Back to Top
Blog — Islamophobia
Monday July 25, 2011
The tragic Oslo attacks which left nearly 80 people dead and more than 100 injured have raised serious concerns over how potent a force anti-Muslim sentiment in the U.S. and European media really is. Over-zealous and irresponsible reporting and speculation immediately following the attacks incorrectly attributed the killings to Muslim terrorists with headlines like, "Jihad in Norway?" Going further than baseless reporting, it is now clear that some of these sites may have actually informed the motives of Anders Behring Breivik. Scott Shane of The New York Times, highlights how much Breivik, the man accused of carrying out the Oslo killings, may have been influenced by anti-Muslim right-wing bloggers here in the United Sates. Read More »
Posted by Omar Tewfik at 11:13 am / / Leave a comment
Wednesday July 20, 2011
Emulating the Twitter town hall hosted by the White House earlier this month, a few GOP presidential candidates will engage in the first-ever Twitter presidential debate today hosted by TheTeaParty.net. Tea Party favorites Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Rick Santorum, Gary Johnson, Thad McCotter and Newt Gingrich are all set to participate in today’s 3 p.m. debate moderated by conservative commentator S.E. Cupp and radio host Rusty Humphries. Like the forum held by the White House, questions can be submitted using the Twitter address @140townhall. However, in contrast to the televised forum in which President Obama answered the questions he received verbally, candidates will respond to questions via Twitter. POLITICO is also reporting that it is uncertain whether or not the candidates themselves will actually be tweeting answers. Read More »
Posted by Omar Tewfik at 10:02 am / / Leave a comment
Monday July 18, 2011
Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain is demonstrating an unwavering platform of anti-Muslim rhetoric on the campaign trail. On Fox News Sunday, Cain responded to a question from host Chris Wallace regarding the disputed construction of a mosque in the town of Murfreesboro, Tennessee by insisting that Muslims do not qualify for constitutional protection of freedom of religion under the First Amendment. “Islam combines church and state. They're using the church part of our First Amendment to infuse their morals in that community, and the people of that community do not like it. They disagree with it." Read More »
Posted by Adam Abosedra at 2:52 pm / / Leave a comment
Tuesday July 12, 2011
First there was West Nile Virus, then Swine Flu, now Sharia Islam? If you have been paying attention to the 2012 Republican Presidential primary battle you might believe that the United States was somehow suffering from a pandemic of sorts, with “Sharia Islam” slowly but surely replacing federal law. Already, over 12 states have some form of ban on “Sharia Law” on the books, and now the issue seems to have entered into the Republican Presidential Primary. Read More »
Posted by John Olivieri at 10:12 am / / Leave a comment
Monday July 11, 2011
By Tess Waggoner
The GOP 2012 Presidential field is beginning to take shape, and as it does a common theme is echoing among the candidates: Islam is presented as a doctrine incompatible with American values. This discourse is non-factual, and has the potential to alienate and isolate Muslims and Arab Americans alike. Read More »
Posted by Guest at 3:00 pm / / Leave a comment
Wednesday June 29, 2011
By Ed Gaier
Aziz Huq, assistant professor of law at the University of Chicago, recently wrote an op-ed in Sunday’s New York Times in which he argued that defending Muslims from discrimination does not only preserve basic civil liberties, civil rights and the rule of law, but also carries significant national security advantages. Huq’s writing comes in the wake of the a number of worrying signs of growing Islamophobia, including the sharia ban voted into the Oklahoma constitution, the second round of Peter King’s McCarthy-style congressional hearings, rising popular discrimination of Muslims, and the detestable anti-Muslim rhetoric on display at the Republican presidential debates in New Hampshire. Read More »
Posted by Guest at 3:32 pm / / Leave a comment
Wednesday June 15, 2011
Rep. Peter King (R-NY), Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, continued his baseless examination of the “radicalization” of the American Muslim community today, hosting his second hearing on the subject entitled “The Threat of Muslim-American Radicalization in U.S. Prisons.” King’s first hearings back in March garnered considerably more attention from the media than today’s. The relative lack of attention (even from Rep. Keith Ellison, who was in and out of the room half the time) demonstrates how ineffective King’s first hearing was. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 2:01 pm / / Leave a comment
Monday June 13, 2011
Earlier today, The Washington Times posted an outrageous article in the paper's online "communities" section. The Article's author, Eliana Benador, attempts to stir up frenzy about an absurd question posed in her article: Whether Anthony Weiner, by way of his marriage to a Muslim woman, is "Married to a Muslim agenda." Benador makes a number of shocking, incoherent claims about Weiner and his wife Huma Abedin and paints them part of some grand Muslim conspiracy. We'd like to highlight a great piece of commentary on Benador's article from Salon's Justin Elliot and get your reactions. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 1:38 pm / / Leave a comment
Thursday June 09, 2011
After facing steadily-declining support, and a number of highly critical news stories, the Associated Press has reported that the senior staff of presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has resigned “en masse.” Campaign manager Rob Johnson, senior strategists Dave Carney and Katon Dawson, and spokesman Rick Tyler have all tendered their resignations from Gingrich’s campaign today. Read More »
Posted by Samer Araabi at 2:41 pm / / Leave a comment
Tuesday June 07, 2011
A White House press release yesterday announced President Obama's nomination of Dr. Azizah al-Hibri, founder of KARAMAH: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights, to become a member of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. al-Hibri is also a professor of law at the T. C. Williams School of Law, University of Richmond and Founding editor of Hypatia: a Journal of Feminist Philosophy. A White House official referenced al-Hibri's extensive experience and contributions to her field saying she is "a tireless human rights advocate who will be a great asset to the Commission in its work."
