Why don't Muslim officials protest against terrorism?
By Jeffrey Weiss
This article appeared originally on DallasNews.com, the Religion Sneak Peek from July 8, 2005.
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As I write this on Thursday, the news is filled with the horribly familiar sights and sounds of another terror bombing. And as is generally true in these cases, Islamic extremists are the prime suspects.
Which gives me the chance to do something I've thought about for a while, now.
Just about every time I write about Islam, I get an e-mail or three from people who want to know why "the media" gives "those Muslims" a free pass. If Islam is really such a religion of peace, as President Bush has said, why don't the so-called moderate Muslims condemn the terrorist bombings?
Which is a fair question. Or would be, except for the answer that I already know: Muslim organizations routinely issue denunciations every time there's a major terror attack. News releases clutter e-mail boxes of reporters as predictably as sunrise. And just as predictably, the condemnations are never considered big news.
That's not the fault of the Muslim groups. They issue their statements. Should they take out ads? Send up fireworks? Include jugglers and fan dancers at their news conferences?
But it's not really the fault of the media that these releases usually end up as one line in a long story, if that. After all, how newsworthy are these now-routine news releases? (It would be much bigger news if they came out in favor of the bombings...)
And yet, for a segment of the population, these releases might actually be newsworthy -- proof that there are Muslims who oppose bombings.
Critics may still ask, with some justification, who these groups actually represent. They may challenge the sincerity or effectiveness of the condemnations. But they'd at least know the condemnations exist.
So feel free to forward this dispatch to whomever you think might find it remarkable. I'll list the releases that have appeared in my e-mail today:
1) In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CAIR CONDEMNS 'BARBARIC' LONDON TERROR ATTACKS
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 7/7/05) - A prominent national Islamic civil rights and advocacy group today condemned this morning's bomb attacks in London as "barbaric crimes."
In its statement, the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said:
"We join Americans of all faiths, and all people of conscience worldwide, in condemning these barbaric crimes that can never be justified or excused. American Muslims offer their sincere condolences to the loved ones of those who were killed or injured in today's attacks and call for the swift apprehension and punishment of the perpetrators."
The Muslim Council of Britain and other British Islamic groups issued similar condemnations of the attacks and urged Muslims to help in the recovery effort.
In 2004, CAIR launched an online petition drive, called "Not in the Name of Islam," designed to disassociate Islam from the violent acts of a few Muslims. SEE: http://www.cair-net.org/asp/article.asp?id=169&page=AA
(etc.)
2) (Washington, D.C., 7/7/05) This morning, four explosions in central London's public transportation system have killed scores of people and injured hundreds more.
The Muslim Public Affairs Council unequivocally condemns this brutality against the people of London.
Islam considers the use of terrorism to be unacceptable for any purpose. Any individual or group that claims that these heinous actions serve as a redress for legitimate grievances is dreadfully mistaken. MPAC condemns the exploitation of people and issues, regardless of the perpetrators and their justifications. This assault is unmistakably an act of terrorism, an attack against humanity.
(etc.)
3) In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, Most Merciful
MAS CONDEMNS HEINOUS TERROR ACTS IN LONDON
http://www.masnet.org/takeaction.asp?id=2594
The Muslim American Society (MAS) utterly condemns the heinous acts of terror that rocked the London transit system and killed and injured scores of innocent people. Our most heartfelt condolences and sympathies are extended to the bombing victims and their families.
(etc.)
4) British Muslims utterly condemn acts of terror
The Muslim Council of Britain utterly condemns today's indiscriminate acts of terror in London. These evil deeds makes victims of us all. It is our humanity that must bring us shoulder to shoulder to condemn, to oppose and to overcome those who would spread fear, hatred and death.
Our sympathies and our prayers are with the victims, their families and friends. We extend our support and gratitude to the emergency services, the Police and all the frontline services charged with our collective security.
"The evil people who planned and carried out these series of explosions in London this morning want to demoralise us as a nation and divide us as a people. All of us must unite in helping the Police to capture these murderers. Yesterday we celebrated as Londoners, euphoric that our great city had secured the Olympic Games. Today we stand aghast as we witness a series of brutal attacks upon our capital city. We were together in our celebration; we must remain together in our time of crisis," said Sir Iqbal Sacranie, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain.
(etc.)
5) FREE MUSLIMS COALITION CONDEMNS LONDON TERROR ATTACKS
(Washington, D.C., 7/7/05) The Free Muslims Coalition (FMC), a national Muslim organization with 15 chapters world wide, condemns the London terror attacks and calls on the silent majority of Muslims to stand up against the terrorists who commit evil in their name.
(etc)
This article appeared originally on
www.dallasnews.com
Religion reporter Jeffrey Weiss of the Dallas Morning News can be reached at jweiss@dallasnews.com
