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Attending Sabeel Conference in Boston

What is Sabeel? Sabeel is an ecumenical grassroots liberation theology movement among Palestinian Christians. Inspired by the life and teaching of Jesus Christ, this liberation theology seeks to deepen the faith of Palestinian Christians, promote unity among them, and lead them to social action


I will be attending this weekend the Sabeel Conference in Boston and it is my honor that Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa will be appearing as the keynote speaker. He is a man I have admired for years as he bravely struggled before the eyes and ears of the world against the apartheid system in South Africa and at this conference we will address the parallels between that period and the hardships being suffered by the people of Palestine.

Archbishop Tutu will give a keynote address in entitled "The Apartheid Paradigm:
Issues of Justice and Equality". Another issue that will be explored in detail is the treatment of Palestinian Christians in the occupied territories which is an issue that is overlooked by many segments of the Christian community in America.

I am attending this program to view a distinguished ecumenical panel that will include Rev. Cannon Naim Ateek, Phyllis Bennis, Professor Anat Biletzki, Diana Buttu, Prof. Noam Chomsky, Prof. John Dugard, Noura Erakat, Dr. Nancy Miller and more.

For a look at the diverse sponsors of this event, including the Massachusetts Islamic society you can go the website where you can also get information on attending the event if you are in the Boston area and will not be glued to the TV watching the World Series.

3 Strikes and You're Out at The Legal Fishing Expedition

WASHINGTON, D.C. (MASNET) Oct. 22, 2007 – MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS) has learned of today's announcement that the Dallas, TX jury has returned a "not guilty" verdict for the Holy Land Foundation (HLF) defendants. While there remains a mixture of verdict response on some charges, a mistrial on most of the remaining defendants has been reached.

MAS Freedom Executive Director, Mahdi Bray, who has shuttled repeatedly between Washington and Dallas for the HLF trial and coordinated the Dulles-based Hungry for Justice Coalition stated, "This is a good day for the rule of law. A jury of Dallas citizens has rejected the government's outrageous overreach in this case and has made it crystal clear that in America, free speech is protected and feeding hungry children is not a crime – and that includes Palestinian children as well."

"They tried it in Florida, they tried it in Chicago, and they tried it in Texas, as they say in baseball; three strikes and you're out" Bray proclaimed.

Central to many in the Muslim community is the unprecedented use of designating over 300 individuals, including many major Muslim organizations, as "unindicted co-conspirators." MAS Freedom has strongly protested this and continues to fight this abuse by the US government. "Use of the wholesale designation "un-indicted co-conspirator" smears the reputation of well-respected Muslim organizations and their leaderships and it cannot be allowed to continue," stated Bray.

“The government needs to stop wasting the money of taxpayers with all of these legalized fishing expeditions. They tried it in Florida with Dr. Sami al-Arian and failed, they tried it in Chicago with Dr. Abdul-Halim al-Ashqar and Mohamed Saleh and failed, and now the government has failed in their efforts in Texas to connect anyone from the Holy Land Foundation with international terrorism and it should be three strikes and your out for the government.” Bray said.

MAS Freedom will continue to provide additional information as it becomes available.

More Compassion Needed

Larry James writes about the causes of homelessness in this post (h/t Street Prophets)

Roman laid out an interesting, brief historical overview of the problem of homelessness in the U. S. She pointed out that prior to 1983, homelessness wasn't much of a problem in the nation. Her organization and, more recently, her plans emerged as a result of the growing national crisis.

She didn't say, but I couldn't help but wonder about causes for the rather sudden explosion of the number of homeless in America. Several things came to mind.

The Vietnam War and the thousands of veterans who returned unprepared for what greeted them. Side bar: a friend of mine who is a psychiatrist at Veteran's Hospital here in Dallas told me that 85% of his homeless patients suffer from post traumatic syndrome due to events that occurred prior to their military service--the military being their place of escape until their tenures of service ended.

The Reagan Era and its more draconian social benefits and programs built on the theories of supply-side economics.

De-institutionalizing mental health treatment and services across the nation.

Ironically, the "war on drugs" that has resulted in the incarceration of millions of men and women who likely needed treatment instead of what they received. Upon release countless of these people ended up on our streets with few options for work or housing.

The forces that have created a growing gap between the wealthy and the impoverished have also fueled the growth in the homeless population. Outsourcing of millions of better paying American jobs would be included here.

The disappearance of the old "boarding houses" that existed everywhere until the mid to late 1960s.

Since the early 1980s, service providers have responded to the growing problem of homelessness. By the late 1990s there were over 40,000 programs in the U. S. designed to address the issues of homelessness.

Ironically, the homeless population doubled! The proliferation of services does not equal a solution to the problem.

In that vain, this comment from pastordan (of Street Prophets) says it all:

This is why charity alone will not address social problems. How could a soup kitchen or shelter address the inequalities of drug sentencing, mental health treatment, income distribution and housing? These are all things that require policy answers, and smart ones. And policy solutions require advocacy. What James is saying here is essentially that our society creates homelessness. To eradicate it will require a basic reworking of the drift of government over the past 40 years. That kind of change doesn't happen by itself, and it requires more than small, isolated groups treating the symptoms.

Those who are working to eradicate homelessness via soup kitchens are certainly doing outstanding work, but the above is why we need to work to change policies to make sure that these people can pick themselves up and we can make lasting changes on peoples' lives

Two more articles on 'Islamofascism Week'

People are seeing through the deception of 'Islamofacism Awareness Week'

Horowitz Spins 'facts' Aimlessly

Audience challenges Rick Santorum

Mahdi Bray Responds

In Tim Craig's Washington Post article on October 21, 2007 (Two2 GOP Lawmakers Allege Democrats Have Ties to Terrorism), he mentions my appearance in a video clip from eight years ago provided by the Investigative Project. The clip comes from the video of a rally in Lafayette Park protesting the death of Palestinian civilians by the Israeli Defense Forces.

This short video clip of me is now being widely disseminated as evidence of my support of terrorism and terrorist organizations. In actuality, what is being depicted was a spoof response to the speech given by Mr. Abdur-Rahman Alamoudi.

At the time of this rally, Mr. Alamoudi was a leading American Muslim leader with strong ties to the U.S. government. Those ties extended into the early months of the George W. Bush Administration. Mr. Alamoudi angrily showed up at the rally after having been rebuffed by Hillary Clinton in her initial bid for the U.S. Senate. Ms. Clinton had returned campaign funds raised for her by Mr. Alamoudi.

Although not scheduled to speak at the rally, Mr. Alamoudi was invited to speak, and began to thumb his nose at the Clinton Administration, saying, satirically, that he and the entire crowd were terrorists and supporters of Hamas and Hezbollah. Of course, no one on stage or in the audience took Mr. Alamoudi seriously. A closer examination of the video clip actually shows me pumping my fists and laughing Mr. Alamoudi's over- the- top- antics.

But what a difference September 11th, 2001 has made. Alamoudi, a former Goodwill Ambassador for the State Department, is now incarcerated on the charge of supporting an assassination plot by Libya's leader Muammar Khadafy to assassinate a Saudi Prince. Hamas won elections in Palestine. Khadafy is now a friend of America. Hillary Clinton is running for president of the United States. And a grainy, out-of-focus video clip, provided by a group that has turned Muslim-bashing into a cottage industry has now transformed me into a supporter of terrorism.

For the record, nothing in my writings or speeches has ever given support to terrorism. I have spent my life as a practicing Muslim activist denouncing religious extremism, racism and bigotry while working tirelessly to support interfaith dialogue, diversity, pluralism, and alternatives to violence as a means to resolve conflicts.

A 30 second, surreptitiously recorded video clip cannot erase my 30 years of dedicated struggle for social justice and human rights for all individuals.

Imam Mahdi Bray
Washington, DC

A Call to Help Those in California Fleeing Wildfires

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said that no one truly believes until he wants for his brother what he wants for himself and in the spirit of this hadith I am calling on all Muslims to do whatever they can to alleviate the suffering of those in California forced to flee their homes because of the fires. Those interesting in donating and helping the victims of the California wildfires should visit the website of the MAS Service Corps in order to donate.

Thinkprogress on Inflations of Horowtiz

On college campuses across America this week, conservatives are gathering together to listen to right-wing luminaries such as Ann Coulter and former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) as part of David Horowitz’s Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week.

Horowitz is claiming that it will be “the biggest conservative campus protest ever” and “a wake-up call for Americans on 200 university and college campuses” about “the enemy.” But on CSPAN’s Washington Journal this weekend, Kareem Shora, the Executive Director of the American-Arab Anti Discrimination Committee, said that Horowitz was dramatically overstating the number of participating schools:

We contacted those institutions, alerting them to the fact that their name was being used, and wondering what exactly was taking place. … It’s important to note though, after we contacted those institutions, most of those institutions indicated that no such events is taking place on those campus. And many contacted the sponsors and told them, “do not use my institution’s name in your campaign,” including some very renowned universities such as Yale and Princeton.

