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Go topBY: Julia Kassem/Contributing Writer Overnight, 49 people in downtown Orlando were killed in a shooting that leveraged dual damage against two minority groups often marginalized and ostracized in the mainstream media. In America’s worst mass shooting in history, it is not accurate, perhaps, to lament that no one could have prevented the tragedy in a … Continued
(Left to right): Mariam C. Noland, President of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan and James B. Nicholson, Board Chair, with Hassan Jabber, Executive Director and Rasha Demashkieh, Board President, of ACCESS. ACCESS is the 2016 winner of the Richard F. Huegli Award for Program Excellence. DETROIT – ACCESS (the Arab Community Center for Economic … Continued
By Bill Chambers The Chicago Monitor On Monday morning, over 100 of Rasmea Odeh’s supporters gathered from five states at the Federal Courthouse in Detroit to hear the results of her hearing on whether she would be allowed to present her full story and potentially be granted a new trial. In February, the Sixth Circuit … Continued
By Amanullah De Sondy
The Washington Post
In reaction to the mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, people hug outside the Stonewall Inn near a vigil for the victims in New York on Sunday. (Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images)
Muslim Americans. LGBT Americans. One would imagine that the marginalized would unite.
From the straight Muslim man who is profiled at the airport for his bushy, long beard to the transgender Muslim who fears being shunned from the mosque held so dear to heart and faith — is there so much distance?
Yet those who are marginalized are not immune to their own prejudices and phobias. Omar Mateen, who killed at least 49 people in a gay nightclub in Orlando on Sunday morning, offers a chilling example.
I’ve spent more than a decade researching Islamic masculinities, including five years living and teaching in Florida before I moved last year. I have heard some Western Muslim leaders step haltingly toward acceptance. But most of what I have heard, when Muslim leaders speak to the LGBT believers in their midst, is callous disregard or deafening silence.
We can no longer go on without accepting every Muslim of every sexuality. Sunday’s violence in Orlando proves that all too painfully.
As I have monitored the evolving statements of Western Muslim leaders — most of whom are straight — over the years, here’s what I have heard: a slight movement with regard to LGBT issues by some. Many are silent, but some have realized that the issue must now be publicly addressed, especially with the rise of countries adopting same-sex-marriage bills.
There are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Muslims who stand proud in their understanding that they have a God-given right to claim their gender and sexuality. But the religious leaders who speak out at all on LGBT issues say only this — reluctant and guarded — “Hate the sin and not the sinner.” From the discussions I have had informally with these leaders, this is as far as they think they can go without losing their own followers.
This sort of cautious stance echoes repeatedly. Muslim writer Mehdi Hasan headlined his 2013 essay on the subject, “As a Muslim, I struggle with the idea of homosexuality — but I oppose homophobia.” University of Oxford professor Tariq Ramadan wrote before that, “Homosexuality is forbidden in Islam,” but “we must avoid condemning or rejecting individuals.” There are dozens more statements like these only a YouTube search away.
In the anxious day since the shooting in Orlando, this horrific event seems to be making Muslim communities at last stand up and make bolder statements about the LGBT community. But not all offer support. There are those on social media — Muslim and Christian, in the Middle East and the United States — who basically applaud the disgusting actions of Mateen. And surely it is easier to focus on “the other” than to admit that there is a true overlap between the Muslim community and the LGBT community, and between Islamophobia and homophobia.
But today, Muslim communities are saying it: LGBT Muslims do exist. They face both Islamophobia and homophobia every day. And they are grieving.
This is a thorny issue within Muslim communities, who find it difficult to find the rainbow within historical, rigid understandings of the tradition. But it is possible to find different colors of a tradition, text or law if we begin by associating that text with the lives of those who uphold it.
Of course, it is also easy to find the dark, gloom or heterocentric within the Muslim tradition. We must remember that much of this “tradition” was written by heterosexual Muslim men who may have been pressured to uphold particular forms of gender and sexual custom in print.
The challenge for Muslim communities around the globe today is to find and appreciate differences and pluralism and to support the lives of believers who do not fit societal norms. It is imperative if we want to support those on the margins who are hurt and damaged.
We need to think carefully about what goes through the mind of that closeted Muslim man listening to the statements today, who may well end up married to someone of the opposite sex because he fears losing his position in his Muslim community. We need to think carefully about what these statements do to empower heterosexual Muslim individuals, who then stand to represent not just Islam but the “ideal” gender and sexuality.
