www.amperspective.com Online Magazine
Executive Editor: Abdus Sattar Ghazali
Chronology of Islam in America (2016)
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
September 2016
CAIR-MN calls for action by police, FBI on mosque vandalism
Sept 2: The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) today called on state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate vandalism of Mankato Islamic Center. Video from the mosque’s security cameras show a white Male in his 20s vandalizing the Islamic center sign and replacing it with another sign indicating the mosque is for lease. According to mosque officials, the sign was also vandalized in January, 2015. Someone pulled off a portion of the sign and left it in the street. "For someone to vandalize a mosque sign during broad daylight is troubling,” said CAIR-MN Executive Director Jaylani Hussein. "We urge state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate this incident as a possible hate crime." An unprecedented spike in Islamophobic rhetoric and anti-Muslim incidents nationwide in recent months has been attributed at least in part to statements and policy proposals made by public figures like GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump and others.CAIR is urging American Muslims and Islamic institutions to take extra security precautions and is offering Muslim community leaders free copies of its booklet, "Best Practices for Mosque and Community Safety." [CAIR]
Queens woman stabbed to death in Jamaica; police make arrest, NYPD says
Sept 3: The Jamaica, Queens man arrested in the stabbing death of a Muslim woman earlier this week was charged in Queens Criminal Court this afternoon with two counts of second-degree murder, first-degree attempted robbery and fourth degree criminal possession of a weapon, officials said. Yonatan Galvez-Marin, 22, approached Nazma Khanam at 9:15 p.m. Wednesday on Normal Road near 160th Street and demanded money, according to the Queens County District Attorney’s office. When Khanam, a 60-year-old Bangladeshi woman from Jamaica Hills, refused, Galvez-Marin stabbed her in the torso and fled, officials said. Khanam was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center where she was pronounced dead, officials said. Galvez-Marin was arrested just blocks away from the incident and residence of Khanam, who was the aunt of an NYPD transit cop. In the wake of the stabbing, the Queens Muslim community called for Khanam’s death to be investigated as a hate crime. The Council on American-Islamic Relations noted Khanam was wearing Islamic attire at the time of the stabbing. [AM New York]
Sept. 11 Marked Turning Point For Muslims In Increasingly Diverse America
Sept 7: Fifteen years after the attacks of Sept. 11, Americans have grown aware not only of the danger of terrorism but also of the reality that their nation is far less white, Christian and European than it used to be. "Culturally, we're a country of Bollywood and bhangra and tai chi and yoga and salsa and burritos and halal and kosher," says Diana Eck, professor of comparative religion at Harvard University and author of A New Religious America. Through her direction of the Pluralism Project at Harvard, Eck and her researchers have documented the growth of an "interfaith infrastructure" in the country. "After 9/11," she says, "it became important to know more clearly who is in our community. The level of ignorance was cracked. It is far from solved, but I think 9/11 did bring a moment of awakening that the 'we' of the United States is changing." A recognition of America's increased diversity is especially critical for the Muslim American community. The Sept. 11 attacks were carried out in the name of Islam, and a majority of Muslims in the United States have said it became harder after those attacks to be a Muslim in this country. In response, many are taking the responsibility themselves for improving relations with their neighbors. One important consequence of Sept. 11 was that Muslims, most of whom are immigrants, concluded they needed to become more socially and politically engaged. "Before Sept. 11, Muslims — the majority of them — were living here physically, [but] mentally and spiritually they were living back home," says Zahid Bukhari, executive director of the Council for Social Justice at the Islamic Circle of North America. Interfaith efforts in those days were scorned as un-Islamic, he says. Bukhari, who moved from Pakistan to the U.S. in the 1980s and now lives in Frederick, Md., urges his fellow immigrant Muslims, including the most devout, to turn their attention away from their native lands and focus on their adopted homeland…..In the 2000 election, a survey by the Muslims in the American Public Square (MAPS) project at Georgetown University and Zogby Analytics found that immigrant Muslims, especially those from Arab countries, preferred George W. Bush, the Republican candidate, over Democrat Al Gore. They appreciated Bush's criticism of the racial profiling of Arab-Americans, and many aligned with conservative positions on social issues and the Republican emphasis on personal responsibility over government welfare. After Sept. 11, however, immigrant Muslims overwhelmingly abandoned the Republican Party, with just 7 percent backing Bush's re-election in 2004. (African-American Muslims voted against Bush in large numbers in both elections.) That trend is likely to continue this year, with Republican candidate Donald Trump on the record as saying "I think Islam hates us." A survey earlier this year during the Republican and Democratic party primaries found that Trump had the lowest support of any candidate, favored by just 4 percent of Muslim voters. [NPR]
