H E A D L I N E S Page Four
Six U.S. States challenge Trump's Muslim Ban 2.0
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: At least six U.S. states are challenging President Donald Trump's Muslim Ban 2.0 executive order that bars new visas for people from six Muslim countries and temporarily shuts down the U.S. refugee program. On March 8, the state of Hawaii filed suit, arguing the new federal order will harm Muslims living in the state. As of March 10, five other states have joined together in a combined challenge to the latest order from Trump. Read More
Hawaii is first to sue over Trump’s Muslim Ban 2.0
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Hawaii Wednesday (March 8) became the first US State to challenge President Donald Trump’s new Muslim Ban order rolled out on Monday. The State of Hawaii lawyers have called the travel ban nothing more than "Muslim Ban 2.0" and asked a federal judge to temporarily block the order. “Nothing of substance has changed: There is the same blanket ban on entry from Muslim-majority countries (minus one),” Hawaii Attorney General Doug Chin said of the new order. Read More
Donald Trump rolls out Muslim Ban 2.0
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: President Donald Trump Monday (March 6, 2017) issued a new Muslim ban executive order that will temporarily halt entry to the U.S. for people from six Muslim nations who are seeking new visas, though allowing those with current visas to travel freely. According to the Associated Press, Trump’s new order aims to address legal issues with the original order, which caused confusion at airports, sparked protests around the country and was ultimately blocked by federal courts. “President Donald Trump on Monday signed a new version of his controversial travel ban, aiming to withstand court challenges while still barring new visas for citizens from six Muslim-majority countries and shutting down the U.S. refugee program,” the AP said. Read More
The number of anti-Muslim hate groups on the rise in US
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: The number of anti-Muslim hate groups nearly tripled from 34 in 2015 to 101 in 2016. That's just one of the dramatic statistics in a new report by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). This annual count from the SPLC includes groups like the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis and other white nationalists, along with anti-government patriot groups and anti-LGBT groups. The Southern Poverty Law Center's Senior Fellow, Mark Potok, says their numbers have consistently been on the rise since about 2000. The radical right out there is booming. The number of hate groups rose from 892 groups in 2015 to 917 last year. Read More
US Court of Appeals rejects to reinstate Trump's Muslim travel ban
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: A three-judge panel from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco on Thursday, February 9, 2017 unanimously upheld a lower court’s order blocking the Trump administration from enforcing its immigration and refugee order. The panel decisively rejected the Justice Department’s arguments against the restraining order. “We hold that the Government has not shown a likelihood of success on the merits of its appeal, nor has it shown that failure to enter a stay would cause irreparable injury, and we therefore deny its emergency motion for a stay,” the three judges wrote in their 29-page decision. Read More
Appeals court declines to reinstate Trump travel ban
AMP Report: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals early Sunday morning (Feb. 5) denied the Justice Department’s request for an immediate reinstatement of President Donald Trump’s ban on all refugees and travelers from seven Muslim countries. The Court of Appeals has asked for both sides to file legal briefs before the court makes its final decision after a federal judge halted the program on Friday, January 27, 2017. What this means is that the ruling by US District Court Judge, in Seattle, James Robart, who suspended the ban, will remain in place — for now. Read More
Freedom of Religion Act introduced in response to President Trump’s Muslim ban
Alexandrea News: In response to President Trump’s unlawful, immoral Executive Order banning all refugees as well as individuals and families from certain Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East from entering the United States, House Members, including Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA), Chair of the Democratic Caucus Joe Crowley (D-NY), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Andre Carson (D-IN), and Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) introduced the Freedom of Religion Act today to prohibit barring immigrants, refugees, and international visitors from entry on the basis of religion. Read More
Lawsuits filed challenging Trump’s Muslim ban
AMP Report: On January 30, 2017, at least two lawsuits were filed against against President’s Trump’s “Muslim ban” executive order issued three days ago. In Seattle, Washington, State Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced that he is challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order banning Muslim immigrants and refugees, calling it unconstitutional and asking for a temporary restraining order. In Washington DC, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) filed the federal lawsuit on behalf of more than 20 “John Doe” individuals who say President Donald Trump’s unilateral “Muslim ban” action is unconstitutional. CAIR lists Trump, new Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, the State Department and the director of national intelligence as defendants in its lawsuit. Read More