Are the small steps by Muslim leaders enough? Is this slight movement enough to prevent hatred and killing? There is no quick fix to this tension. But just as heterosexual Muslims combat Islamophobia through their loud voices, they must also now listen and accept the voices of LGBT Muslims as equals within the fold of Islam.
Much of our effort in the West to combat extremist ideology relies on building bridges between people, and many Muslim leaders are the first to take to the podium in interfaith dialogue. In light of the Orlando shooting, it is now untenable to have this dialogue of action without including and accepting every face of marginalization within faith communities — especially the LGBT people who are essential partners in our desire for a bright and colorful world.
Source: www.washingtonpost.com
(Photo: Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press) Case of Arab-American activist who used to live in Michigan is being closely watched by both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. BY Niraj Warikoo Detroit Free Press As her supporters rallied outside, a federal judge today ordered a new hearing in the case of Rasmieh Odeh, the former Jackson resident found … Continued
By Paula Katinas
Brooklyn Daily Eagle
From Bay Ridge to Washington, D.C., leaders of Muslim groups and elected officials from both sides of the political aisle came forward to condemn the horrific attack in Orlando, Florida that left 50 dead early Sunday morning, including gunman Omar Mateen.
Linda Sarsour, executive director of the Arab American Association of New York, posted messages on her Facebook page expressing her shock and anger at the mass shooting in Pulse, a popular gay nightclub in Orlando.
“Please pray for the victims and their families. The words are not flowing. In horror and shock. Please let us know how we can support,” Sarsour wrote Sunday morning.
In a later post, Sarsour, whose organization is based in Bay Ridge, reflected on the ties that exist between the Muslim and LGBTQ communities in the fight for equality and justice.
“From standing together for police reform, immigration reform, pushing anti-bullying legislations to strengthening hate crime laws, uplifting and proclaiming the right of self determination for the Palestinian people. All of it. I reflect on the many times we discovered that the same groups and legislatures that try to pass laws to restrict the rights of Muslims to worship freely are also the same groups and legislatures that push anti-LGBTQ laws. We will not be divided. We have worked too hard for too long together. Both of our communities value civil rights, compassion, respect and dignity for all people. We move forward from here. Our fight to live in safety and without fear continues. Together,” she wrote.
Debbie Almontaser, president of the Muslim Community Network, expressed support for the victims. “I stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ community in spirit today. My thoughts and prayers are with all,” she said, adding that her organization planned to pay tribute to the victims by holding a moment of silence at its annual dinner.
Cheikh Ahmed Mbareck, executive director of the Islamic Leadership Council of New York, expressed support for the Orlando victims, but also called for stricter gun control laws.
“We stand in solidarity with the families and relatives of the victims, and condemn all types of violent acts such as this despicable and senseless attack. We also call for meaningful and effective gun control to help curb the increasingly violent trend in our society,” Mbareck said.
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams also called for “common-sense gun reform” in the wake of the tragedy.
“There is no earthly reason, other than a desire to perpetuate violence that common-sense gun reform cannot and should not move forward at every level of government in the wake of this senseless tragedy. In the difficult days ahead, in the midst of our grief, I ask all Americans of good will to push for the legislative action we have long waited for that will secure a safer future for our children and families,” Adams said in a statement.
Adams also issued a call for unity. “This act of terror may shake us, but it will not break us. We must unite around our common values and reject any and all efforts to divide our community of humanity,” he stated.
U.S. Rep. Dan Donovan, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications, said that while investigators in Florida were still in the process of gathering information on the nightclub attack, “it’s clear that our way of life came under attack yet again.”
Donovan (R-C-Southwest Brooklyn-Staten Island), who said the deadly rampage appeared to be “worst terror attack in the United States since 9/11,” called on the country to stand strong. “Our freedom and culture will never yield to the hateful violence of radical Islamic terror,” he said.
Rasha Mubarak, Orlando regional coordinator of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), issued a statement calling the Pulse shooting a monstrous attack.
“We condemn this monstrous attack and offer our heartfelt condolences to the families and loved ones of all those killed or injured. The Muslim community joins our fellow Americans in repudiating anyone or any group that would claim to justify or excuse such an appalling act of violence,” Mubarak stated.
Frank Seddio, Brooklyn Democratic County chairman, called for unity in the wake of the attack.