Shora also said that the president of Liberty University, the evangelical school founded by Jerry Falwell, also had their name removed from Horowitz’s list. Watch it:

For the rest go here

A Call for an End to Xenophobia in Virginia Politics

We are calling on all of those running for office, workers in their campaigns and elected officials in the Commonwealth of Virginia to refrain form using xenophobic tactics in order to achieve political gain.

In this day and age it is unacceptable that some Virginian politicians are trying to score political points by creating a mass-hysteria against the law-abiding and peace loving Muslim citizens of Virginia, our hardworking and earnest Latino residents, and others who can be cast as “the other” in order to win elections.

The signers of this petition demand a new politics for Virginia that is not based on dividing people, but on uniting them on our shared values, and creating a better and more diverse future for us all.

To sign this petition go to http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/VAxen

Man This Has Got to Hurt

I think David Horowitz may need some smelling sauce to get up from these blows delivered by Matt Kennard.

David Horowitz Awareness
By Matt Kennard
PUBLISHED OCTOBER 19, 2007

David Horowitz—the Marxist turned neoconservative—will be speaking on campus next week as part of the inaugural Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week. The festivities are scheduled to take place on campuses from University of California, Los Angeles to Brown University to DePaul University, showcasing the brightest stars in the global fight against fascism, running the not-so-lengthy ideological gamut from Ann “Convert Them to Christianity” Coulter to Robert “Why Christianity Is a Religion of Peace and Islam Isn’t” Spencer.

Horowitz will be joined on our campus by the ever-thoughtful and nuanced sage, Sean Hannity, of the ever-thoughtful and nuanced Fox News. Together they will be spreading the ugly news that, according to Horowitz’s Oct. 15 article in Spectator, “150 million out of 750 million Muslims support a holy war against Christians, Jews, and other Muslims.” They will declaim the apocalyptic threat to Western civilization posed by this new Hitler-inspired army bent not only on our destruction but the subjugation of us all to a medieval caliphate, in which women and homosexuals are enslaved while the rest lie entombed in a theocratic dystopia.

But where does Horowitz derive his pedigree to lecture us on the threat of fascism? It seems nowhere. Horowitz is on the extreme fringes of the right wing in America that spews invective against whatever ideology or politic the American government designates as its voguish enemy. Horowitz’s ideology has actually led him to support a surfeit of actions that have strengthened the hand of fundamentalist Islam and made its spread inevitable. First was his typically overwrought support for the attack on Iraq by the United States and Britain. As the war in Iraq was building up, Horowitz wrote in the Jewish World Review that if anti-war demonstrators were successful, “all over the Middle East and the Muslim world, fanatical haters of Americans, Christians and Jews will take heart from Saddam’s successful defiance, will draw the conclusion that the West is weak, and will be inspired to commit new atrocities against its most defenseless citizens.”

In fact, the classified U.S. intelligence report by the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), “Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States,” revealed the huge effect the war in Iraq had on increasing Islamic radicalism and spreading it to a new generation of young Muslims who would now be more likely to attack Western targets. And in Britain, a report by the Joint Terrorist Analysis Centre—which is composed of officials from MI5, MI6, Government Communications Headquarters, and the police—stated, “Events in Iraq are continuing to act as motivation and a focus of a range of terrorist-related activity in the UK.”

Horowitz also forgets to mention the succor the American government has given to Islamic fundamentalists all over the Middle East. The most barbaric and reactionary incarnation of political Islam in recent history has been the Taliban of Afghanistan—formed from the remnants of the mujahideen—who fought the Red Army during the invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. The footnote of their rise is that the jihadis were given arms and encouragement from Horowitz’s biggest hero, President Ronald Reagan.

All over the Middle East, the U.S. has quashed secular Arab nationalism. The most potent bulwark against this upsurge in the secular nationalism embodied by leaders like Anwar Al-Sadat and Gamal Abdel Nasser, was Islamic radicalism. The same is true for Israel—another one of Horowitz’s Holy States. According to Robert Dreyfuss, author of the book Devil’s Game: How the United States Helped Unleash Fundamentalist Islam, “There’s plenty of evidence that the Israeli intelligence services, especially Shin Bet and the military occupation authorities, encouraged the growth of the Muslim Brotherhood and the founding of Hamas [in Palestinian territories].” The most backward and fundamentalist Islamic state in the Middle East is Saudi Arabia, a sordid marriage of the Saudi dynasty and the extreme Wahhabi strain of Islam. Women can’t drive cars there and Sharia law stipulates the removal of the hands for petty theft.

Go on, guess who the biggest friend of the United States is in the Middle East aside from Israel? That’s right, Saudi Arabia. The treatment of women in that genuinely medieval state makes Ahmadinejad’s Iran look like a feminist utopia. But Horowitz’s salvos remain trained on the official enemies of his Holy State, and currently that’s Iran. One day he might reposition, but he must wait for the nod from the Holy State. The Saudi Arabia example shows by itself that Horowitz and his fellow travelers have little regard for the rights of women and homosexuals under Islam. If women or homosexuals happen to live in an oppressive country that America and Britain want to bomb, then they will be supported with reams of invective. If they live in one that pumps out oil for our consumption and keeps their population subjugated, they can expect to receive nothing from Horowitz.

It also shows that Horowitz and his ilk don’t care about fascism, as long as the fascists are our friends. In fact, Horowitz has prasied the Contra fascists of Nicaragua who launched an attack on the democratically elected Sandinista government in the 1980s, an offensive that led to thousands of deaths. “I can’t wait for the contras to march into this town and liberate it from these fucking Sandinistas!” he said as the fascist paramilitaries were liquidating a democratic government. And then there’s General Pinochet, the fascist dictator of Chile, who presided over a prison state for 15 years, rounding up and murdering thousands of left-wing activists. Horowitz, referring to calls to imprison Pinochet on his trip to Britain, said, “Imprisoning Pinochet on a foreign trip to seek medical help is one of those bad ideas of progressives that will come back to bite them.” He instead notes, “Under the 15 years of Pinochet’s rule, Chile had prospered so greatly that it was dubbed the ‘miracle economy,’ one of the two or three richest in Latin America.”

And, amazingly, Horowitz isn’t even the worst of the nomadic warriors that are educating the country during this Islamofascist Awareness Week. His buddy Ann Coulter is also on board. This is the woman who wrote after Sept. 11: “We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity.” “Their countries” refers, shockingly enough, to any Muslim country. She talks to the University of Southern California on Oct. 25 about how to fight fascism. George Orwell would not know whether to laugh or cry. Horowitz and his cohorts probably aren’t fascists, but they are doing everything to promote its spread by pushing for an imaginary clash of civilizations. He might be an extremist crank, but his crackpot ideas are percolating out into the mainstream, where their hypocrisy and blindness must be fought with a brio equal to his own.

The author is a student in the School of Journalism.

A Letter to the Great Warrior Evander Holyfield and Those in the Boxing Industry

In the Name of Allah The Most Gracious The Most Merciful,

Normally, as a man in a position of spiritual and civic leadership, I do not address the issue of sports in my public writing and activism, although I am a lifelong sports fan and an ardent fan of the Sweet Science, but on this issue my conscious will not allow me to remain silent.

Over the years one of my favorite boxers has been Evander “The Real Deal” Holyfield who made his legacy first as a dominating cruiserweight and then as one of the all-time great heavyweights in his battles with Mike Tyson, Riddick Bowe, Michael Moore, George Foreman, and James “Buster” Douglas.

However, all of us who enter this world are terminally-ill, and aging and death is a reality for all humans. The physical strength and athletic ability we have as young men decreases as we get older as a natural process of aging. Therefore, some things we do when we are younger and more vibrant have to be given up as we get older. For most of us this takes place out of the public eye and in private, but in the case of Brother Holyfield, his battle with the aging process and the negative impact on his body is open for the world to see.

Boxing is a great sport, but it is known that if one stays in the sport longer than the body has the ability to compete, that damages from head-blows can lead to long-term brain damage and even death and it would be a national tragedy if one of our great athletes in Brother Holyfield, would either lose his ability to speak in the eloquent manner in which he does, or God-forbid, if he would perish in the ring. However, continuing to fight at this stage of his career, both of these things are a true reality.