Bills introduced in US Congress to designate Muslim Brotherhood s terrorist organization|
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: On January 9, Representative Mario Diaz Balart (R-FL), introduced a bill (H.R. 377) to ask the Secretary of State to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization. The following day, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced an identical bill (S. 68) in the Senate titled the The Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act. The bill states that the group has met the criteria of a terrorist group, and thus should be designated as such. The House bill was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary and already has twenty cosponsors. The Senate bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and has three original cosponsors. Read More
UN Secretary General: Muslims have become convenient scapegoats
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Muslims have become “convenient scapegoats,” United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said Tuesday (Jan 16), addressing a forum to tackle the recent rise in discrimination against Muslims. The forum in New York City was co-organized by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Permanent Missions of the United States, Canada and the European Union Delegation. Read More
In an open letter to US Congressmen:
90 civil advocacy groups oppose anti-Muslim rhetoric
AMP Report: About 90 national religious, secularist, civil advocacy and civil rights organizations have urged the members of Congress to “support core principles of the First Amendment and religious freedom in our country by denouncing anti-Muslim rhetoric and policy proposals.” In an open letter sent on Tuesday, January 17, the organizations said as anti-Muslim rhetoric became more prevalent during the presidential campaign, the rate of crimes against Muslims also increased. “Establishing anti-Muslim policies, such as forcing Muslims to register on a national scale, goes directly against the American principles of freedom of religious belief and of expression.” Read More
Senate Democrats introduce bill to block Trump Muslim registry
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: On January 5, 2017, nine Democratic senators filed a bill blocking the executive branch from registering people based on religion, race, gender, age, national origin or nationality. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) was quoted by The Hill as saying that “if our incoming President ever attempts to create a discriminatory database of Americans, let this be our warning shot: we will fight him every step of the way and in every way we can.” Read More
2016: The worst year for American Muslims since 2001
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Three mosques in California were sent anonymous hate-mail in November warning them that Donald Trump would “cleanse” Muslims from the US the same way “Hitler did to the Jews.” This story best reflects the dilemma of the seven-million-strong Muslim American Community during the presidential election year. The year 2016 was perhaps the worst year for American Muslims since 2001. The New York Times pointed out: Hate crimes against American Muslims have soared to their highest levels since the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, according to data compiled by researchers, an increase apparently fueled by terrorist attacks in the United States and abroad and by divisive language on the campaign trail. The trend has alarmed hate crime scholars and law-enforcement officials, who have documented hundreds of attacks — including arsons at mosques, assaults, shootings and threats of violence — since the beginning of 2015. Read More
American Muslim groups welcome decision to end program once used to track Muslims
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: American Muslim civil advocacy groups Thursday (Dec. 22, 2016) welcomed President Barrack Obama’s decision to permanently dismantle the regulatory framework behind the National Security Exit-Entry Registration System (NSEERS) also called “Special Registration.” CNN quoted Neema Hakim, a DHS spokesman, as saying: “The Department of Homeland Security is removing outdated regulations pertaining to the National Security Entry-Exit Registration Systems (NSEERS) program, with an immediate effective date.” By 2011, nearly a decade after the program was enacted, NSEERS had not resulted in a single terrorism conviction. The Department of Homeland Security determined in 2011 that the program was “redundant and did not provide any increase in security,” said Hakim. Read More
Vandals deface Korans and books about Islam in libraries across US
Raw Story: A number of libraries across the U.S. say that they have seen an increased number of anti-Muslim acts of vandalism and hate speech in the wake of the election of Republican candidate Donald Trump. The Guardian reported Monday (Dec 12, 2016) on a survey by the American Libraries Association (ALA), which found that copies of the Koran and books about Islam have been defaced with swastikas and other hate speech at a number of libraries. The worst incident so far, the Guardian said, was an attack on a Muslim student in which a man tried to forcibly remove her hijab.Four days after the election, the BBC said, a Muslim student said she was studying at the University of New Mexico library when a man in a Trump shirt tried to pull off her hijab, the scarf women of certain Islamic sects wear over their hair. Read More
Online Magazine launched in 2003
Executive Editor: Abdus Sattar Ghazali