Muslim community welcomes Obama's nomination of first Muslim federal judge
September 8: Seven million strong American Muslim community has welcomed the appointment of first Muslim federal judge. President Barack Obama Wednesday (Sept 7, 2016) nominated Abid Riaz Qureshi, a Washington lawyer, to the US District Court bench who would become the country's first Muslim-American federal judge if he is confirmed. "I am pleased to nominate Mr. Qureshi to serve on the United States District Court bench," Obama said in a statement. "I am confident he will serve the American people with integrity and a steadfast commitment to justice." Abid Riaz Qureshi is a lawyer at the Latham & Watkins law firm in Washington, specializing in health care fraud and securities violations, according to the White House. Obama nominated him Wednesday to serve on the US District Court for the District of Columbia. Mr. Qureshi has twice worked pro bono on civil rights cases for Muslim Advocates, a legal advocacy group. Qureshi earned the Champions of Justice Award in 2012 by the National Law Journal's Legal Times for upholding the legal profession's core values through public service, pro bono work and advocacy for civil liberties. NBC News’ report noted a striking detail: Muslim Americans have served as state judges, but not federal judges. Qureshi would be the first. [AMP Report]
US Elections 2016: Growing number of Muslims desert the Republican Party
Sept, 08: Once seen as a “natural” Republican constituency, Muslim Americans are increasingly leaning Democratic, and they are expected to vote in record numbers for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in the U.S. presidential election in November. In 2004, more than 90 percent of Muslim Americans voted for John Kerry; in 2008 and 2014, Muslims voted for Barack Obama, by 89 percent and 85 percent, respectively, according to several estimates. Islamophobia fuels switch Why did so many Muslims desert the Republican Party after the 2000 election? Republican policies and rhetoric have since reinforced a perception among many Muslims that the party is a hotbed of Islamophobia. “Sadly, the Republican Party over the past 15 years has become the political epicenter of Islamophobia, introducing anti Muslim policy proposals or antiforeigner laws in at least 10 state legislatures,” said Robert McCaw of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR). “This has really driven the Muslim vote out of the Republican Party.” But surveys show that the Muslim American flight from the Republican Party has only deepened amid anti-Muslim rhetoric by Republican candidates, most notably Trump, who enraged many Muslims by saying “Islam hates us” and proposing to ban all Muslims from entering the country, a position he has since softened. Historically, Muslim voter turnout has been low in the U.S., but with surveys showing Islamophobia is a top issue, CAIR and other members of the U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations this year launched a “One America Campaign.” They hope to register 1 million new voters, an increase of nearly 300,000 since the 2012 presidential election. Power of Muslim vote Muslim turnout is expected to be high this year, Esposito says, with as much as 80 percent of the vote likely to go to Clinton. The Muslim American vote remains relatively small, but with large Muslim communities in Florida, Ohio, Virginia, Michigan and Pennsylvania, Muslim activists say their vote is likely to prove critical in tipping tight races in key swing states. [Newsgram]
U.S. to track religious discrimination in schools as anti-Muslim sentiment grows
Sept 9: The U.S. Education Department announced it will begin collecting data this year about allegations of discrimination or bullying of students based on their religion, bringing new attention to what educators and advocates call a growing problem in public schools, particularly for Muslim students. Catherine E. Lhamon, the department’s assistant secretary for civil rights, said the department plans to work with schools and communities to promote inclusive school environments for everyone. “Students of all religions should feel safe, welcome and valued in our nation’s schools,” she said in an announcement. Last year the office received more than 10,000 complaints of alleged discrimination, including some relating to religion. Those cases were typically not reported separately, as they will be in the future. The California Chapter of CAIR found in a 2014 survey of youth that more than half — or 55 percent — of American Muslim students surveyed reported experiencing some form of bullying based on their religious identity while at school. [Washington Post]
Muslim Americans still struggle with hate crimes, 15 years after 9/11