As the Executive Director of the Muslim American Society, a grassroots civil-rights organization dedicated to defending all Americans, I call first and foremost to Brother Holyfield and his team, and then to the moral-conscious of all of those in the boxing industry, to put health, safety, and the greater-good, above any short-term monetary gain.

The two leading networks in boxing, HBO and Showtime, have shown wisdom in this regard, and many in the boxing and sports press have echoed these sentiments; but it is time for all in the industry, every network, every sanctioning body, every organization, and every promoter, to stand for what is right in this matter.

May the Peace and Blessings of The Creator be Upon All,

Imam Mahdi Bray
Executive Director
MAS Freedom Foundation

David Horowitz , Noose-Hangings, and the March of Hate

Over the last few weeks a disturbing trend of noose-hangings has developed on a handful of college-campuses across America reminiscent of cross-burnings and acts of political intimidation of entire groups of people in the past.

These noose-hangings have came after the case of the Jenna 6 in Louisiana, where a school district, a prosecutor, and a local culture of racial intolerance, formed a cocktail of bigotry that turned its back as noose-hangings and de-facto segregation was directed towards the African-American community, and worked to give white citizens of Jenna a special social and artificial legal status.



Clearly, a generation or two after the civil-rights movement, there is something that has remerged in the culture that is helping to divide and not unite people of different backgrounds, and it is my assertion that a large part of the cultural pull of hate today is coming from the vile combination of talk-radio, right-wing cable news, forces online, misguided political leaders and think-tanks such as those of David Horowitz

Can it then be of any surprise that the noose-hangings, a symbol of the terrorism of the old-right in America, are occurring within weeks before the “Islamo-fascism” Awareness Week being put on by Horowitz and his numerous allies on the far-right of the American political spectrum?


Just as the noose of the Old South noose was tied around the necks of black men as they hung from trees, and the modern noose on campuses is meant to remind African-American students that hate and the belief of white supremacy is not dead, Islamo-fascism Awareness Week is meant to “plant the seeds of hate” (as Rev. Walter Fauntroy stated), that can one day blossom into a climate that creates a global noose around the neck of every Muslim and the life and blood of our community is snuffed out by those on the ideological-right in conjunction with those groups with religious and tribal animosities towards Muslims based on ignorance and fear.

Listen to their words, read in-between the lines, the speakers at the Islamo-fascism Awareness Week and Mr. Horowitz himself, are those who oppose affirmative-action and civil-rights legislation in America, vilify immigrant communities on the home-front, and are leading the call for war against Iran and a number of other Muslim countries, and Gestapo Dreyfus-like tactics to be used against American-Muslims.

This is what it is clear we must unite against hate and we encourage all to do your part and join the MAS United Against Hate Campaign.

Islamo-Fascism Awareness (is) Weak

Adam Lichtenheld wrote a nice article about David Horowitz' anti-Muslim slander

Press Conference Tomorrow

MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), will hold a press conference at 10:00 A.M. on Thursday, October 18th, 2007 in the Zenger Room of the National Press Club at 529 14th Street, N.W. (13th Floor) in Washington, D.C.

The press conference will be held in response to the call for an "Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week" set for October 22-26, 2007, organized by David Horowitz, president of the David Horowitz Freedom Center.

The coalition of organizations and student leaders will announce its plan to initiate a national campaign called 'Students United against Hate'.

MAS Freedom indicates that the campaign will respond not only to numerous incidents of anti-Muslim sentiment on campuses, but also to other symbols of hatred and intolerance recently found on college campuses, including nooses and swastikas displayed at Columbia University in New York City.

Who: MAS Freedom
What: MASF Response to 'Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week
When: Thursday, October 18, at 10:00 AM
Where: National Press Club
529 14th Street N.W. - 13th Floor, Zenger Room
Washington, DC

MAS Freedom Human and Civil Rights Director, Ibrahim Abdil-Mu'id Ramey, states that this new initiative is intended to "bring together a large community of students and student leaders organized against racism and religious hatred - especially the brand of hatred and intolerance exhibited by David Horowitz and his anti-Muslim and anti-progressive allies."

"We will demonstrate that the great majority of college students in America stand against and oppose both racism and religious hatred," Ramey concluded.

6 Flags Over "Terrorists"

Some youth made this video of the bigot Joe Kauffman

Sad and Disturbed Youth

A young man in North Carolina gave a very troubling interview in the NY Times in which he erroneously claims that Islam supports terror and the vile actions of terrorists. I along with many other Americans (Muslim and non-Muslim) find this to be extremely offensive and want to say to all my readers that Islam is far from this thing and join with Tariq Nelson, Esam Omeish, Sameer Parker, Imam Johari Abdul-Malik and other Muslims in condemning these evil statements in the name of Islam

Umar Lee on David Horowitz

Umar Lee has written an interesting piece about Mr David Horowitz who has decided to smear American Muslims. It can be read here

Right-Wing Smear on SCHIP Family

Number of Blacks Earning Bachelor’s Degrees At All-Time High

Some news to share about Black Americans

According to the U.S. Department of Education, in the year 2005 blacks earned 136,122 four-year bachelor’s degrees from American colleges and universities. The number of blacks earning bachelor’s degrees increased nearly 4 percent from the previous year. In that year the number of African Americans earning bachelor’s degrees reached the highest level in this nation’s history. It was more than double the number of bachelor’s degrees earned by blacks in 1990.

The large increase in bachelor’s degrees earned by blacks is encouraging, but the other side of the news is that only about two out of every five black students who enroll as freshmen in college go on to graduate within six years from the same institution they entered. Blacks are now nearly 12 percent of total enrollments in higher education, but in the 2005 academic year they earned only 9.5 percent of all bachelor’s degrees awarded.

But note that this figure too measures considerable progress. As recently as 1985 blacks earned only 5.9 percent of all bachelor’s degrees awarded in the United States.

From the Desk of Imam Mahdi Bray: MAS Freedom Calls For Release of 'Jena Six' Suspect Mychal Bell

MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS) called today for the immediate release of "Jena Six" suspect Mychal Bell, who was originally arrested and charged with a felony related to the alleged Dec. 4, 2006 assault of a white teenager in the racially-charged case in Jena, Louisiana.



The case against the group of African-American teenagers, known as the "Jena Six", has drawn international media and activist attention to what many perceive as racial disparities in the dispensation of justice, not only on the South, but throughout America.



Before the original felony charges were dropped, and the case transferred to juvenile court last Friday, Bell had been incarcerated as an adult. However, District Attorney Reed Walters may re-introduce new charges against Bell within the next two weeks.

Bell's defense attorney has called for the judge in the case to be recused.



Major civil and human rights organizations plan a massive rally and demonstration in Jena on Thursday, September 20.



MAS Freedom founder and executive director Mahdi Bray, indicated that members of the Muslim American Society will be represented at the rally, and will join with others throughout the nation in demanding the immediate release of Mychal Bell from incarceration.



"Our position is clear", said Bray. "The prosecution of these young men is a transparent indication that the dispensation of justice for Black people is separate and unequal, not only in Jena, Louisiana, but throughout the United States. Young people should not face prison sentences for minor altercations, especially when there is overwhelming evidence that race is a factor in judicial outcomes."



"We will join with the African- American community, and all people of conscience, in demanding freedom for Mychal Bell and justice for all of the Jena Six."

MAS Freedom and Antiwar Leaders Hold Press Conference to Announce Plans for Sept. 15 Mass March and Die-In

Rally to Conclude with MAS Freedom Sponsored Ramadan Iftar



WASHINGTON, DC – September 12, 2007 (MASNET) This afternoon at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), together with the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition, Cindy Sheehan, Iraq War Veterans and other anti-war leaders, held a press conference to discuss the September 15, 2007 March on Washington and Die-In.



On September 15 MAS Freedom encourages you to join tens of thousands of people for the March on Washington to End the War in Iraq and to participate in a "Die-In" - a large-scale civil disobedience led by Iraq War Veterans.



"These will not be like other antiwar demonstrations, but the initiation of a campaign of nationwide protest and resistance," said MAS Freedom Executive Director, Mahdi Bray.



