Islam

Some U.S. Muslim Organizations Call for End to Bombing in Afghanistan

October 29, 2001

Source: The New York Times

On October 29, 2001, The New York Times reported that "A group of American Muslim organizations has called for the United States to halt its bombing campaign in Afghanistan and instead develop 'a more effective and long-term policy' to counter terrorism." Fifteen Muslim groups signed the document, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Islamic Circle of North America. The article noted the diversity of opinion on the issue, reporting that "several major groups did not sign the statement, among them the...

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Panelists Tackle Issue of Backlash

October 28, 2001

Source: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

On October 28, 2001, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that think tank panelists addressed the question: "Why do scapegoats emerge in a national crisis?" The panel included speakers from a variety of backgrounds and religious traditions.

Muslim Women Find Empowerment and Fear in Hijab

October 28, 2001

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

On October 28, 2001, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette featured an article on Muslim women in Pittsburgh. Many of the women featured are more afraid to wear their head scarves since the September 11 backlash as it is a "visible manifestation of a Muslim woman's faith...Many Muslim women consider the head scarf a form of feminist expression, because it forces people to judge them by their character rather than their looks." Other women discussed how this is misunderstood in America, but one woman added that "'the U.S. is still one...

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Moderate Muslims are Beginning to Speak Out

October 28, 2001

Source: The New York Times

On October 28, 2001, The New York Times reported that "many moderate Muslims are speaking out in favor of a more tolerant form of their faith. They are emboldened by their sense of anger at the Sept. 11 attacks and embarrassed by what they see as a distorted vision of their religion...It is impossible, of course, to say how many among the nation's Muslims, estimated variously at two million to six million, are vocally distancing themselves from conservative Islam, though it is probably a small minority. A majority of Muslims,...

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Controversy Around Sheik Kabbani's Comments

October 28, 2001

Source: The New York Times

On October 28, 2001 The New York Times reported, "Muslim Leader who was Once Labeled an Alarmist is Suddenly Sage." The article reports on the response to comments of Sufi Muslim leader Sheik Muhammad Hisham Kabbani on high rates of extremism within the American Muslim community. These comments are raising interest from the media and government, but are raising concerns from some scholars and experts. The article notes, "Sheik Kabbani's profile and motivations, in reality, are a complex intertwining of religious and political...

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First "Gifts of Pluralism" Interfaith Conference Held in Kansas City

October 28, 2001

Source: The Kansas City Star

On October 28, 2001, The Kansas City Star reported on the first area-wide interfaith conference in Kansas City. "The 'Gifts of Pluralism' conference, sponsored by the Kansas City Interfaith Council, attracted about 250 people from 14 faith groups...Participants told their faith stories and asked one another questions, meeting in pairs,...in small groups and over meals. They chose workshops of faiths they knew little about or were curious about. People stood along a wall in the crowded Islamic workshop. Some conceded that Sept....

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Japanese-Americans Speak Out Against Backlash

October 28, 2001

Source: The New York Times

On October 28, 2001, The New York Times featured an article on Senator Daniel K. Inouye's address to a gathering of "soldiers from the Army's famed 442nd Regiment Combat Team, the segregated Japanese-American unit in which Inouye served during World War II." The article reported that Inouye said he discussed his experiences with Muslim leaders and heard their concerns about the struggles of Muslims in America since the terrorist attacks. The group of veterans visited "the nation's memorial to the Japanese-Americans who fought and...

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Muslim-Jewish Marriages Face New Difficulties

October 28, 2001

Source: The New York Times

On October 28, 2001, The New York Times featured an article on marriages in which one partner is Jewish and the other Muslim. "These are trying times for couples in which one partner is Muslim. Last month's attack is intruding into their relationships in subtle and not so subtle ways, unearthing latent prejudices in their communities." The article focused on the story of two different couples living in New York.

New Book Offers "Spiritual Response to the Attack on America"

October 27, 2001

Source: Los Angeles Times

http://www.beliefnet.com

On October 27, 2001, the Los Angeles Times featured an article on the recent book From the Ashes: A Spiritual Response to the Attack on America. It "manages to succeed with a collection of thought-provoking essays, prayers, letters and interviews with some of the world's greatest religious thinkers drawn from a rich array of faith traditions...The collection was assembled by editors of the multifaith Internet site Beliefnet, and all...

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New Studies on Number of Muslims in the U.S.

October 25, 2001

Source: The New York Times

On October 25, 2001 The New York Times reported "Studies Suggest Lower Count for Number of U.S. Muslims." The article noted, "Scholarly estimates, much cited in recent weeks, have put the Muslim population in the United States at as high as six million. But a survey of religious affiliation among American adults, released yesterday by the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, estimated that there were 1.1 million Muslim adults living in the United States." Another study, "commissioned by the American Jewish Committee...

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Christian Men from Middle East Accused of Celebrating Terror Attacks

October 25, 2001

Source: The Boston Globe

On October 25, 2001, The Boston Globe reported that three men of Middle Eastern descent have been accused of celebrating in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The Police in Ashland, MA have investigated the rumors and are not pursuing the matter with charges. The article reported that "'We never did what they said," said Malhab, who moved here from Lebanon in 1998. 'Maybe we were happy, maybe we were singing, but it was not over what they said. I think people are afraid and assume these things because of the way we look...

Chapel-to-Go for Diverse Military

October 25, 2001

Source: The Boston Globe

On October 25, 2001, The Boston Globe reported, "Army's Natick Labs designs Chapel-to-Go for all faiths." The article reports that "the 'containerized chapel,' as it is formally known, can be dropped out the back of a cargo plane and within six hours be transformed into a multi-denominational religious center catering to Christians, Jews, and Muslims." The article continued, "According to the latest Defense Department statistics, of the 470,000 soldiers in the Army, about 40 percent are Protestant, 20 percent are Catholic, while...

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Editorial: "Being an American Should Mean Something"

October 25, 2001

Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

On October 25, 2001, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel featured an editorial by Leonard Pitts of the Miami Herald. The editorial discusses statements by "Mona Charen, a nationally syndicated, politically conservative columnist, [who] wrote a piece in which she argued that, while we mustn't 'persecute, insult or harass Arabs and Muslims within our borders,' we should kick them out." Pitts comments that "it's an idea so absurd in its xenophobia you can hardly take it seriously. Then you realize it's so absurd you...

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