Read More »
Posted by Omar Tewfik at 3:31 pm / / Leave a comment
Thursday June 02, 2011
In response to a question about whether he would be comfortable appointing Muslims to his cabinet or as federal judges were he elected President, Herman Cain said the following:
You think that’s shocking coming from a presidential contender? Wait until you hear who took issue with his comments! Glenn Beck (yes, seriously, Glenn Beck) noted that even he would trust his Muslim friends with such positions, and asked Cain via telephone on his show to explain his perplexing statement. Read More »
Posted by Omar Baddar at 3:38 pm / / Leave a comment
Tuesday May 10, 2011
Gingrich’s decision to re-enter politics by becoming a Republican presidential candidate for 2012 may not serve the Arab American and American Muslim community well. Read More »
Posted by Adam Abosedra at 1:58 pm / / Leave a comment
Friday April 15, 2011
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has published a map online which highlights regions and states in the U.S. where both planned or existing mosques and Islamic centers have met opposition in one form or another. The red dots shed light on a disturbing trend that has taken root across the country since the Park 51 controversy in Lower Manhattan. Read More »
Posted by Omar Baddar at 12:21 pm / / Leave a comment
Tuesday April 12, 2011
Today from 12pm to 1:30 pm, the Center For American Progress (CAP) will convene a panel of experts entitled: Choosing our words Carefully: The Consequences of Heated Rhetoric to address the rise in xenophobic and bigoted rhetoric in politics and its affect on various ethnic and religious communities throughout the country. Citing the assassination attempt on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona, the panel will also assess how heated political discourse has the potential to encourage irascible and discontent individuals to violence. This event will be live-streamed and we encourage you to tune in. AAI president Jim Zogby is among the featured panelists. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 8:20 am / / Leave a comment
Monday April 04, 2011
Given the situation in the Middle East, there is a growing need for Arab Americans to be in the media and weigh in on the issues that matter. During the height of the revolution in Egypt we put a number of individuals in contact with various media outlets to ensure Arab American voices were heard. It is extremely important to AAI and to the community that Arab Americans are represented in the media. Please continue to share your news with us and let us know what you are doing. Additionally, if you need any help in contacting the media, we have several tools available and would be happy to assist. Here are some appearances of Jim on a few programs we'd like to share with you. You can also share your news with us by...
Read More »
Posted by AAI at 12:42 pm / / Leave a comment
Friday April 01, 2011
On Tuesday, Democratic Party Whip Senator Dick Durbin (IL) convened a hearing on the civil rights of American Muslims. Viewed widely as a counterweight to Representative Peter King's (R-NY) hearings on "radicalization" in the American Muslim community, Durbin's hearing did not garner nearly as much attention from the media. Despite the relative lack of coverage, the message Senator Durbin's hearings sent to the American Muslim community and to the general American public at large was an extremely important and positive one. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 11:23 am / / Leave a comment
Tuesday March 29, 2011
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) convened a hearing today on Capitol Hill entitled: “Protecting the Civil Rights of American Muslims.” Though the hearings did not garner nearly as much media attention Rep. Peter King's (R-NY) March 10th hearings on "radicalization" within the American Muslim Community, AAI President Jim Zogby today in Politico's "The Arena" makes the case for how important Durbin's hearing is stating: "If unresolved (anti-Muslim bigotry) will tear at the very fabric of our nation's self-definition." Read More »
Posted by AAI at 11:38 am / / Leave a comment
Tuesday March 29, 2011
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), assistant Senate Majority Leader, will hold a hearing of the Judiciary committee’s subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights that will focus on protecting the civil rights of American Muslims. AAI welcomed this announcement as the continued rise of anti-Muslim bigotry hinders the free exercise rights of all religious communities. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 8:41 am / / Leave a comment
Saturday March 26, 2011
"Unwelcome: The Muslims Next Door" is the profoundly disturbing documentary (appearing on CNN, Sunday, March 27 at 8:00 PM) that tells the story of Murfreesboro's war with itself. Produced by Soledad O'Brien, "Unwelcome" is both low key and forceful. Read More »
Posted by Jim Zogby at 2:13 pm / / Leave a comment
Thursday March 10, 2011
Today marked the kickoff for the Peter King Hearings on so-called radicalization of the American Muslim community. Well, that’s what the hearing was supposed to be about. But amid the controversy over King’s singling out the American Muslim community, today’s show trial ended up involving a thorough discussion about its own legitimacy: a King hearing on the King Hearings. It was political theatre at its best. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 3:00 pm / / Leave a comment
Looking at Iran by James Zogby
Kahlil Gibran Awards Gala - April 16, 2013
