Archive for the ‘cair’ Tag
If you think the gradual erosion of rights won’t threaten yours, think again
Filed under: Guest | Tags: cair, civil rights, haveus corpus, indefinite detention, muslim civil rights, muslim persecution, NDAA, surveillance
Leave a Comment By Hani Hamdan, Engage Minnesota
Shortly after 9/11, we began to see government increasingly overstepping its boundaries in the name of national security. First came the indefinite detention of non-U.S. citizens on non-U.S. territory; then the targeted assassination of U.S. citizens abroad; now, effective a few days ago, the indefinite detention of U.S. citizens, without due process, right here inside the United States.
Read the rest of Hani’s article here.
CAIR Welcomes Top Muslim Leader’s Hajj Sermon Against Terror
Filed under: Guest | Tags: cair, Islam, muslims denounce terror, terrorism
Leave a Comment FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CAIR Welcomes Top Muslim Leader’s Hajj Sermon Against Terror
Saudi religious leader tells pilgrims that Islam prohibits terror and extremism
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 11/15/10) –- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today welcomed an anti-terror statement by Saudi Arabia’s top religious leader made in a sermon at the peak of the Hajj, the most important event on Islam’s spiritual calendar. Read more »
Rebuilding a Legacy
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: American Muslim history, American-Muslim identity, Asma Saroya, cair, CAIR-MN, Cedar Rapids, Cedar Rapids Muslims, Flood Relief, Imam Taha Tawil, Iowa Muslims, Mother Mosque, Mother Mosque of America, Muslim youth
Comments (2) By Asma Lori Saroya, Engage Minnesota
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| Flood damage at the Mother Mosque. |
On our first visit to the Mother Mosque of America, my family and I were greeted by an eager imam. He came outside to welcome us.
Imam Taha Tawil, Executive Director of the Mother Mosque, showed great passion for history and for the American Muslim identity as he gave us a two-hour tour of the tiny mosque. We were presented with stories, history lessons, photos, documents, and other artifacts from–with the exception of the slave trade–some of the earliest Muslim immigrants to America.
We returned, many times. My family and I attended monthly halaqas there and, as a teenager, I always found that Imam Taha boldly fielded my questions. I attended meetings in the Mother Mosque with Muslim youth from across the state.
I gave tours to visitors, who watched us pray in shifts in the small prayer area. I got married there. Read more »
Muslim Group Supports Student’s Right to Service Dog
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cair, dog saliva, dogs and Islam, dogs and Muslims, God's creatures, guide dogs, Marcia Lynx Qualey, Muhammad and dogs, service dogs, service dogs and Islam, service dogs and Muslims, St. Cloud State, St. Cloud Times, Tyler Hurd, Uncategorized
Comments (6) By Marcia Lynx Qualey and Asma L. Saroya, Engage Minnesota
A civil rights group is working again to debunk the myth that Muslims and dogs can’t get along.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today is clarifying Muslim beliefs about dogs and expressing support for a St. Cloud State University student who felt his service dog was threatened. CAIR-MN issued a statement following a May 12 article in the St. Cloud Times, which said that graduate student Tyler Hurd left the university because he feared for the safety of his dog.
Hurd told the St. Cloud Times that while many Muslim students grew to like his dog, the dog was threatened by a student at one of the schools where he was doing his field training.
The Times article falsely states that Islam “forbids the touching of dogs.” CAIR-MN clarifies that many Muslims are uncomfortable around dogs, as they believe the saliva of dogs invalidates the ritual ablution performed before prayer. For this reason, it has become a cultural norm for individuals not to have dogs in their homes.
However, “the moral and legal need to accommodate individuals using service dogs far outweighs the discomfort an individual Muslim might feel about coming into contact with a dog, which is one of God’s creatures,” said CAIR-MN Communications Director Valerie Shirley. Read more »
What Are You Going to Do?
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: arab, Blaine dairy bombing, cair, discrimination, Emily Bright, FBI, hate crime, Minnesota, Mohamed Ismail
Comments (1) By Emily K. Bright, Engage Minnesota
It’s not the first time you’ve been a victim of a hate crime, nor is it the last. It’s 8:30 on a winter evening, and you’re closing up your store. The entrance door is locked, half the lights are off, and you’re mopping at the far end of the room when three men barge in the exit door as though they mean to rob you. Two of the men have their hooded backs to you. One of them you can see. He’s over six feet tall, with short reddish blonde hair and a goatee. You observe this in the moment before he stands and hurls a glass bottle directly at you. You duck. It slams into the wall and explodes into flames. All around you, you hear the sound of glass exploding. The store fills with smoke in seconds. You can’t tell if the men are still there and if they’re waiting for you, but you have to get out. You race through your burning store and out to the road. You wave your arms until a woman stops and calls 911 for you. Read more »
A U.S. Muslim response to teacher’s jailing in Sudan
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cair, gibbons, Guest bloggers, hooper, Islam, muhammad, muslim, sudan
Comments (2) or, What Would Muhammad Do, Part 2
By Ibrahim Hooper
{Note: The author is a University of Minnesota graduate who worked in television and educational outreach in Minnesota before becoming national communications director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Because of user interest in the furor over the British teacher jailed in Sudan for allegedly disrespecting the prophet, EngageMinnesota is reprinting Mr. Hooper’s commentary with permission.}
During last year’s protests over publication of the Danish cartoons designed to insult the Prophet Muhammad, I wrote a commentary called “What Would Muhammad Do?”
Given the ongoing controversy over the jailing of British teacher Gillian Gibbons in the Sudan for “insulting Islam,” perhaps it is time to remind us all how the Prophet himself reacted to insults, both real and perceived.
Even if Ms. Gibbons had the intent to cause insult, which does not seem to be the case, Islamic traditions include a number of instances in which the Prophet had the opportunity to retaliate against those who abused him, but refrained from doing so.
“You do not do evil to those who do evil to you, but you deal with them with forgiveness and kindness.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)
That description of the Prophet Muhammad is a summary of how he reacted to personal attacks and abuse.
Read more »
