioned to observe some U.S. surveillance tactics. [Common Dreams]
Rhode Island Muslim School Vandalized In Hate Crime
Feb 16: A non-profit Muslim school in Rhode Island was vandalized with Islamophobic graffiti on Saturday, one day after holding a vigil for the three Muslim victims of the North Carolina shooting. The story garnered national interest after the Providence Journal posted a photo of the graffiti on Sunday.The Islamic School of Rhode Island — which opened in 2003 as the first Muslim school in the state — had never been targeted by vandalization or serious threats before, the President of the school’s board of trustees told the Providence Journal. However, the orange graffiti covering the school’s doors left little doubt about the intentions of the vandalizers. Among the slurs scrawled on the school’s entrance — including “pigs,” and expletives referring to “Allah” — one was quite clear: “Now this is a hate crime.”“This apparently bias-motivated incident should be investigated as a hate crime, with the strongest possible charges brought against the perpetrators once they are apprehended,” said Ibrahim Hooper, the director of communications at the Council on American-Islamic Relations, in a press release. “The recent spike in anti-Muslim hate rhetoric and bias-motivated attacks on American Muslims and their institutions must be addressed by our nation’s leaders.” The vandalization occurred in the wake of a series of incidents targeting Muslim Americans, including the recent suspected arson attack on an Islamic community center in Houston, and a fatal shooting in Chapel Hill, N.C., where three young Muslims — Deah Shaddy Barakat, his wife Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha and her sister Razan — were killed by Craig Stephen Hicks, an avowed atheist, in what many have deemed a hate crime. [Think Progress]
Man arrested for making bomb threat at Islamic center in Texas capital
Feb 17: In Texas, Austin, a man in his 50s was arrested for making threats today to bomb an Islamic center in Austin and a restaurant specializing in Middle Eastern food. No bombs were discovered at the locations in different parts of the city and police are considering whether to bring terrorism charges against the man, who was not immediately identified. "Our bomb squad responded and cleared both sites," said Jennifer Herber, a spokeswoman for the Austin police, adding the man may be mentally disturbed. Yesterday, in Houston, a homeless man was arrested and charged with setting a fire that destroyed a building at an Islamic institute in the city last week. No one was harmed in the incident. The Austin threat came about a week after a gunman shot dead three young Muslims near the University of North Carolina, riling Muslim activists who have demanded that U.S. state and federal authorities investigate the detained suspect for possible hate crimes. [Reuters]
Anti-Muslim graffiti sprayed on Bothell school
Feb 17: Bothell, Washington State authorities believe the same person is likely responsible for the hate graffiti spray painted on a Hindu temple and a junior high school in Bothell. A swastika and the words "get out" were found Sunday on the outside wall of the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center. Swastikas and the words "Muslims get out" in red paint were later found on the wall at Skyview Junior High School, a few blocks from the Hindu temple. The Northshore School District released a statement condemning the vandalism and saying the district values diversity. [The Columbian]
White House hosts anti-terrorism summit
Feb 17: Vice President Joe Biden opened today the three-day White House summit by pointing to the U.S. experience with assimilating immigrants as a factor in helping it prevent the terrorist attacks that have hit Europe. Biden took part in a round-table discussion with local leaders from Boston, Los Angeles and Minneapolis. The three cities have programs to counter extremism that the White House wants to promote as examples. Officials say they hope to replicate those programs in other places around the countries with populations that could be prone to radicalization. Biden, in his remarks, held up Boston, Los Angeles and Minneapolis as examples of communities moving ahead with programs to counter extremism locally. He said the goal was to bring together broad coalitions of community leaders so that all Americans — and particularly Muslims — would feel like "we see them." "We haven't always gotten it right," Biden said. "But we have a lot of experience integrating communities into the American system, the American dream." [AMP Report]
Obama says US is not at war with Islam
Feb 18: The White House held a three-day anti-terrorism summit dubbed as "Countering Violent Extremism Summit," from Feb. 17 to 19. Addressing the summit on the second day, President Barack Obama said the United States is not at war with Islam. He told the summit that he wants to discredit the belief that Americans and Westerners in general are at odds with Muslims. He said this narrative helps extremists radicalize and recruit young Americans and others. He also said that the world is at war with those who have "perverted Islam," and stressed the importance of reaching out to young people most at risk of being recruited by radical groups. "No religion is responsible for terrorism, people are responsible for violence and terrorism," Obama said. Speaking at the anti-terrorism summit on the third day, President Obama reiterated that any contention by terrorist groups that Western nations are fighting a war against Islam is an "ugly lie." "The notion that the West is at war with Islam is an ugly lie," he said. "And all of us, regardless of our faith, have a responsibility to reject it." Obama urged summit delegates to "confront the warped ideology" espoused by terror groups, particularly efforts to use Islam to justify violence. "These terrorists are desperate for legitimacy and all us have a responsibility to refute the notion that groups like ISIL somehow represent Islam, because that is a falsehood that embraces the terrorist narrative,'' Obama said. According to a White House statement, the purpose of the summit is to "highlight domestic and international efforts to prevent violent extremists and their supporters from radicalizing, recruiting, or inspiring individuals or groups in the United States and abroad to commit acts of violence, efforts made even more imperative in light of recent, tragic attacks in Ottawa, Sydney, and Paris." This summit will build on the strategy the White House released in August of 2011, Empowering Local Partners to Prevent Violent Extremism in the United States, the first national strategy to prevent violent extremism domestically. [AMP Report]
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