TX: Religious Leaders Ask Officials to Help Detained Imam
Members of Austin’s religious community are rallying around a Muslim cleric who is being detained in West Texas and may be deported to Pakistan. Imam Safdar Razi, who led a Northwest Austin mosque for six years before taking a job in Dearborn, Mich., in 2006, was arrested on immigration charges at his home in Plano […]
MA: Prejudice of Muslims Meets Its Match
Yale’s seventh annual “Islamic Awareness Week” kicked off Monday with talks by two individuals who have witnessed firsthand the perniciousness of anti-Islamic prejudice. Riz Khan, reporter for the Arabic news network Al Jazeera, spoke about misperceptions of Muslims in the media. James Yee, a former Muslim chaplain at Guantanamo Bay who was illegally detained for […]
NY: Mosque Plan Would Add to Our Diversity
Demographics are destiny, the saying goes, and it’s increasingly clear Utica’s destiny is to become a city of remarkable religious diversity. The Bosnian Islamic Association plans to buy a hulking former Methodist church on Court Street and turn it into a mosque and community center topped by minarets. If the association moves forward and the […]
WA: Muslim’s Pilot Dreams Soar Despite Distrust
For American Muslims since 9/11, few acts could be considered more ill-advised or foolishly provocative than enrolling in flight school to get your pilot’s license. Which is why Monem Salam had to do it. Well, proving a point wasn’t the sole reason. Salam has dreamed of being a pilot since he was a boy in […]
FL: Muslims Host Barbecue to Promote Understanding
Once Sofian Abdelaziz Zakkout gets going on the subject of bridging gaps between South Florida Muslims and other community groups, it’s apt to be a long conversation. Zakkout, who heads the Miami Beach-based American Muslim Association of North America, is passionate about bringing together Muslims and non-Muslims. So when the 50-year-old Palestinian immigrant planned the […]
TX: Former Imam Facing Deportation
A former Austin imam whose interfaith work made him one of the most recognized Muslim leaders in Central Texas is being held at a Dallas detention facility and faces deportation to Pakistan, according to his attorney and family. Imam Safdar Razi, who led the Northwest Austin Shiite mosque the Islamic Ahlul Bayt Association for six […]
NY: Muslims, Catholics Celebrate Their Accord
The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States cast a negative light on Islam, and resulted in negative stereotypes about the Muslim religion. Rather than allow relationships among local faith groups to splinter, Catholics and Muslims co-hosted educational workshops to build understanding. On Wednesday, the Muslim Catholic Alliance will celebrate the fifth anniversary […]
Link TV to Premiere ‘USA vs. Al-Arian’ Tonight
Today, LINK TV presents the U.S. television premiere of USA vs AL-ARIAN, an intimate documentary portrait of an Arab-American family facing terrorism charges laid by the U.S. Department of Justice. In February 2003, the FBI arrested university professor and political activist Sami Al-Arian in Tampa, Florida. Charged with supporting the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, classified by […]
McCain’s Hate Problem
The Question: John McCain’s spiritual guide, televangelist Rod Parsley, calls Islam a “false religion” that should be “destroyed.” Should McCain renounce Parsley? Will Islam be an issue in this year’s U.S. presidential election? John McCain should immediately renounce Rod Parsley not only for his astounding hate mongering against Islam, but also for his extreme views […]
PA: Police Investigating Swastika on Obama Sign
State police say a swastika was spray painted on a campaign sign for Sen. Barack Obama in an Indiana County couple’s yard. Kamal Youssef and his wife, Maria, say they found the defaced sign on Saturday. Police and an Obama campaign official say it appears to be an isolated incident…