Today's press conference included the following speakers and supporters of the March on Washington to End the War in Iraq:



Cindy Sheehan, Co-Founder, Gold Star Families for Peace; mother of Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, KIA in Sadr City Baghdad on April 4, 2004
Mahdi Bray, Executive Director, MAS Freedom
Tina Richards, CEO of Grassroots America and Mother of Marine whose son was selected to be reactivated & sent to Iraq for third tour and while fighting against it, she had a chance encounter with Congressman David Obey where she gained national media attention
Adam Kokesh, Co-Chair of Iraq Veterans Against the War who recently gained national media attention when the Marines threatened him with discipline for his anti-war advocacy
Carlos Arredondo, Gold Star parents whose son, Alex, died in Iraq in 2004
Eugene Puryear, Howard University student, Youth & Student A.N.S.W.E.R.
Mounzer Sleiman, Vice-Chair, National Council of Arab Americans; TV Commentator
Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, attorney and co-founder, Partnership for Civil Justice; National Lawyers Guild Mass Defense Committee
Brian Becker, National Coordinator, A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition


In addition the speakers listed above, those speaking at the September 15 will include:



Ralph Nader
Malik Rahim, Founder, Common Ground Collective, New Orleans
Cindy Sheehan, Co-Founder, Gold Star Families for Peace
Ramsey Clark, former U.S. attorney general
Etan Thomas, Washington Wizards Basketball Player
And many other veterans, family members, anti-war, student and community leaders!


Additional activities in support of the antiwar movement will continue throughout the week, beginning on September 15 through September 21 all on conjunction with demanding the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq. Learn more about how you can participate or help here or by visiting Sept15.org.



The September 15 March on Washington to End the War in Iraq, also happens to mark the third day of Ramadan (the Muslim month of fasting). At the conclusion of the rally, MAS Freedom invites you a massive Ramadan Iftar (breaking of the fast) in Lafayette Park across from the Whitehouse.



"We will break our fast with dates and water, feed the homeless and hungry, and pray for the homeless and hungry in the USA, Gaza, Iraq, South Asia, Africa, and throughout the world who are in need of bread not bombs," stated MAS Freedom Executive Director, Mahdi Bray.



Bray added, "It is most appropriate that during the blessed month of Ramadan, we contemplate on the Divine by standing for justice against occupation and oppression, and that is what this war is all about. We call upon the Muslim community and all people of conscience, to join us in fasting and prayer in Washington, D.C. on September 15."

From the Desk of Imam Mahdi Bray: Ramadan Reflections on World Hunger

WASHINGTON, DC - Sept. 13, 2007 (MASNET) We at MAS Freedom (MASF) would like to take a moment to extent our warmest Ramadan greetings to the community. As we pass through this sacred month of Ramadan, let our hearts turn to those who are living in war zones, under oppression, and suffering silently, every single day, in poverty and hunger.



Let us also reflect more deeply on the true meaning of Ramadan; that time when we are are reminded that all Muslims are enjoined by our Creator to abstain from all eating and drinking during daylight hours. This month of fasting and spiritual reflection brings us closer to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and more attuned to the needs and suffering of other human beings.



Indeed, we experience the temporary discomfort of hunger and thirst each day, but the magnitude of chronic hunger in our world is truly staggering.



Consider, if you will, the following disturbing statistics:



· One in twelve people in the world is malnourished.



· Every year, 15 million children die of hunger - or more than 41 thousand a day.



· Nearly 1.3 billion human beings live on less than one dollar a day, while about 3 billion struggle to survive on less that $2 a day.



· A human being dies of hunger every 3.6 seconds.



· To satisfy the world’s sanitation and food requirements would cost only $13 billion dollars-about what the people of the United States and the European Union spend on perfume, each year.



Closer to home, right here in the United States, the wealthiest nation, some 37 million children live poverty line.



Additionally, the United States ranks only 23rd among industrial nations in child mortality.



Ramadan, to be sure, is a time of hunger for Muslims living in a suffering-and starving-world.



MAS Freedom, together with individual activists, are responding to the needs of our neighbors by supporting food pantries and soup kitchens in our communities, not only during Ramadan, but throughout the year. This is an example of meeting the 'neighborly needs' mentioned in Surah Al-Ma’un and incurring the favor of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala through charity and generosity.



"Do you see one who denies the Judgment (to come)? Then such is the (man) who repulses the orphan with harshness, and does not encourage the feeding of the indigent. Woe to the worshippers who are neglectful of their prayers, but refuse (to supply) (even) neighbourly needs." (Translation of the meaning.)



We encourage all Muslims, and all people of faith and conscience, to show compassion and charity to the poor and homeless.



It is important that we work together toward transformation of the domestic and foreign policies of the United States to insure that every human being on our planet enjoys the basic human right of freedom from hunger.



May our Lord accept our fast and sacrifice, and may He bring us closer to him through service to humankind.



Please also note that postal stamps commemorating the two Eids, Eid ul-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha, can be purchased at your local post office or online here. Eid stamps may also be ordered by calling 1-800-STAMP-24.



Your support of MAS Freedom initiatives is crucial to its continued efforts on behalf of the Muslim American community. Please donate generously.

From the Desk of Imam Mahdi Bray: MAS Freedom Calls for Closing of Guantanamo and Release of Al-Jazeera Cameraman Sami Al Haj

WASHINGTON, DC - August 29, 2007 (MASNET) MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), calls for the closing of Guantanamo and release of Al-Jazeera journalist Sami Al Haj. Below is a report from Reporters Without Borders and MAS Freedom's letter to the Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.



Sudanese Cameraman Sami Al-Haj in Critical Condition in Guantanamo



Reporters Without Borders voiced "deep concern" on August 22, 2007 about Sudanese cameraman Sami Al-Haj, a Guantanamo detainee since June 2002, whose lawyer, Clive Stafford Smith, said yesterday after recovering his notes from US military censors that his client’s health has worsened considerably in recent days. Referring to the death of four prisoners in just over a year, Al-Haj told him he feared for his survival.



"We strongly condemn the reprisals applied to Al-Haj and other prisoners for choosing to go on hunger strike," the press freedom organization said. "We do not encourage them to pursue this desperate course, but the US military does not have the right to feed them by force. It is also unacceptable that interviews between lawyers and their clients in Guantanamo are monitored and censored. We hope Al-Haj will finally be released and his constitutional rights will be guaranteed."



Stafford Smith saw his client in Guantanamo in early July but his notes were not returned to him until last week and they came with many deletions. He said in a statement that Al-Haj was suffered from intestinal problems and has lost 18 kilos since beginning his hunger strike last December. This was disputed by Guantanamo spokesman Rick Haupt, who said Al-Haj’s weight was "ideal."



Stafford Smith said his client’s mental condition had also worsened. He said Al-Haj had difficulty concentrating and expressing himself in English when they met. He was also very anxious and subject to paranoia attacks, and feared dying if his situation does not improve.



"Sami Al-Haj asks for just one thing, to be granted a fair trial and to be released," Stafford-Smith said in a message to Reporters Without Borders. "But the US military are just as determined to deny him this right. When I saw him recently, he was in a bad physical and mental condition and was talking of his death. It is now more urgent than ever that he should be freed."



Al-Haj told his lawyer that the conditions in which he was being held had become much worse and the guards often punished the hunger-strikers by, for example, putting them in more painful chains. "I never caused the military any problems, but they punish me over time."



He also told Stafford Smith that often-inexperienced "nurses" inflicted injuries on the detainees during force-feeding by using large-diameter tubes or by inserting them into the lungs instead of the stomach.



Haupt insisted that, thanks to the medical team’s efforts, none of the hunger-strikers was in danger of dying. But Al-Haj said the doctors were useless and have not granted any of his requests. "We have more confidence in the guards than the doctors, who have not done anything for our health," he said. Four prisoners have died in Guantanamo since June 2006 as a result of hunger-strikes and force-feeding. A Sudanese newspaper recently reported that the US authorities planned to release Al-Haj soon, but Stafford Smith said the Sudanese government has advised his family to pay no attention to these "rumors."



Aged 38 and the father of a small boy, Al-Haj was working as an assistant cameraman for the Qatar-based TV station Al-Jazeera when he was arrested by Pakistani security forces at the Afghan border in December 2001 and was handed over to the US military six months later. No charges have ever been brought against him.



URL: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=23363



August 30, 2007



Secretary of Defense Robert Gates

1000 Defense Pentagon

Washington, D.C. 20301-1000



Dear Secretary Gates:



The Muslim American Society (MAS) and MAS Freedom, the civil and human rights advocacy entity of MAS, urgently request your immediate action to free Sami Al-Haj from the Guantanamo prison camp. We make this appeal both for humanitarian reasons and because of Mr. Al-Haj's life-threatening medical condition.



This prisoner, as you are aware, was a cameraman working for the Al-Jazeera network when he was taken into custody by United States military forces and transported to Guantanamo. There was never any proof of his involvement in armed conflict or actions against the United States. Further, he has not been given the opportunity for a trial.



Because of this, we have joined with Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and other international human rights advocates who call for his immediate release from Guantanamo.



Mr. Al Haj's attorney, Clive Stafford-Smith, recently reported that Sami has suffered a weight loss of nearly 40 pounds, and that his mental condition has deteriorated considerably as a result of his captivity.



