Rights Groups denounce Alabama’s racist attacks against Rep. Omar
Muslim Advocates Denounces Alabama GOP’s Anti-Muslim Resolution to Expel Rep. Ilhan Omar
The following is a statement from Scott Simpson, public advocacy director for Muslim Advocates, condemning a resolution adopted on Saturday by the Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee, the body that governs Alabama’s Republican Party, which asks the state’s congressional delegation to pursue efforts to expel Rep. Ilhan Omar from Congress. Muslim Advocates has played a leading role in defending attacks on American Muslims in public life.
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“Having a state political party officially adopt such a hateful, dishonest resolution is a troubling escalation of the ongoing effort to vilify American Muslims. The text of the resolution reads like a laundry list of the most common anti-Muslim stereotypes: that Rep. Omar is un-American and anti-Semitic, that she disrespects the troops, that she is an ungrateful immigrant and that she sympathizes with terrorists. These meritless slurs are constantly hurled at American Muslims in public life in order to silence and discredit them.
We saw the same type of anti-Muslim bigotry last week from Rep. Mo Brooks, also of Alabama, who falsely said that Muslims are more likely to be anti-Semitic and warned of ‘the growing influence of the Islamic religion in the Democratic Party ranks.’
These are not just attacks on Rep. Omar, these are attacks on an entire community. Dishonest smears like these are used against almost every American Muslim who exercises their right to serve their country. They are designed to intimidate them out of public service and tarnish their credibility. They will not work. When American Muslims in public life are attacked because of their faith, Muslim Advocates and countless Americans of conscience will stand up for what’s right.”
Muslim Advocates is a national civil rights organization working in the courts, in the halls of power and in communities to halt bigotry in its tracks. We ensure that American Muslims have a seat at the table with expert representation so that all Americans may live free from hate and discrimination.
Ray Hanania is an award winning political and humor columnist who analyzes American and Middle East politics, and life in general. He is an author of several books.
Hanania covered Chicago Politics and Chicago City Hall from 1976 through 1992 at the Daily Southtown and the Chicago Sun-Times. He began writing in 1975 publishing The Middle Eastern Voice newspaper in Chicago (1975-1977). He later published “The National Arab American Times” newspaper (2004-2007).
Hanania writes weekly columns on Middle East and American Arab issues as Special US Correspondent for the Arab News ArabNews.com, at TheArabDailyNews.com, and at SuburbanChicagoland.com. He has published weekly columns in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, YNetNews.com, Newsday, the Orlando Sentinel, Houston Chronical, and Arlington Heights Daily Herald.
Hanania is the recipient of four (4) Chicago Headline Club “Peter Lisagor Awards” for Column writing. In November 2006, he was named “Best Ethnic American Columnist” by the New American Media. In 2009, Hanania received the prestigious Sigma Delta Chi Award for Writing from the Society of Professional Journalists. He is the recipient of the MT Mehdi Courage in Journalism Award. He was honored for his writing skills with two (2) Chicago Stick-o-Type awards from the Chicago Newspaper Guild. In 1990, Hanania was nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times editors for a Pulitzer Prize for his four-part series on the Palestinian Intifada.
His writings have also been honored by two national Awards from ADC for his writing, and from the National Arab American Journalists Association.
Hanania is the US Special Correspondent for the Arab News Newspaper, covering Middle East and Arab American issues. He writes for the Southwest News newspaper group writing on mainstream American issues.
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