By Thanassis Cambanis | The Boston Globe | August 4, 2012 | [Original Article]
"...As they do, "Islamist" is quickly becoming a term as broadly applicable and as useless as "Judeo-Christian" in American and European politics. If important distinctions are emerging within Islamism, that suggests that the lifespan of "Islamist" as a useful term is almost at an end that we've reached the moment when it's time to craft a new language to talk about Arab politics, one that looks beyond "Islamist" to the meaningful differences among groups that would once have been lumped together under that banner.
Some thinkers already are looking for new terms that offer a more sophisticated way to talk about the changes set in motion by the Arab Spring. At stake is more than a label; it's a better understanding of the political order emerging not just in the Middle East, but around the world..."
"...Over the years, the term "Islamist" continued to be a useful catchall to describe the range of groups that embraced religion as a source of political authority. So long as the Islamist camp was out of power, the one-size-fits-all nature of the term seemed of secondary importance.
But in today's ferment, such a broad term is no longer so useful. Elections have shown that broad electoral majorities support Islamism in one flavor or another..." [Read More]
"...They are sure to evolve as competing movements sharpen their ideologies, and as the lofty rhetoric of religion meets the hard road of governing. The importance of moving beyond "Islamism" will only grow: After all, what we call the "Islamic world" includes about a quarter of the world's population, stretching from Muslim-majority nations in the Arab world, along with Turkey, Pakistan, and Indonesia, to sizable communities from China to the United States..."
Showing posts with label Political islam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Political islam. Show all posts
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Thursday, June 14, 2012
A First Amendment Analysis of Anti-Sharia Initiatives
Asma Uddin & Dave Pantzer | ISPU| June 14, 2012 | [Original Article]
Executive Summary
"Ten years after September 11, 2001, the American Muslim community continues to be surrounded by a fear created and promoted mostly by a small group of anti-Muslim organizations and individuals. Collectively, these groups have spread their message in twenty-three states through books, reports, websites, and blogs. Other anti-Islam grassroots organizations have utilized this propaganda to “educate” their constituency. The Center for American Progress defines Islamophobia as an “exaggerated fear, hatred, and hostility toward Islam and Muslims that is perpetuated by negative stereotypes resulting in bias, discrimination, and the marginalization and exclusion of Muslims from America’s social, political, and civic life.” This Islamophobia movement’s ability to influence politicians’ talking has made mainstream that which was once considered marginal, extremist rhetoric.
The impact of the Islamophobia campaign upon the American public’s perception of Islam and Muslims has been very negative. Approximately half of all Americans hold an unfavorable view of Islam. To date, dozens of bills have been introduced in more than half of the states to ban Sharia and/or international law. Some of these bills are overly broad, and some in essence would outlaw any organization that adhered to any Islamic jurisprudential school. The Muslim community pushed back, specifically because the regulations on common activities such as how to wash before prayer or how much money to give to the poor emanate from these same schools of thought and would cause great restrictions on their ability to practice their faith.
This report describes the broader climate of anti-Muslim sentiment, as promoted by anti-Islam grassroots organizations, and examines the various manifestations of this hate in light of the First Amendment. More specifically, this report analyzes the anti-Sharia bills and ballot measures proposed by numerous states and determines the extent to which they comply with free exercise and establishment principles and jurisprudence"
Key Findings
The American legal system has built-in safeguards
"The crucial feature of any kind of arbitration is that an arbitrator, whether religious or not, has no ability to enforce the arbitral decision; only state or federal courts have that power...." [Read More]
"Ten years after September 11, 2001, the American Muslim community continues to be surrounded by a fear created and promoted mostly by a small group of anti-Muslim organizations and individuals. Collectively, these groups have spread their message in twenty-three states through books, reports, websites, and blogs. Other anti-Islam grassroots organizations have utilized this propaganda to “educate” their constituency. The Center for American Progress defines Islamophobia as an “exaggerated fear, hatred, and hostility toward Islam and Muslims that is perpetuated by negative stereotypes resulting in bias, discrimination, and the marginalization and exclusion of Muslims from America’s social, political, and civic life.” This Islamophobia movement’s ability to influence politicians’ talking has made mainstream that which was once considered marginal, extremist rhetoric.