For the sake of his life, and for the integrity of the system of fair justice that America proclaims to the world, we call upon you to use the power and influence of your office to release Sami Al-Haj from captivity.



Sincerely yours,



Ibrahim Ramey

Director, Human and Civil Rights Division

MAS Freedom

Unwarranted Personal Intrusions Violate Religious Freedom

WASHINGTON, DC - August 28, 2007 (MASNET) MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), joins with members of the Sikh Coalition and other faith organizations in objecting to the new rules issued by the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA), regarding the permissibility of the searching of turbans, hijabs, and other religious head coverings worn by air passengers.



Requiring TSA screeners to conduct mandatory secondary screenings of religious headwear is a reversal of longstanding policy that allowed for religious such screenings to take place only there was some indication of a potential threat. The new policy is unacceptable because:



It specifically lists the turban as an example of headwear that can be subjected to secondary screening at the discretion of the screener;
The new procedure and guidance on how to implement them have been kept a secret;
The procedures (given the limited information on them released to the public) are disturbingly vague; and,
The new procedures were created without consulting any Sikhs, Sikh organizations or other religious faith organizations whose members wear religious headwear.
Such searches are unwarranted personal intrusions that violate the spirit of religious pluralism that is a founding principle of this country. Passengers, particularly those identified as members of the Sikh or Islamic traditions, should not be subjected to such blatant and disrespectful invasions of personal space, especially after having gone through standard security screenings at airports.



"While we certainly believe that all air passengers should be able to travel in safety and security, we also strongly support the protection of members of religious communities from excessive screenings and arbitrary searches, especially when these passengers have already gone through standard security examinations," stated MAS Freedom Civil and Human Rights Director, Ibrahim Abdil-Mu'id Ramey.



Ramey added, "For Both Sikhs and Muslims, religious head coverings should be regarded as part of our sacred obligations, and, therefore, treated with due respect by TSA personnel."



"We cannot stand by while TSA grants airport screeners license to conduct religious profiling," stated MAS Freedom Executive Director, Mahdi Bray. "This new policy and its implementation must be addressed and corrected immediately."



Join MAS Freedom and the Sikh Coalition in petitioning Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary, Michael Chertoff, for immediate reconsideration of the new screening policy by adding your signature to the online petition drive here.



"We thank you and the Sikh Coalition for your principled stand against the unwarranted personal searches of air passengers wearing religious head coverings," stated Bray.



Please share the petition link with your friends, associates, community and listservs.



Contact MASF toll-free at 1-888-627-8471 or by sending an email to MAS4Freedom@aol.com.

Proud of My Muslim Face (From December of 2005)

Daveed Gartenstein-Ross' Dec. 11 column titled "Extremists among us?" clearly delineates two approaches in dealing with the issue of the American Muslim community and religious extremism.

One approach is to masquerade one's personal and professional animus toward the growing civic activism of the American Muslim community by trying to convince the American public that behind every American mosque and mainstream Muslim organization, there is a cabal of extremists lurking in the shadows waiting to destroy American society.

The other approach is to engage mainstream American Muslim organizations as they push to the forefront of challenging religious extremism, hate and violence.

It is truly regrettable that Mr. Ross has opted for the former, rather than the latter. Although regrettable, Mr. Ross' incorrect characterization of the Muslim American Society is quite predictable. As an old Southern country boy, I think someone should tell Mr. Ross that you can call a horse a mule, but it doesn't make it one.

For his part, Mr. Ross has lent his talent to the Washington Investigative Project, a group that has made a cottage industry out of attacking American Muslim organizations and their leadership.

This is the same organization whose leadership, without any evidence, made public announcements to the media that the Oklahoma City bombing was the work of Muslims. In fact, if you visit their Web sites and blog pages, you will find that Mr. Ross and his group would have you believe that every Muslim organization in America has ties to extremist groups. They achieve this amazing feat by cherry-picking out-of-context quotes and passages from Islamic reading materials and speeches made by Islamic leaders.

Mr. Ross' article on MAS employs the same technique. He mentions a Chicago Tribune article that attempted to link MAS to Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, but failed to mention that in addition to the reporter's inaccuracies, later investigations revealed that the primary source used for the article was Dr. Ahmed Elkadi. We now know through affidavits and pending litigation that Dr. Elkadi suffers from dementia and that his cognitive faculties were seriously impaired when the Chicago Tribune interviewed him. In fact, his family members have issued a written statement to this effect in hopes of preventing unscrupulous reporters surreptitiously interviewing Dr. Elkadi.

Additionally, Mr. Ross asserts that a fatwa (religious opinion) in our March 2002 American Muslim magazine supports suicide bombing. There is absolutely no such fatwa in the March 2002 edition of the American Muslim magazine. However, if one reads the fatwa section of our magazine, we have presented differing opinions, both literal and interpretive, by Islamic scholars throughout the world and provide a balanced view from all perspectives. In addition, the magazine carries our disclaimer that the views and opinions presented in the American Muslim magazine do not necessarily reflect the views of the magazine or the Muslim American Society.

Our views on suicide bombing are consistent, clear and unambiguous: We condemn it. MAS is an independent American Muslim organization with a staunchly clear and firm American identity operating with full respect and compliance of our laws and Constitution. We subscribe to the values and ideals of our faith, our country and the law of this great nation. The administrative and organizational structure and methodology of MAS is well known and public. We maintain the highest level of transparency and believe in the tenants of public work in a free society.

Our work includes memberships on the board of directors of America's largest interfaith organizations, participation in State Department negotiations in national and international summits on terrorism, the initiation of gathering signatures of more than 100 prominent American Muslim religious leaders for our "Declaration of Support and Action Against Terrorism," the establishment of Boys and Girls Scouts of America chapters nationwide within our MAS Youth department, a MAS Youth campaign against a local initiative in Texas that would expand the accessibility of alcohol beverages, and MAS Youth girls providing holiday gifts in children's wards of Texas hospitals. Also, there is the MAS Youth Civic Empowerment class focusing on volunteerism, U.S. government and politics, and citizen participation.


Mr. Ross' information concerning MAS and the Muslim Brotherhood is equally flawed. For example, he mentions Sayyid Qutb "advocating militant Jihad against non-believers," but fails to mention that the leader of the Brotherhood in the '60s, Hasan Hudaybi, wrote an extensive refutation of Mr. Qutb's views. And as MAS is not the Muslim Brotherhood, my only point here is to once again point out Mr. Ross' slovenly research and inaccuracies concerning Islamic movements, organizations and their history.

In the final analysis, the average American is not concerned with the intricacies of classical Islamic history, fatwas and Islamic polemics. Most Americans want to know what we can do to protect ourselves against religious extremism and the violence and hate that accompany it. We at MAS are beyond the mere façade of addressing terrorism and have demonstrated through concrete action our categorical and unequivocal rejection and condemnation of terrorism wherever its roots may appear. But don't take my word for it.

One merely has to query government and public officials, members of Congress, American faith and civic leaders and, most recently, the thousands of victims of Hurricane Katrina whose lives were positively impacted in Houston and throughout the Gulf region by the "MAS Youth Boots on the Ground" Katrina relief program.

As America's largest grass-roots Muslim organization, with more than 50 chapters nationwide, we feel the cultivation by mainstream society of relationships and dialogue with genuine moderate Islamic organizations such as MAS will help resolve the worrisome "enigma" of extremism, illuminate our ideas and clearly show our fellow Americans that understanding Islam and Islamic activism – and engaging its followers and proponents – is by far the most effective and best way to work together to rid our world of the scourge of terrorism, eliminate the clash of civilizations

From the Desk of Mahdi Bray: Stop the Attacks on Freedom of Sppech

MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), has learned that, in an unprecedented action, the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition has received citations fining the organization $10,000 for the placement of posters announcing the September 15 March on Washington DC. The fines come after a campaign led by FOX news calling for the DC government to take action against those putting up posters for the September 15 demonstration.



"The September 15 anti-war demonstration posters are legal and conform to city regulations – government intimidation tactics to silence the antiwar movement will not be tolerated," stated MASF Executive Director, Mahdi Bray.



This is part of a systematic effort to disrupt the organizing for the September 15 Mass March that is timed to coincide with the report of General Petraeus and the debate in Congress on the Iraq war. Iraq war veterans and their families will lead this dramatic march from the White House to the Congress on September 15. The last thing the government wants is to see the streets of Washington, D.C. fill up with throngs of anti-war protesters right in the middle of the debate. But we will not be stopped. Organizing for this demonstration is taking place in cities and towns throughout the country. Buses and car caravans are coming from 90 cities and towns (logistical info here – transportation info here).



Fining the anti-war movement tens of thousands of dollars for putting up Free Speech-protected literature makes a mockery out of the First Amendment.