“It was an attack not only on the LGBT community but on the values of tolerance and acceptance that unite us. It is long past time to address our insane laws that allow people to so easily buy weapons of war. Freedom comes with responsibility, including reasonable regulations that protect Americans against the easy accessibility to the kinds of arms that have no place in a civilized society. Our grief and anger should lead us to stand together as one. The horrendous actions by one man cannot lead us to turn against any community because of religion or for any other reason. We meet bigotry with love, not hate,” Seddio said.
Source: www.brooklyneagle.com
BY: Nisreen Eadeh/Staff Writer America has witnessed another mass shooting. Since the shooter was Muslim, there has been an outpour of condemnations by American Muslim and Arab American organizations, such as CAIR, ACLR, and ACCESS. Arab America stands in solidarity with these groups as they help the wounded, as well as families of victims, to … Continued
Press release: Take on Hate
The violent attack against the LGBT community at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fl. on June 12, 2016, was a terrible tragedy, fueled by hate and homophobia, that took away the lives of 49 innocent people and altered the future forever for the 53 innocent people who were injured. We must stand against crimes of hate, targeted toward any community, and commit ourselves to creating a world where all people can live without the fear that they will be targeted for their sexual orientation, gender, faith, or race.
While people may be inclined to spread the blame for this appalling attack to an entire community or faith, we urge you to not respond to hate with more hate. Now, more than ever, during a time of increased violence and frequent mass shootings, we must come together to #TakeOnHateWithLove. Already, communities across the country are standing together in solidarity and responding constructively to the tragic shooting. The Florida chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR Florida) set up a fundraising campaign on Muslim crowdfunding site LaunchGood to support the victims’ families. In less than 24 hours, it raised over $30,000.
Let’s stand together against hate and violence. Let’s honor the lives lost and altered forever and support the LGBT community through positive action.
Source: www.takeonhate.org
United Church of Christ
Prompted by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s plan to halt state business with companies that back a boycott of Israel, and the growing interest in several state legislatures in criminalizing the Boycott, Divestment and Sanction movement, the national officers of the United Church of Christ are speaking out against what they see as an infringement of First Amendment rights.
Here is the text of their statement:
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order this week calling on his state’s agencies to boycott and divest from any entity that participates in the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement related to Israel/Palestine. The governor’s action bypasses the New York legislature. But in seven states, initiatives to criminalize this targeted movement have already been adopted by state legislatures, and thirteen more are yet to be considered (including New York), according to the Jerusalem Post—this with the US Congress’s encouragement.
The United Church of Christ has actively supported human rights campaigns, sometimes through consumer boycotts and even divestment of companies that have profited from injustice. Most recently, the UCC Board of Directors endorsed a boycott of Wendy’s for not joining the Fair Food Program—refusing to pay a fair wage to Immokalee farm workers in Florida to pick tomatoes. Last summer, the UCC adopted a resolution at its General Synod calling for divestment from “companies that profit from or that are complicit in violations of human rights arising from the occupation of the Palestinian Territories by the state of Israel,” and to “boycott goods produced in or using the facilities of illegal settlements located in the West Bank.” While not a full endorsement of Palestinian civil society’s BDS Movement, the UCC’s action clearly supports one of that movement’s calls—an end to Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands.
The UCC is deeply concerned about the attempts by state legislatures to stifle consumer boycott and responsible investment as expressions of free speech—guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment. The UCC remains committed to seeking justice and peace for Israelis and Palestinians, to working to support bringing an end to Israeli occupation of the West Bank, and to using non-violent tactics—including economic leverage—to do so.
We call upon our elected officials at all levels of government to uphold the Constitutional right of free speech, in all its forms, including the right to use economic measures to bring change; we also call on our members, and allies in the quest for justice and peace for Palestinians and Israelis, to hold their elected officials accountable to that principle.
The National Officers of the United Church of Christ,
Rev. John Dorhauer
General Minister and President
Rev. James Moos
Executive Minister, Wider Church Ministries
Rev. Traci Blackmon
Acting Executive Minister, Justice and Witness Ministries
Source: www.ucc.org
For Immediate Release: Rasmea Defense Committee, June 12, 2016
Palestinian-American Rasmea Odeh to appear in Judge Drain’s Detroit chambers for a status conference Monday, June 13
At the same time, 100 supporters from all over the Midwest will rally outside the federal courthouse in support of #Justice4Rasmea
WHEN:
· Monday, June 13th, 2016, at 10 AM Eastern Standard Time for support rally and Rasmea Defense Committee press availability.
· Status conference in judge’s chambers (closed to the press and public) begins at 11 AM EST.
