by Jacob Bender
Executive Director, CAIR-Philadelphia
I had the pleasure of delivering a lecture this past Monday, June 5th, on “Combating Islamophobia” at the University of Delaware in Newark, DE. The lecture was sponsored by the Department of Political Science and International Relations, the Center for Global and Area Studies, and the Islamic Studies Program. Over 60 students, both graduate and undergrads, and clearly of different ethnic and religious backgrounds, came out for the evening lecture. My topics included: Anti-Muslim prejudice in Western Civilization; the similarity of contemporary Islamophobia to 19th Century American anti-Catholicism and anti-Semitism; the rise of the Islamophobic network, and its funding sources, in post-9/11 America; and effective strategies of countering Islamophobia on campus and in the mainstream media.
Following the 40-minute lecture, there was a spirited discussion for over an hour about the issues raised in the lecture. The vibrant response was further evidence for the need for such presentations for both Muslim and non-Muslim university students.
I will be returning to the University of Delaware in September, when the Islamic Studies Program will be sponsoring a campus-wide screening of my film “Out of Cordoba.”
Also on this past Monday, May 5th, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Town of Greece v. Galloway that beginning legislative sessions with sectarian prayers delivered by exclusively invited Christian-only clergy, does not violate the constitutional barrier against government establishment of religion in the public sphere. It was a 5-4 decision, split along traditional right-left lines.
How should CAIR, in particular, and the Muslim American community in general, respond to the ruling? Some in CAIR feel CAIR should support the Court, for they believe, if administered fairly, the decision opened the door for greater religious freedom for Muslim Americans. Others argue, myself included, that the Court decision chipped away at the wall separating church and state in the U.S., a barrier that has, I believe, helped to protect the rights of all minority religions in America.
Justice Kagan, in her eloquent dissent, stated it best:
“The Town of Greece, NY, did nothing to recognize religious diversity: In arranging for clergy members to open each meeting, the Town never sought to involve, accommodate, or in any way reach out to adherents of non-Christian religions. So month in and month out for over a decade, prayers steeped in only one faith, addressed toward members of the public, commenced meetings to discuss local affairs and distribute government benefits. In my view, that practice does not square with the First Amendment’s promise that every citizen, irrespective of her religion, owns an equal share in her government.”