We can stop this effort to repress the antiwar movement with your help. Here's how:



· Call William O. Howland, Jr., Director of Department of Public Works, (202) 673-6833 or Adrian Fenty, Mayor, Washington, D.C. (202) 724-8876.



· Write a letter (online form here): (suggested) "I am writing to protest the fines levied against the ANSWER Coalition for putting up posters for the September 15th March on Washington. The government does not fine politicians who put up campaign posters, or commercial and business interests that plaster Washington, D.C. with posters. It is outrageous that the city, in concert with FOXNews, is attempting to suppress the antiwar movement. Stop the harassment. Stop the fines."



Make a generous donation today made payable to "MAS Freedom" in support of the September 15 March on Washington. Mail your contribution to:

From the Desk of Mahdi Bray: We Mourn With You

WASHINGTON, DC – Aug. 2, 2007 (MASNET & News Sources) On August 1, 2007, media outlets were rocked as Minneapolis witnessed the collapse of its 8-lane, I-35W bridge, a main artery in the Minneapolis/St. Paul (Twin Cities) area. Reports indicate as many as 30 people missing, 79 or more injured, with the medical examiner's office confirming four fatalities.



MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), offers its condolences to everyone affected by the I-35W bridge collapse, and offers appreciation to Senator Amy Klobuchar, Governor Tim Pawlenty, Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Ryback, and Congressman Keith Ellison (reported to be arriving on the scene today), for their quick response and efforts on behalf of those in need during this crisis.



The Muslim American Society's Service Corps (MAS Service Corps.) is urging Muslim community members within proximity of the catastrophe area to organize blood donation drives. Alternatively, community members are encouraged to contact Red Cross centers or Memorial Blood Centers of the Twin Cities area to make an appointment to donate blood.



"Pulling together in this critical time of need is incumbent upon us as a community. Please distribute this announcement widely in order to facilitate assisting as many people as possible," implored MAS Freedom Executive Director, Mahdi Bray.



To offer your support in this time of crisis, please contact the following:



MAS Service Corps

Phone: (319) 892-0256

Email: info@masservicecorps.org

Website: http://www.masservicecorps.org



Red Cross

Phone: 1-800-448-3543

Website: www.givebloodgivelife.org



Memorial Blood Center

(Between 9AM and 9PM)

Address: 3200 Main St., NW, Minneapolis, MN

Phone: (763) 210-0032

or

Address: 737 Pelham Blvd., St. Paul, MN

Phone: (612) 871-6636

Website: http://www.memorialbloodcenters.org/MBC/DesktopDefault.aspx



Memorial Blood Centers are reporting a critical shortage of Type 'O' blood.



Survivors of the bridge collapse are also encouraged to register as 'Safe and Well' at the following address:



Family Assistance Center

Holiday-Inn Metrodome

1500 Washington Ave.

Minneapolis, MN 55454

Phone: (612) 871-7676



So far the Red Cross reports having provided more than 2,000 meals and more than 3,000 snacks to families and first responders on the scene, in addition to providing counselors to provide comfort to those affected by this disaster. If you are unable to give blood please visit the Red Cross website to learn about other ways in which you can help.



Sen. Klobuchar has already announced that up to $100 million in funds for rebuilding and recovery of the 1,900 foot bridge, while Transportation Secretary Mary Peters has announced a $5 million grant to help pay for rerouting traffic patterns around the disaster site.



U.S. government officials have also sent help from the national Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the FBI, the Coast Guard, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Welcome to the New Blog of Imam Mahdi Bray

In the Name of Allah the Most Gracious the Most Merciful

I would like to welcome everyone to my new blog which has been created in order to share my thoughts, inspirations, and experiences with the world which will hopefully lead to feedback and dialogue with all people of good faith.

For those of you who do not know I am the Director of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation and I have a track-record of grassroots political activism going back to the 1960's when I protested against the Vietnam War, as I am protesting against the unjust war in Iraq today as a member of the steering committee of the ANSWER coalition, and I fought for the rights of African-Americans being oppressed by a racist system as a part of the civil-rights movement, as I stand in solidarity with the brothers in places such as Jenna, LA today.

My activism is inspired by my faith in Allah and I see it as a Muslim duty, and in the tradition of Prophet Muhammad ( peace be upon him), to fight for social justice and peace and to work with people of all races, ethnicity's and creeds in the pursuit of this effort.

MAS Freedom Opposes New Arms Sale to Mideast

MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), responds to news of the Bush administrations announcement of a controversial plan to greatly expand their weapons sales to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the Gulf States, and Israel over the next decade.



According to a spokesperson from the U.S. State Department, the proposed increase in arms sales includes some $20 billion in new advanced weaponry earmarked for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates, $13 billion in increased military aid to Egypt, and a $30 billion commitment, over the next decade, to more military hardware for Israel. This huge proposed escalation in U.S. weapons sales in the region is clearly intended to counter the perceived expansion of Iran as a regional power.



This commitment to greater arms sales to the region also comes with a commitment on the part of the United States to maintain the "qualitative advantage" of the Israeli military over the armed forces of Arab states in the region.



But there is nothing that will come from this ill-advised proposal except more violence and deeper tragedy for the inhabitants of this war-raved region.



MAS Freedom totally opposes this proposed escalation in arms sales and potential armed violence in the region. And here's why:



The sale of $20 billion in advanced weapons to Saudi Arabia and Egypt will only serve to strengthen two of the most repressive and anti-democratic regimes in the region, at the expense of the legitimate human rights and civil liberties of both the Egyptian and Saudi peoples. Numerous human rights reports have documented the brutal nature of the regimes of both countries. Massive U.S. aid facilitates the maintenance of an unacceptable status quo by strengthening the capacity of both governments to stifle legitimate dissent and suppress movements for democratic change. And if the U.S. government truly believes in supporting democracy around the globe, we believe that they should not be in the business of arming corrupt and autocratic governments that oppose the legitimate aspirations of their own peoples.


Arming Israel will only add to the repression of the Palestinian people. If the United States is truly committed to a policy leading to the creation of a viable and democratic Palestinian state, the escalation of arms sales to Israel is likely to only create more, not less, armed repression directed against Palestinians. And the current Israeli policies of expanded settlements and the ongoing construction of a "security" wall in the West Bank are likely to continue, even as Israel continues to give some limited support to the Fatah-led government the West Bank while continuing the isolation and economic strangulation of Gaza.


The third danger, and perhaps the greatest one, is the likelihood that such a hyper-militarization of Sunni Arab states will increase the likelihood of an armed confrontation with the Shi'a-led government in Iran. Israeli Prime Minister Olmert has already spoken of a quasi-alliance between the U.S. Israel, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States against Iran. And it is no secret that the U.S. is openly sponsoring anti-government activities against Tehran while maneuvering U.S. military assets for possible armed strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities and strategic targets.


The deeply convoluted and massive problems facing the peoples of this region will not be solved by the infusion of more, and more sophisticated, U.S. weapons into the region. Neither will the issues of establishing true democracy, responding to poverty and human needs, and guaranteeing the human rights (including civil liberties an the right of political self-determination for the people of Palestine) be addressed by the initiation of another arms race in the Middle East.



Moreover, we believe that any attempt by non-Muslims to manipulate the differences between Muslims communities and nations, or to foster hostility between Muslims based on ideological or sectarian differences, is contrary to both the Qur'an and the injunctions of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Unto Him). Our intention should always be the promotion of peace and mutual respect among all believers, and not allowing the Muslim Ummah to be manipulated for the benefit of outside interests.



MAS Freedom believes that the tragedy of the Iraq war must not be extended, and compounded, by a new wave of Cold War thinking. American arms merchants and war profiteers may greet this proposal with glee. But the people of the Middle East, and indeed the world, will only face the potential of more war and more death as a result of yet another misguided and immoral act of the Bush administration.



But this insidious and ill-conceived plan is not a done deal. It will require the approval of the U.S. Congress. We say NO to this proposed escalation of weapons sales, and we call on our members to voice their clear and principled opposition as well.



By Ibrahim Ramey, MASF Civil & Human Rights Director

Condemnation of Hostage Deaths in Afghanistan

On July 19, 2007, a group of 23 South Korean Christians in Kabul, Afghanistan were kidnapped by elements of the Taliban militia and held in exchange for the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan government.



On July 25 a male member of the group, 29-year-old Shim Sung-min, was found with 10 bullet holes in his head, chest and stomach in the Mushaki area of Qarabagh district in Ghazni province.



Subsequently, the body of a second hostage was discovered on July 31.



The Korean hostages are not prisoners or criminals. They are civilians who went to Afghanistan for humanitarian work.



MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), through its Executive Director, Imam Mahdi Bray, issued the following public statement on July 31. A formal letter of condolence has also been sent to the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the United States. (http://www.masnet.org/takeaction.asp?id=4166)



"MAS Freedom completely condemns the taking and killing of South Korean Christian hostages in Afghanistan as not only a gross violation of the human rights of these captives, but also a horrible violation of the norms of basic human decency. These actions are completely contrary to the basic tenets of Islam, and for the sake of our Lord, we implore those who have taken these hostages to return them safely to their loved ones, and to stop this madness."

MAS Freedom on Sentence of Sabri Benkahla

MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), has learned that on Tuesday, July 24, Sabri Benkahla, age 32, of Falls Church, Va., despite a prior acquittal, has continued to face vigorous prosecution by Federal authorities, and as a result of being re-tried on "lesser" offenses in February 2007, will now spend the next 10-years of his life in a federal prison.



In addition to the jail term, based on his being convicted on one count of perjury before the grand jury, one count of obstruction of justice with respect to the grand jury investigation, and one count of making false official statements to the FBI, U.S. District Judge James C. Cacheris also ordered Benkahla, to pay a $17,500 fine.



Under normal sentencing guidelines, Benkahla would have, at most, served a three-year term for his convictions, however, it seems that federal prosecutors were able to obtain a stiffer sentence by arguing that Benkahla's alleged "lies" effectively promoted terrorism by obstructing a wide-ranging terror investigation.



Prosecutor Gordon Kromberg argued that Benkahla stymied an FBI investigation by giving a grand jury misleading information about his contacts on a 1999 trip to a training camp run by a group called Lashkar-e-Taiba, which the U.S. subsequently designated as a terrorist organization.



"This is just another example of how the criminal justice system is being used to transmogrify a legal jury acquittal into a double-jeopardy, back door conviction," stated MAS Freedom Executive Director, Mahdi Bray.



The irregularity, if not illegality, of this form of "enhanced sentencing" should be obvious: in their zeal to prosecute and imprison those whom they consider to be political opponents, the federal government is willing to circumvent the decisions made by juries in criminal trials by charging persons found not guilty in court with even more indictments.



The obvious effect of this strategy is to wear down defendants, deplete their legal and financial resources, place further emotional stress on their families and communities, and finally, put them in jail.



And when they are imprisoned, the sentences for the "lesser" charges are just as extreme as the ones for the criminal charges that were already dismissed.



The American justice system is supposed to avoid double jeopardy - that is, trying someone twice for the same alleged offense. But Sabri's re-trial and subsequent sentencing proves that double jeopardy is, indeed, a part of the government arsenal against Muslim defendants.



"If they can’t convict us in a fair jury trial, they’ll "get" us by a subsequent indictment on a different charge-with huge jail time if a conviction is won," stated Bray.



MAS Freedom calls for the rejection of "enhanced sentencing" because it fails the essential imperative of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution of the United States-that is, the guarantee of equal protection under the law.



We believe that this promise of equality also applies to Muslims, and to all persons acquitted of crimes in a trial.



MAS Freedom encourages continued community support of Sabri, and his family, in their quest for vindication.



"It's clear that Sabri's conviction is a case of double-jeopardy, and we hope it will be overturned on appeal," stated Bray.



Bray added, "We call on our community to work diligently to end the prejudicial treatment in our courts that threatens the freedom of Muslim defendants even after they have been acquitted."

MAS Freedom Maintains Stand Against Torture!

As part of our ongoing campaign against all forms of torture and torture rendition committed anywhere, including those committed by operatives of the U.S. government, MAS Freedom (MASF), as the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society (MAS), joins with other members of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) in demanding an end to all forms of torture used by the U.S. operatives, and especially the Central Intelligence Agency.



The "new" policy on torture announced by President Bush last week does not address the ongoing abuses of hundreds of Muslims held prisoner at the Guantanamo detention camp in Cuba. Nor does it categorically and completely abolish all forms of interrogation that are categorized as torture by international law.



We ask our supporters to contact their elected representatives to demand that all - and not merely some - forms of torture be completely outlawed.



On Friday, President Bush issued an executive order governing CIA interrogation techniques that keeps the door open to torture and other cruel and inhuman treatment of detainees in American custody.



More than three years after we learned about the abuses at Abu Ghraib, Americans still don't know what kinds of practices are happening in our name.



What this country needed from the White House was a clear statement of rules that embody America's values and high moral standards. Instead, it got a confusing and opaque double standard shot through with loopholes and equivocations. This failure to articulate a single standard of humane treatment will perpetuate a policy of official cruelty, undermine the rule of law, and increase the risk to American service members, now and in future wars.



While the U.S. military has publicly embraced clear rules in a new Army Field Manual that explicitly prohibits the kinds of abuses previously authorized by the administration – this new executive order undermines those standards by failing to take abusive techniques off the table for the CIA.



The order does not clearly and specifically end illegal practices: so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques", which included water boarding, stress positions, hypothermia, sensory deprivation, sleep deprivation and isolation, and holding prisoners in secret CIA "black sites" in order to keep them outside the reach of the law. Instead, it allows the Director of the CIA to make his own decision about what's legal and what isn't.



Worst of all, the President's misguided interrogation policy increases the risk to American soldiers. As a group of 49 military leaders wrote last year about the Geneva Convention standards:



"If any agency of the U.S. government is excused from compliance with these standards, or if we seek to redefine what Common Article 3 requires, we should not imagine that our enemies will take notice of the technical distinctions when they hold U.S. prisoners captive. If degradation, humiliation, physical and mental brutalization of prisoners is decriminalized or considered permissible under a restrictive interpretation of Common Article 3, we will forfeit all credible objections should such barbaric practices be inflicted upon American prisoners."

Pakistan and Democracy: Time for Musharraf to Go

The nation of Pakistan is certainly no stranger to violence, but the current state of war between Islamic forces and the government of General Pervez Musharraf has made many more people nervous, not only in Islamabad, but in the United States as well. In the Pakistani capital, more than 20 civilians and a number of government troops have been killed in clashes between pro-Taliban Islamic advocates and the Pakistan army.



The conflict is represented, at least in the Western press, as a clash between Islamic extremists (reportedly Taliban and Al Queda sympathizers keen on the imposition of Sharia on the population), and a secular government pulling out all the stops to resist them.



The United States, the major international supporter of the military government in Islamabad, has made a public point of reaffirming its backing for Musharraf in this strife. President Bush stated this week in Cleveland, Ohio that "I like him and I appreciate him". Vice President Cheyney is reported to be a big fan of the general as well. And perhaps this means a stream of new F-16 fighter planes and American economic credits to Pakistan, while the U.S. allows Musharraf simultaneously bludgeon his domestic opponents while he tolerates, in the face of U.S. anger, business as usual in the virtually autonomous tribal area of Waziristan (along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border) where Al Queda is reported to maintain its command centers.



The attack on the Red Mosque in Islamabad and the deaths of protesting Muslim opponents of the Musharraf dictatorship also demonstrate the essential contradiction and root cause of the conflict: the suppression of real democracy in Pakistan, and the role of the United States in maintaining a dictatorship that has lost both credibility and popular support among its people.



We should remember that Pakistan, like Egypt, has a strong Islamic movement. There is a minority faction within this movement that advocates for a more stringent and literal interpretation of the Qur'an in all the affairs of both the civil society and the state. There have certainly been problems with this approach, especially in the areas of Christian-Muslim coexistence in Pakistan and the willingness of the civil society to provide equal social status and protection for women.



But those who fervently believe in this interpretation of Islam are hardly the only ones calling for an end to the autocratic rule of Musharraf. The sacking earlier this year of Pakistan's Chief Justice, Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, riled opposition forces who saw the move as a blatant attempt by Musharraf to undermine Pakistan's independent judiciary. And while the nation's small, educated class makes money, the income disparity between rich and poor-and the massive discontent of Pakistan's poor population- is growing. The likely outcome of this most recent violent assault in Pakistan is more dissent and social upheaval, and not the pacification that the general and his Washington friends might like.



In the prevailing worldview of the current American administration, Pakistan is an important component in Washington's global war against "radical" Islam. Musharraf has shown his willingness to dance to America's tune, in return for American money and weapons. But also-as in Egypt-the support from the United States has not come with any strings that require the military government of Pakistan to guarantee real and fair elections, and to return the power of self determination to the people of the nation, their elected representatives, and the institutions of civil society.



The Bush administration backed the army attack on the Red Mosque in Islamabad, as they back the regime of General Pervez Musharraf. We deeply regret the magnitude of killing involved in this conflict, as well as the willingness to attack and destroy a sacred place of worship.