The impact of the Islamophobia campaign upon the American public’s perception of Islam and Muslims has been very negative. Approximately half of all Americans hold an unfavorable view of Islam. To date, dozens of bills have been introduced in more than half of the states to ban Sharia and/or international law. Some of these bills are overly broad, and some in essence would outlaw any organization that adhered to any Islamic jurisprudential school. The Muslim community pushed back, specifically because the regulations on common activities such as how to wash before prayer or how much money to give to the poor emanate from these same schools of thought and would cause great restrictions on their ability to practice their faith.
This report describes the broader climate of anti-Muslim sentiment, as promoted by anti-Islam grassroots organizations, and examines the various manifestations of this hate in light of the First Amendment. More specifically, this report analyzes the anti-Sharia bills and ballot measures proposed by numerous states and determines the extent to which they comply with free exercise and establishment principles and jurisprudence"
The American legal system has built-in safeguards
"The crucial feature of any kind of arbitration is that an arbitrator, whether religious or not, has no ability to enforce the arbitral decision; only state or federal courts have that power...." [Read More]
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Video: FBI Trainer Says Forget ‘Irrelevant’ al-Qaida, Target Islam
By Spencer A. and Noah S. | Wired.com | Sept. 20, 2012 | [Original Article]
“And during that June presentation, the FBI’s William Gawthrop told his audience that the fight against al-Qaida is a “waste,” compared to the threat presented by the ideology of Islam itself...
...We waste a lot of analytic effort talking about the type of weapon, the timing, the tactics. All of that is irrelevant … if you have an Islamic motivation for actions,” Gawthrop said. Even taking down hostile states like Iran is futile, since “there are still internal forces that will seek to exert Islamic rule again..."
"...The best strategy for undermining militants, Gawthrop suggested, is to go after Islam itself. To undermine the validity of key Islamic scriptures and key Muslim leaders...
...If you remember Star Wars, that ventilation shaft that goes down to into the depths of the Death Star, they shot a torpedo down there. That’s a critical vulnerability,” Gawthrop told his audience. Then he waved a laser pointer at his projected PowerPoint slide, calling attention to the words “Holy Texts” and “Clerics….”
"Outside counterterrorists disagree — strongly — with Gawthrop’s take. “This is mind-numbingly stupid and dangerous,” says Aki Peritz, a former intelligence analyst at the National Counterterrorism Center, now with the Third Way think-tank in Washington. “If we were to follow his idea to a logical extension, that means we have individuals in every single government agency, at top levels, from CIA to the Defense Department to members of Congress, that are part of this cabal to destroy Western civilization. If you truly believe that, then this is McCarthyism on steroids…."
“The single worst thing we’ve done since 9/11, the one thing that’s harmed us the most in interrogations, is these types of stereotypes,” said Matthew Alexander, the pseudonymous former senior military interrogator who helped take down the leader al-Qaida in Iraq. “It’s harmed us more than anything else, because we end up skipping the first step of any interrogation, which is analysis.”
“Gawthrop’s talk is a total nightmare,” added Jarret Brachman, who closely monitors online Islamist radicalization. “This kind of vitriolic snake oil is not only wrong but it serves to inflame the relations between Muslims and law enforcement, making both communities more suspicious of one another’s real intentions. Gawthrop and others ironically undermine years of my own work to convince online Islamists that the kind of training being provided to the U.S. government is objective and not against Islam. Gawthrop’s approach to training is indefensible and makes my job trying to simmer a bunch of online hotheads down a lot harder.”
“And during that June presentation, the FBI’s William Gawthrop told his audience that the fight against al-Qaida is a “waste,” compared to the threat presented by the ideology of Islam itself...
...We waste a lot of analytic effort talking about the type of weapon, the timing, the tactics. All of that is irrelevant … if you have an Islamic motivation for actions,” Gawthrop said. Even taking down hostile states like Iran is futile, since “there are still internal forces that will seek to exert Islamic rule again..."
"...The best strategy for undermining militants, Gawthrop suggested, is to go after Islam itself. To undermine the validity of key Islamic scriptures and key Muslim leaders...
...If you remember Star Wars, that ventilation shaft that goes down to into the depths of the Death Star, they shot a torpedo down there. That’s a critical vulnerability,” Gawthrop told his audience. Then he waved a laser pointer at his projected PowerPoint slide, calling attention to the words “Holy Texts” and “Clerics….”
"Outside counterterrorists disagree — strongly — with Gawthrop’s take. “This is mind-numbingly stupid and dangerous,” says Aki Peritz, a former intelligence analyst at the National Counterterrorism Center, now with the Third Way think-tank in Washington. “If we were to follow his idea to a logical extension, that means we have individuals in every single government agency, at top levels, from CIA to the Defense Department to members of Congress, that are part of this cabal to destroy Western civilization. If you truly believe that, then this is McCarthyism on steroids…."