Sept 10: September 11, 2001 is a day many Americans will never forget. The largest terrorist attack on U.S. soil claimed the lives of 2,996 people and forever changed the lives of millions more. Muslim Americans, in particular, were heavily impacted by the attacks, as hate crimes against the group sky rocketed following the attacks. 15 years later, Muslim Americans still face discrimination in their everyday lives as fear of Islamic terrorism grows in America, despite Muslims being the victims of the majority of terrorist attacks world wide. According to the New York Times, the rate of suspected hate crimes against Muslims in America has tripled since the terrorist attacks in Paris and the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California in late 2015. 38 of the attacks were regarded as anti-Islamic. Mosques, the place where followers of Islam worship, have consistently been the target of these crimes. In the hours following the attack in Nice, France that killed at least 84 people, a Rhode Island mosque was the target of vandalism. "Muhammad, prophet of butchers," was spray painted onto the building and the windows were smashed. There have been numerous of reports across the country, similar to this one. Sikhs have also been the targets of anti-Muslim attacks, although Sikhism is a separate and distinct religion from Islam. An attack on a Sikh temple in California, referenced Islam and the Islamic State. Muslim Americans have been at the center of this year's presidential election. Donald Trump's claim that he witnessed "thousands" of people "cheering" in New Jersey following the September 11, 2001, attacks sparked controversy. Even more controversy followed with the Republican nominee calling for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the country. Donald Trump's democratic rival, Hillary Clinton has condemned his proposed Muslim ban, writing to Muslim Americans: "What you're hearing from Trump and other Republicans is absolutely, unequivocally wrong. It's inconsistent with our values as a nation—a nation which you are helping to build. This is your country, too. I'm proud to be your fellow American. And many, many other Americans feel the same way." A report published by Georgetown University's Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding highlights the upswing of Islamophobia since the start of the 2016 U.S. presidential election cycle. According to the report, in the period between March 2015 and March 2016, there have been 180 reported incidents of anti-Muslim violence. These include 12 murders, 34 physical assaults, 56 acts of vandalisms, nine arsons, and eight shootings and bombings. According to their data: "Anti-Muslim violence remained significantly higher in 2015 than pre- 9/11 levels with American Muslims approximately 6 to 9 times more likely to suffer such attacks. The number of incidents in 2015 is also higher than the total number of anti-Muslim hate crimes reported in 2014: 154." [AOL]
American Muslims 15 years after 911
Sept 11: * For Muslims now, 15 years since 9/11, 'it seems more people are more openly hateful' (Penn Live). * Muslim Americans still struggle with hate crimes, 15 years after 9/11 (AOL). * 15 years after 9/11, unwelcome spotlight returns to Islam (USA Today). * Muslims are still under attack for their beliefs 15 years after 9/11 (Desert News). These headlines best reflect the dilemma of the seven-million-strong American Muslim Community which remains target of assault, bigotry, hate-crime and profiling, one and half decade after the horrific terrorist attacks. Muslim men were attacked, some fatally, while Muslim women in headscarves were harassed and mosques and Muslim businesses were vandalized. In the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, U.S. Muslims were targeted by a slew of hate crimes, some tragically resulting in loss of life. But 15 years after the attacks, religious tolerance and assimilation into the fabric of the country continues to largely elude Muslims in America, whether they are from Middle Eastern or Asian countries, American-born and bred, white or black, says Ivey DeJesus of Penn Live. Tellingly, in the 15 years since the 9/11, hate towards Muslims has become more openly acceptable. Anti-Islam rhetoric is no longer playing out behind closed doors. It’s explicit, not implicit anymore. A new report by Georgetown University’s Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding has documented an upsurge in violence against Muslims in the United States. The report cites 180 reported incidents of anti-Muslim violence during the period between March 2015 and March 2016. Among these were 12 murders; 34 physical assaults; 56 acts of vandalisms or destruction of property; nine arsons; and eight shootings and bombings. Among the incidents noted were the murders of three university students in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, the murder of an Iranian-American in California by a white supremacist, and a road-rage incident in Houston in which a Palestinian-American man was killed by a man who told him to “go back to Islam.” Not surprisingly, there were nearly four times as many attacks against mosques in 2015 compared with 2014, according to a report compiled by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the largest American Muslim civil advocacy group. There were 78 instances where mosques were targeted — counting vandalism, arson, and other destruction — in 2015. There were 20 total in 2014, the group counted. Some of the incidents from December 2015 include the firebombing of a mosque in Coachella, California and the discovery of a severed pig’s head at a mosque in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On the other hand the 2016 CAIR California Civil Rights Report, which reveals that anti-Muslim bias incidents saw a significant increase since last year. A total of 1,556 incidents, 295 from the Bay Area alone, were reported to CAIR-California over the course of the 2015 year. These included complaints involving: employment discrimination, federal law enforcement questioning, housing discrimination, immigration issues, hate crimes, and school bullying. [AMP Report]
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