U.S. Muslim group criticizes Bush's term 'Islamic fascism' as inaccurate : Melbourne Indymedia

Last update - 08:16 02/09/2006
U.S. Muslim group criticizes Bush's term 'Islamic fascism' as inaccurate
By The Associated Press

The newly elected head of the largest Muslim group in North America called President George W. Bush's recasting of the war on terror as a "war against Islamic fascism" inaccurate and not helpful to people of her faith.

Ingrid Mattson, the first woman president of the Islamic Society of North America, said Friday that labeling terrorism as "Islamic" only adds to a misunderstanding of the religion.

Mattson acknowledged that terrorist groups "do misuse and use Islamic concepts and terms to justify their violence."

"But I think that when we then bestow that term upon them we only make the situation worse and somehow give validity to their claims which we need to deny and reject," she said at the opening of the group's 43rd annual convention.

Bush and other Republicans have been using the wording in recent speeches.

White House aides and outside Republican strategists have said the new term is an attempt to more clearly identify the ideology that motivates many organized terrorist groups.

"I'm convinced that it is not only inaccurate, but unhelpful," she said. "If our major concern is security, security of this country, this is a term that has very bad resonance in the Muslim majority world and makes us feel uncomfortable here."

Mattson said her group would argue to eliminate the use of the phrase. U.S. officials, including Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England, are attending the meeting.

"We're hoping that there can be some adjustment to this language and we're trying to voice that opinion to those who have been using this, circulating this term," she said.

England did not address the issue during a Friday afternoon panel, but said American Muslims will play an important role as the Pentagon improves its training of the military on Islamic culture.

"They understand their culture, obviously, much better than we do," England said. "We have not done a very good job in the past and we need to do better."

He also called on Muslim Americans to spread to the world the word about freedom, citing the success of Muslim businesspeople and professionals in the United States.

The Islamic Society drew its own fire for inviting former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, who is expected to address the convention Saturday.

"Khatami ...behaved as an enemy of America and our most cherished values," said Jay Tcath, vice president of the Chicago Jewish Federation in a statement. "It is disturbing that any American organization would honor him by providing such an important platform."

Tcath said American Jews remember "the egregious 1999 i prisonment and circus trial of 13 Iranian Jews on trumped-up charges of espionage for Israel," which happened under Khatami's presidency.

Mattson said the group hopes to show Khatami "how the American Muslim
community has dealt with issues of religious freedom and tolerance and perhaps he can carry some of that message back."

Khatami, whose receipt of a visa was announced this week by the State Department, also plans to attend a U.N. conference in New York and to speak on religion's role in promoting peace at the Washington National Cathedral during his trip to the United States.

The Islamic Society's four-day meeting is expected to draw more than 30,000 Muslims from Canada and around the United States for mostly nonpolitical sessions on subjects including retirement planning, Internet marketing, home schooling and dating.

Iraqi activist forced to change t-shirt with Arabic peace slogan
Wikinews

August 30, 2006

Raed Jarrar, an Iraqi peace activist who lives in the USA, was forced to change his T-Shirt, which bears an Arabic Slogan, because it was found "Offensive".

The incident took place in JFK airport in New York. The activist Jarrar reported in his RaedInTheMiddle blog that he had checked in his bags and was issued a boarding pass. After waiting near the gate to board his jetBlue airlines flight, and after having to gone through a secondary search, two officials approached him.

"People are feeling offended because of your t-shirt," Raed reported that one of the men said to him. The writings on the T-Shirt said in both Arabic and English: "We will not be silent". Black crew neck T-shirts with white lettering like the one worn by Raed can be seen on a ParkerStudio.com web page.

Raed asked why this has offended anyone, and insisted his right to freedom of expression was violated.

According to Jarrar, one of the inspectors said, "You can't wear a T-shirt with Arabic script and come to an airport. It is like wearing a t-shirt that reads 'I am a robber' and going to a bank". The airport official, unable to read Arabic, was unyielding to protests by Jarrar that the English language version of the Arabic was accurate, and suggested he wear the shirt inside out.

"Many people called and complained about your t-shirt. Jetblue customers were calling before you reached the checkpoint, and customers called when you were waiting here in the boarding area", Jarrar was told after he complained.

One employee from jetBlue offered to buy Jarrar a T-shirt to replace the one he was wearing, since the activist had none other after his bags were checked. Refusing at first, he agreed to wear one with "New York" written on it.

The officer on the scene commented that it need not have gone from one extreme to the other: wearing a T-Shirt with an Arabic peace slogan on it, to wearing one with 'New York'. There is no reason to hate New York if you are an Arab speaking peace activist, according to Jarrar.

"I feel very sad that my personal freedom was taken away like this. I grew up under authoritarian governments in the Middle East, and one of the reasons I chose to move to the U.S. was that I don't want an officer to make me change my t-shirt. I will pursue this incident today through a Constitutional rights organization, and I am sure we will meet soon," Raed said.

He was issued another boarding pass, with a different seat at the back of the plane.

JetBlue said it was investigating the incident but a spokeswoman said: "We're not clear exactly what happened." The spokeswoman also said the airline does not forbid Arabic T-shirts, but that it does take into account the concerns of its passengers.

The American-Arab Anti-discrimination Committee said the US Transportation Department and the Transportation Security Administration were also investigating the incident after the committee lodged complaints on behalf of Jarrar.

"We Will Not Be Silent" is a slogan adopted by opponents of the war in Iraq and other conflicts in the Middle East.

It is said to derive from the White Rose dissident group which opposed Nazi rule in Germany.