But American support for this dictatorship will not ease the root cause of discontent in Pakistan. This will be accomplished by nothing short of a full commitment by the government of the United States to genuine, popular democracy in Pakistan, and a respect of the right of the Pakistani people to select their own-and not Washington's-government.



The Bush administration has killed countless thousands people in Iraq for the sake of installing "democracy". Now, It's time for them to get real about respect for democracy in Pakistan.



And it's time for them to realize, by the way, that Pervez Musharraf should no longer lead that nation.



Ibrahim Ramey

Palestine Rally Video

MAS Freedom National Mobilization Team Responds to HLF UCC Designation

On Sunday, the Muslim community of Dallas packed the Plano Centre in a Town Hall response to the upcoming Holy Land Foundation (HLF) trial. MAS Freedom and MAS-Dallas accepted responsibility on behalf of the Hunger for Justice Coalition to mobilize the community with its Faith Over Fear & Justice For All National mobilization team. Members of the Dallas community enthusiastically waved Faith Over Fear & Justice For All banners as members of the Coalition spoke about the HLF trial scheduled to begin on Monday, July 23.



Speakers from major national organizations explained the following to the audience:



• The government claims "the trial is a part of the global war on terror", yet HLF is not accused of any violent act, destruction of property, or harm to anyone. In reality, the defendant's lawyers assert that they are being accused of feeding, clothing, and sheltering the "wrong children" - the Palestinians.



• Closing HLF by Executive Order violates HLF’s rights to judiciary review or due process.



• Waiting three years to issue an indictment has denied HLF and its associates the right to a speedy trial.



• Now the government has added insult-to-injury by naming several mainstream Muslim organizations and prominent Muslim leaders as un-indicted co-conspirators (UCC), a designation which offers the designees no opportunity to defend themselves against such scandalous claims.



MAS Freedom flew in for the Hunger for Justice Coalition event its Faith Over Fear & Justice For All national mobilization team. The team consists of Mahdi Bray, Executive Director, MAS Freedom; Brian Becker, National Coordinator for the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition; Mara Verheyden-Hillard, Esq., Partnership for Civil Justice and National Lawyers Guild; Rev. Graylan Hagler, National Board Member, United Church of Christ; Bilal Khaleem, MAS Boston.



MAS Freedom Executive Director, Bray, received several standing ovations as he encouraged the crowd to find strength within their faith. He also reiterated that this new, broad, legal attack on the Muslim community was an important struggle for the soul of America. Addressing this issue of the UCC, he stated that, although MAS was not on the list, many prominent leaders and organizations were. Thus, MAS Freedom views this attack an inappropriate legal attack on the entire Muslim community and its organizations.



"Muslim organizations not listed, must not abandon organizations listed as UCC's out of timidity, fear or some superficial sense of token acceptance. This is an attempt by our own government to legally lynch our community. We either hang together, or for sure we’ll hang separately. We at MAS Freedom will never abandon our core principle of standing for justice. We’ll continue to defend our community and its organizations against injustice."



Bray further stated, "Many of our fellow Americans are deeply troubled by the direction of a US long-standing, one-sided foreign policy that is so intrinsically welded to the illegal Israeli occupation of the Palestinian people, that it would jeopardize the fundamental values of American justice and due process of its own citizens. Regardless of what one may think about the occupation of Palestine (and undoubtedly that’s what this case is about), feeding hungry children anywhere on earth should never be classified as a crime. Yes, that includes Palestinian children, too."



MAS Freedom wishes to thank the Hunger for Justice Coalition, the Muslim Legal Fund of America, the MAS-Dallas Chapter, the MAS Freedom national mobilization team, community leaders, family, and friends who exhibited an overwhelming sense of solidarity concerning this important matter. Truly this is an important legal challenge facing the American Muslim community and it needs all of our support.

Pay Day Loan Consumer Protection Act Wins Initial Approval of Washington, D.C. City Council

The Muslim American Society (MAS) Freedom Foundation was informed on July 11th that a majority of the Washington, D.C. City Council approved the first reading of Bill B17-132, the Pay Day Loan Consumer Protection Act. This act proposes regulation of the "pay day loan" industry In Washington, D.C. by imposing severe restrictions on the annual interest rates charged by these loans, which can exceed 700 per cent each year.



If given final city council approval in September, the proposed legislation will become law in the District of Columbia.



MAS salutes the work of our friend, Reverend Graylan Scott Hagler, and a coalition of interfaith leaders who are committed to economic justice for poor and working people in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States.



MAS Freedom will continue to voice our demand for the end of this form of predatory lending. We will keep you informed on the progress of the legislation.

Peace Now Report Highlights Israeli Settlement "Land Grab" in Palestine

Peace Now, an Israeli peace advocacy organization, has issued a recent report revealing that Israeli settlements in the occupied West bank of Palestine use only 12 per cent of the land allocated to them, and that one third of the territory being used lies outside of the official settlement jurisdictions.



This report is based on official Israeli data obtained by Peace Now through a lawsuit. For years before this successful suit, official maps of the Israeli settlements in the occupied territories were not made public.



Among other facts, the report states that 90 percent of these settlements exceed their official boundaries, despite the large amount of unused land already allocated to settlers. The report also reveals that the Israeli government has confiscated Palestinian land in the West Bank beyond the needs of the settlers. This has been done to both prevent Palestinian construction on the land, and to create an "Apartheid" buffer zone between the settlements and Palestinian communities.



After areas have been closed to Palestinians, settlers have often illegally seized privately owned, adjacent Palestinian lands. The Israeli Defense Force (IDF), which continues to illegally control the Palestinian territory, does not prevent the settlers from these land seizures.



Dror Ether, who prepared the report, stated, "there is a pattern of failure to enforce the law on the settlers. But the lack of enforcement isn't an accident. It has become another tool to achieve the military goal of occupation, which is to allocate the land and hold it."



Mahdi Bray, Executive Director of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, stated that "It's amazing, the international community has declared the settlements to be a clear violation of international law, yet the U.S. government regards them merely as an obstacle to peace. Why won't the United States government call this what it really is-land theft, and the last vestige of colonialism in the modern world"?



The MAS Freedom Foundation respects and deeply appreciates the work of Peace Now, and their recent report on the settlements. However, we believe that this report should not avoid confronting the fact that the occupation of Palestinian land is illegal. The refusal of the U.S. government to honestly address this issue is a serious obstacle to peace in the region.

"Partial" Justice Will Not Bring Freedom to Palestine

Most of the world has, understandably, been focused on the internal conflict in Palestine between Hamas and Fatah, and the layers of international political maneuvering and intrigue that surrounds it.



With the displacement of the Fatah-lead government in Gaza, both Israel and the United States have acted in ways that many people consider to be conciliatory to the Palestinian Authority. Israel has announced the intention to release some 325 Palestinian prisoners now held in Israeli prisons, while also providing tax revenues previously confiscated from the PA. The United States, in return, has agreed to recognize the government of Prime Minister Abbas while providing hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to this faction of the Palestinian leadership.



Some might consider these political decisions to be indications of “progress”. But there is still plenty wrong with this picture.



While we applaud the release of Palestinian captives held in Israeli jails, we note that extra-judicial kidnappings by Israel continue in all parts of the Palestinian territory. In the West Bank city of Hebron, for example, more that 500 Palestinians, including women and children, have reportedly been kidnapped by Israeli soldiers in 2007. Many more prisoners have been taken from other West Bank locations and from Gaza.



The Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation applauded the recent release, in Gaza, of an abducted British journalist. But we must never forget the thousands of Palestinians that are illegally imprisoned in Israel. And they must be freed, too.



There is the matter of the continued Israeli construction of the "Apartheid" wall that separates families, divides villages, and inflicts both economic hardship and humiliation on the people of Palestine. Despite the illegality (under international law) of this barrier, Israel shows no sign of relenting in its construction.



And gangs of settlers are still free to occupy Palestinian land and confiscate the property of indigenous people who have lived on the land for centuries.



Political posturing and maneuvering may take place on all sides of the issue. Deep animosities and internal divisions within the Palestinian body politic continue to make necessary Palestinian operational unity an illusive goal.



But at the heart of it all, there is still the reality that the oppressive machinery of Israel, and its American ally, continues to deprive the Palestinian people of genuine freedom, dignity, and self-determination. Millions of American tax dollars have now been freed to contribute some good to the Palestinian economy, but billions more are still used to finance the occupation that remains at the heart of the issue.



The appearance of conciliation and "progress" In Israel-Palestine may capture the attention of the world. But in the final analysis, we must not be content to merely slow down the machine of occupation and oppression.



It must be brought to a complete stop.