“The single worst thing we’ve done since 9/11, the one thing that’s harmed us the most in interrogations, is these types of stereotypes,” said Matthew Alexander, the pseudonymous former senior military interrogator who helped take down the leader al-Qaida in Iraq. “It’s harmed us more than anything else, because we end up skipping the first step of any interrogation, which is analysis.”
“Gawthrop’s talk is a total nightmare,” added Jarret Brachman, who closely monitors online Islamist radicalization. “This kind of vitriolic snake oil is not only wrong but it serves to inflame the relations between Muslims and law enforcement, making both communities more suspicious of one another’s real intentions. Gawthrop and others ironically undermine years of my own work to convince online Islamists that the kind of training being provided to the U.S. government is objective and not against Islam. Gawthrop’s approach to training is indefensible and makes my job trying to simmer a bunch of online hotheads down a lot harder.”
Friday, April 27, 2012
Muslim precepts presented to Sun City Center retirees
Melody Jameson | TheObserverNews | April 26, 2012 | [Original Article]
"SUN CITY CENTER – Controversy frequently follows Hassan Shibly, Esq., but it does not so much as slow down this advocate for Islam on a mission...
...A U.S. trained attorney admitted to practice in both Florida and federal courts, Shibly heads the Tampa office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). And his mission, he told the 30 or so assembled UUs, is to acquaint non-Muslims with the facts of the faith. It is ignorance, he asserted, that leads to misunderstandings. “When we speak to each other” he added, “we build respect for each other and learn from each other.”...
...Seeming to separate himself and most other Muslims from those who call themselves Muslim but foment terrorism, Shibly declared “Islam teaches that human rights are often greater than God’s rights,” adding that “you (we) cannot pray to God all day and then hurt people at night.” It is Muslim practice to pray five times each day...
...And, he added, [the pope said] “Islam is more tolerant of Christianity than Christianity is of Islam.”... [Read More]
...He also acknowledged that there are extremists who distort the Qur’an to fit their agendas. “There never is justification for terrorism he asserted, “but terrorism stems from political differences, not from religious differences.”...
...Born in Syria but raised in the United States since the age of four, Shibly grew up in a Sunni Muslim home in Buffalo, N.Y., the son of parents who both are professionals. He earned his undergraduate degree as well as his law degree at New York University, Buffalo. Now just 25, he also is married and the father of three children..."
"SUN CITY CENTER – Controversy frequently follows Hassan Shibly, Esq., but it does not so much as slow down this advocate for Islam on a mission...
...A U.S. trained attorney admitted to practice in both Florida and federal courts, Shibly heads the Tampa office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). And his mission, he told the 30 or so assembled UUs, is to acquaint non-Muslims with the facts of the faith. It is ignorance, he asserted, that leads to misunderstandings. “When we speak to each other” he added, “we build respect for each other and learn from each other.”...
...Seeming to separate himself and most other Muslims from those who call themselves Muslim but foment terrorism, Shibly declared “Islam teaches that human rights are often greater than God’s rights,” adding that “you (we) cannot pray to God all day and then hurt people at night.” It is Muslim practice to pray five times each day...
...And, he added, [the pope said] “Islam is more tolerant of Christianity than Christianity is of Islam.”... [Read More]
...He also acknowledged that there are extremists who distort the Qur’an to fit their agendas. “There never is justification for terrorism he asserted, “but terrorism stems from political differences, not from religious differences.”...
...Born in Syria but raised in the United States since the age of four, Shibly grew up in a Sunni Muslim home in Buffalo, N.Y., the son of parents who both are professionals. He earned his undergraduate degree as well as his law degree at New York University, Buffalo. Now just 25, he also is married and the father of three children..."
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Politicians Say the Darndest Things! (Islam Edition)
Wardah Khalid | Blog.Chron.com | [Original Article]
"It’s election season, and you know what that means… time for a new edition of “Politicians Say the Darndest Things!” In this edition, we’ll be examining Presidential candidates and their views on Islam.