· Press conference with defense attorneys and other speakers after the status conference.
WHERE: U.S. Courthouse for the Eastern District of Michigan, 231 W. Lafayette Blvd., downtown Detroit
On Monday, June 13, 2016, Rasmea Odeh will appear with her attorneys in Judge Gershwin Drain’s chambers for a closed status conference at the federal courthouse in Detroit, Michigan. The Rasmea Defense Committee is mobilizing one hundred supporters to be there as well—from Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Detroit, Dearborn, Grand Rapids, Ann Arbor, Cincinnati, Texas, and other cities and states. They will picket outside the courthouse to urge for a new trial for this Palestinian American icon, who was convicted of a politically-motivated immigration charge in 2014, and sentenced to 18 months in prison and deportation last year.
In a February 2016 decision, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals sent the case back to Judge Drain, saying he had wrongfully barred the testimony of a torture expert that was critical to Rasmea’s defense. At the trial, Rasmea was not allowed to tell the entire story of Israel forcing her to falsely confess to bombings in 1969, when she endured over three weeks of vicious sexual, physical, and psychological torture at the hands of the Israeli military.
Rasmea suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) because of this torture, which, according to world renowned psychologist, Dr. Mary Fabri, caused her to suppress the horrible recollection of the arrest when she answered questions on her immigration application. Judge Drain excluded Dr. Fabri’s testimony from the trial, and disallowed any evidence about the rape and torture. Appeals court judges sided with Rasmea’s defense team, and sent the case back to district court. If the judge cannot determine new legal avenues to exclude the expert testimony, Rasmea will be granted a new trial.
“The conviction of Rasmea Odeh was a travesty of justice. She is a hero who has dedicated her life to organizing for Palestinian liberation, and to building a society with dignity and justice for all. We will stand with her in Detroit on June 13, and call for a new trial, where she can finally tell her story,” said Nesreen Hasan of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), which, along with the Committee to Stop FBI Repression (CSFR), anchors the defense committee.
The status conference will likely determine the immediate next steps in the case, including the setting of dates for future evidentiary hearings and deadlines for filings. Lead defense attorney Michael Deutsch, Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression leader Frank Chapman, and representatives of the #BlackLivesMatter movement, CSFR, USPCN, Jewish Voice for Peace, and the Cincinnati Palestine Solidarity Coalition will be amongst the rally speakers before and after the closed session in the judge’s chambers.
Source: justice4rasmea.org
By NAHAL TOOSI
Politico.com
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In their so-called caliphate in Iraq and Syria, Islamic State extremists have killed suspected gay men by throwing them off buildings. On Sunday, the terrorist network claimed responsibility for the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, one that left 50 dead, including the shooter, and dozens wounded at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida.
That the Islamic State could have played a role in the early morning attack, which came during Gay Pride Month, sent shudders through the LGBT community in the United States, where fears of terrorist assaults on soft targets such as schools, shopping centers and nightclubs already were on the rise.
Gays and lesbians are no strangers to discrimination and violence, but “historically, gay clubs and bars are a safe place so for that type of environment to be the victim of this is just very traumatizing,” said Ida Eskamani, development officer for Equality Florida, an advocacy group. “The whole community is just reeling from this.”
In a televised statement about the attack, President Barack Obama made sure to point out the impact on gays, lesbians and others in their community, calling what happened “an act of terror and act of hate.”
The gunman, Omar Mateen, who was killed in a shootout with police, was a U.S. citizen of Afghan descent. Media reports said he called 911 shortly before reaching the Pulse nightclub and pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. The group’s Amaq news agency said Sunday the attack was “carried out by an Islamic State fighter,” Reuters reported. U.S. officials, however, are still investigating the extent of the Islamic State’s connection to the attack; it could have played more of an inspirational role than an operational one.
Mainstream interpretations of Islam generally forbid homosexuality, and gays and lesbians in many Muslim countries live under social and legal threat, so relatively few are open about their sexual orientation. Islamists in particular often point to Western tolerance of homosexuality as a reason Islam can’t be reconciled with liberal values.
Still, the violence practiced by the Islamic State against gays — or for that matter other social, ethnic and religious minorities — is unusually vicious, whether it’s through beheadings, stonings or throwing people off buildings. But the terrorist network apparently views its approach as a sign of its fidelity to the faith — and one way to recruit.
