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Muslim Link Staff Writer
With a historic Presidential election that spotlighted Islam yet marginalized American Muslims now over, community leaders are telling Muslims to take their place in a new era.
“Our hope should not lie in any candidate or election. Our hope should lie in ourselves and in making ourselves important to the candidates,” said Ahmed Bedier, the master of ceremonies for the 14th Annual Banquet for the national office of the Council on American Relations (CAIR).
The November 23, 2008 dinner themed “American Muslims: Defining Ourselves” attracted a highly diverse group of over 700 Muslims to the Marriott Crystal Gateway hotel in Arlington, Virginia. The message from speakers, though, was uniform.
Debbie Almontaser, made infamous as the founder of a “radical madrasa” in New York City by the New York Post, showed she is a symbol of courage and defiance for American Muslims nationwide.
Almontaser is the founder and former principal of the Khalil Gibran International Academy, the first English-Arabic public school in the United States. She was forced to step down in August 2007 as the principal after an intense smear campaign by the New York Post stemming from a t-shirt that had the word ‘intifada’ on it. Almontaser was a board member of the group that created the shirt.
“The attack on me is part of a larger campaign to silence and intimidate minority groups. They would like nothing more than for me to remain silent,” said Almontaser from the stage, almost projecting her voice without the need for a microphone. She offered the audience some details of the smear campaign and her subsequent lawsuit against the city for wrongful termination.
“This experience deepened my spiritual connection with God. The time has some that [Muslim Americans] reclaim the narrative of how we are defined,” she said to applause, underscoring the theme of the evening. “Yes we can, insha’Allah,” she said before exiting the stage to more applause, playing off President-Elect Obama’s famous refrain “Yes we can.”
CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad thanked supporters for coming out on the cold Sunday evening, saying it showed “commitment” to the work CAIR does. With the American flag beside the speaking lectern, Awad talked about the message sent out by Obama’s victory.
“A whole new generation of American who do not see color and only see qualifications sent a clear message to the rest of the world,” he said during his address, interrupted by much applause.
Awad also addressed the President-Elect, saying Muslims called for a “restoration of the rule of law” and what it necessitates – ending the Iraq war, ending torture, closing Guantanamo, and ending illegal detention among others. He said news coming from CAIR’s 35 chapters across the nation clearly show the biggest threat facing the Muslim community is “Islamophobia”. The most active exporters of Islamophobia are “extremeist websites and talk show hosts”, he said.
Awad also held up CAIR’s confrontation with radio icon Michael Savage. Last year CAIR succeeded in pressuring many of Savage’s big name advertisers like Wal-Mart, Office Max, and Sears to drop off his show after he delivered a series of bigoted attacks against Islam on air.
“CAIR is not afraid to get out in front to challenge bigotry and hatred,” said Awad. The fight against Savage cost CAIR $160,000, and Awad said it was “worth every penny”.
On the other hand, Awad also reminded the audience that anti-Muslim groups were not afraid to spend millions of dollars to spread fear and hatred of Muslims. The Clarion Fund spent an estimated $60 Million to produce and distribute almost thirty-million copies of anti-Islam propaganda documentary “Obsession” to swing states on the eve of the election.
Awad’s message was again emphasized with a CAIR video with scores of news reel clips showing CAIR staffers defending Islam on the air. The video ended with a black screen with the simple sentence: “If we don’t define ourselves, others will”. After the video, host Bedier said “I’m a Ahmed Bedier and I approve this message” to laughs.
Popular New York Imam Siraj Wahaj conducted the fundraising. The $160,000 goal was surpassed by the end of the night with about $210,000 raised and pledged.
Keynote speaker Congressman Keith Ellsion (D-Minnesota) kept the majority of attendees in their seats despite the time approaching ten o’clock.
In a talk he called “Obama and the Muslim Community”, Ellison said the first thing to keep in mind is “there is no God but Allah and Muhammad (peace be upon him) is His Messenger”. He recited the phrase in arabic. Ellison – who ignited a media firestorm when he took his oath of office on Thomas Jefferson’s copy of the Qur’an – cautioned Muslims not to lapse into “complacency” after the Obama win.
“There are no guaranteed results, but we do have great opportunities,” said Ellison. “The Muslim community has great things to offer the United States. No one will stop you from offering them. Will you?” he asked the audience. “Obama is not our salvation. God is,” he said to thunderous clapping.
Encouraging Muslims to apply to work in the Obama government, he said Obama needs to speak openly about religious intolerance in America. “Help America be a better place,” he said in closing.
Community service awards were given to: Humza Kazmi for Youth Activism, Asma Mirza for Community Service, and attorney Matt Zimmerman for Courage. The Rosa Parks Civil Rights Scholarship was awarded to Isha Mehmood.
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