But why, you ask, are politicians talking so much about Islam? Don’t they have more important things to worry about like the economy and education? You’d think so, but alas, someone has to be the national scapegoat, and it looks like we Muslims lucked out this round. (Not to worry, immigrants/minorities/left-handed people, I’m sure you’ll have your turn next time)"...[Read More]
"... According to Perry, Turkey is ruled by “what many would perceive to be Islamic terrorists” and has a questionable NATO membership...Turkey’s Foreign Ministry was not too pleased at the accusation, responding that Perry’s comments were “baseless and inappropriate" ..." [Read More]
"...[Rick Santorum] “Where do you think this concept of equality comes from? It doesn’t come from Islam. It doesn’t come from the East and Eastern religions, where does it come from? It comes from the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that’s where it comes from.”..."[Read More]
"...[Herman Cain] America, it is time to wake up and see these contenders for who they really are – smooth talkers who couldn’t care less about upholding our nation’s values when they block the path to their personal success. And that is no laughing matter..." [Read More]
But why, you ask, are politicians talking so much about Islam? Don’t they have more important things to worry about like the economy and education? You’d think so, but alas, someone has to be the national scapegoat, and it looks like we Muslims lucked out this round. (Not to worry, immigrants/minorities/left-handed people, I’m sure you’ll have your turn next time)"...[Read More]
"... According to Perry, Turkey is ruled by “what many would perceive to be Islamic terrorists” and has a questionable NATO membership...Turkey’s Foreign Ministry was not too pleased at the accusation, responding that Perry’s comments were “baseless and inappropriate" ..." [Read More]
"...[Newt Gringrich] As speaker of the House in the 1990s, he played an important role in creating a space for Muslims to pray on Capitol Hill and promoted Shariah-compliant finance, something which he now claims is “a mortal threat to the survival of freedom in the United States and in the world as we know it.”..." [Read More]
"...[Rick Santorum] “Where do you think this concept of equality comes from? It doesn’t come from Islam. It doesn’t come from the East and Eastern religions, where does it come from? It comes from the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that’s where it comes from.”..."[Read More]
"...[Herman Cain] America, it is time to wake up and see these contenders for who they really are – smooth talkers who couldn’t care less about upholding our nation’s values when they block the path to their personal success. And that is no laughing matter..." [Read More]
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Monday, November 28, 2011
Those who support democracy must welcome the rise of political Islam
The Guardian | Wadah Khanfar | Read Full Original Article
...the uproar that has accompanied the Islamists' gains is unhelpful; a calm and well-informed debate about the rise of political Islam is long overdue.
First, we must define our terms. "Islamist" is used in the Muslim world to describe Muslims who participate in the public sphere, using Islam as a basis. It is understood that this participation is not at odds with democracy. In the west, however, the term routinely describes those who use violence as a means and an end – thus Jihadist Salafism, exemplified by al-Qaida, is called "Islamist" in the west, despite the fact that it rejects democratic political participation (Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of al-Qaida, criticised Hamas when it decided to take part in the elections for the Palestinian legislative council, and has repeatedly criticised the Muslim Brotherhood for opposing the use of violence).
This disconnect in the understanding of the term in the west and in the Muslim world was often exploited by despotic Arab regimes to suppress Islamic movements with democratic political programmes. It is time we were clear.
Reform-based Islamic movements, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, work within the political process. They learned a bitter lesson from their armed conflict in Syria against the regime of Hafez al-Assad in 1982, which cost the lives of more than 20,000 people and led to the incarceration or banishment of many thousands more. The Syrian experience convinced mainstream Islamic movements to avoid armed struggle and to observe "strategic patience" instead.
Second, we must understand the history of the region. In western discourse Islamists are seen as newcomers to politics, gullible zealots who are motivated by a radical ideology and lack experience. In fact, they have played a major role in the Arab political scene since the 1920s. Islamic movements have often been in opposition, but since the 1940s they have participated in parliamentary elections, entered alliances with secular, nationalist and socialist groups, and participated in several governments – in Sudan, Jordan, Yemen and Algeria. They have also forged alliances with non-Islamic regimes, like the Nimeiri regime in Sudan in 1977....
The region has suffered a lot as a result of attempts to exclude Islamists and deny them a role in the public sphere. Undoubtedly, Islamists' participation in governance will give rise to a number of challenges, both within the Islamic ranks and with regard to relations with other local and international forces. Islamists should be careful not to fall into the trap of feeling overconfident: they must accommodate other trends, even if it means making painful concessions. Our societies need political consensus, and the participation of all political groups, regardless of their electoral weight. It is this interplay between Islamists and others that will both guarantee the maturation of the Arab democratic transition and lead to an Arab political consensus and stability that has been missing for decades.
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