“I’ve seen them point to Western tolerance for homosexuals as a reason why pious Muslims should repudiate Western countries and embrace the Islamic State,” said Will McCants, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who has written extensively on militant Islam.
The shooter’s father, Mir Seddique, told NBC News that the attack “has nothing to do with religion” but added that his son was angered by the sight of two men kissing a few months ago.
Shadi Hamid, author of “Islamic Exceptionalism: How the Struggle Over Islam Is Reshaping the World,” said the Islamic State’s leaders are far more focused on trying to retain their territory in Iraq and Syria amid a U.S. and Iraqi-led assault than they are on destroying gays and lesbians.
But the fact that the attack was on the gay community makes it easier for the group to justify the attack to Muslims who might question it. “From a messaging standpoint, it helps in the sense that they can argue to their followers that these people deserved to be killed,” Hamid said.
He noted that in part because of greater political awareness among American Muslims (some of it inspired by presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s call for a ban on Muslims entering the U.S.) there has been growing dialogue between Muslims and gay and lesbian organizations around the subject of civil rights.
Muslim organizations in the United States unequivocally condemned the Orlando assault on Sunday, and some urged Muslims to donate blood to help the 53 people wounded in the attack.
“The Muslim community joins our fellow Americans in repudiating anyone or any group that would claim to justify or excuse such an appalling act of violence,” said Rasha Mubarak, an official with the Council on American Islamic Relations Florida chapter.
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee also weighed in with a message of solidarity with gay rights groups. “We have worked regularly with the (gay and lesbian) community, as they have been on the forefront of helping combat Islamophobia and Anti-Arab sentiment,” it said.
Condolences poured in from around the world, including the government of Jordan, a key Muslim ally of the United States. In a news release, Jordanian government spokesman Mohammad Momani said the country condemns all forms of terrorism and violence “no matter what their source and motives are.”
Eskamani, of Equality Florida, stressed that the gay community is sympathetic to the discrimination faced by Muslims in the United States, especially in the wake of attacks carried out by extremists.
“That hate and that intolerance that they face is the same that the LGBT community faces,” Eskamani said. Equality Florida has launched a fundraising page to help the victims of the attack.
Eskamani said it’s possible that gay nightclubs and similar gathering places will look into ways to further enhance their security, but that because of the history of hate crimes against gays and lesbians, security has long been a priority.
“We don’t want to live in a world of fear, and we’re always going to choose love and compassion over fear and hate,” she said.
Source: www.politico.com
German Lopez
Vox.com
Like other gay Americans on Sunday, I woke up to the news of the mass shooting at a gay club in Orlando, Florida, with absolute horror. My immediate reaction was to turn to my sleeping husband and hug him, trying to ensure myself that we will be okay — that we are safe. But I could not shake the feeling that my community was under attack, and the hate I felt directed at my community was like nothing I have felt as an out gay man in the US for years.
It is the hate I felt directed at my husband, myself, and my community that makes me confident that we should not use this horrific act of violence to perpetuate even more hate — particularly against our Muslim brothers and sisters.
It didn’t take long, shortly after the shooter was revealed to be Muslim, for the typical Islamophobic cries from politicians. Here’s Donald Trump, who has repeatedly called for a ban on Muslims entering the US:
I am not Muslim or religious at all. But I know what it’s like to have politicians say horrible things about your people. And I know, today more than ever, how it feels to be hated. So instead of using an act of hate to push even more hate, I would appreciate it if politicians and everyone else used the Orlando shooting as a time to reexamine their own bigotries — against LGBTQ people across the world specifically, but also against Muslim people, black people, Hispanic people, and women.
While it seems easy or possible to lump up Muslims into a monolith to pander to racist and xenophobic voters, the truth is most Muslims — like any other group of people — abhor violence. This is just a fact: Pew Research Center surveys have found that the great majority of Muslims around the world say that violence in the name of Islam is not justified. And it’s worth remembering that the primary victims of terrorist groups like ISIS are other Muslims.
The Orlando shooter, in other words, doesn’t represent the great majority of Muslims.
It’s also true that there are millions of LGBTQ Muslims around the world. Some may even be among the victims of the Orlando mass shooting. (We don’t have a full list of the dead and wounded yet.) They, surely, did not approve of the violence we saw today.
Ramadan and LGBTQ Pride Month are both underway. This should be a time to respect and honor the diversity that makes America so great. No terrorist attack — especially one that seeks to perpetuate hate — should be allowed to change that. We can’t fight hate with hate.
Source: www.vox.com
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