Members of Philadelphia’s Muslim community are disturbed by proposed legislation which they say attacks their faith. The Council on American-Islamic Relations, based in Philadelphia, is upset with proposed legislation in the Pennsylvania House which would prohibit Pennsylvania courts from applying foreign laws or foreign legal doctrines in deciding cases. Specifically, the council alleges that Islamic or “sharia” law is under attack in the measure which is sitting in the House Judiciary Committee.

You knew this was coming. The Pennsylvania Legislature is currently considering an “Anti-Sharia Law” law that’d ban state courts from considering any “foreign legal code or system” that isn’t identical with the Constitution. According to an article on the bill at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the potential bill, likely aimed at those who fear Islam creeping onto their front lawn, is having the opposite effect and has decidedly offended, according to the Gazette, “some Jews.”

Amara Chaudhry at one time was with a law firm in Charleston, W.Va., and more recently the public defender’s office in Montgomery County prior to joining CAIR. Although only with the firm for a short time, she also made sure to take on a wide variety of pro bono matters in addition to her criminal defense work. And Chaudhry may be the exception to the rule of “networking” in that all of her jobs were obtained through cold resume sends. She also emphasized the point that you need to be willing to do the work for free before someone will pay you to do it.

"All-American Muslim is a much needed counter-narrative to negative images of Muslims that seem to saturate the news," says Rugiatu Conteh, outreach and communications director for the Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.