When you’re running for a school board position in suburban St. Louis and tweet out memes about banning Islam in America, what could possibly go wrong?

Well, you could be invited to speak at a candidates’ forum at the local mosque. And that’s how it came to be that the first words Parkway School Board candidate Jeanie Ames spoke to the assembled crowd at the mosque were, “I am not a xenophobic, homophobic, anti-Islam, anti-Semitic racist.”

In fact, Ames spent the better part of her two-minute opening statement trying to defend herself against charges of bigotry and racism that had arisen, in part, from her retweet of a graphic calling for the banning of Islam in America.

She has since claimed that the offending tweet — and  others — were misconstrued or taken out of context. Unfortunately for Ames, her personal Twitter feed makes the context of her remarks crystal clear: Her motto, MAKE PARKWAY GREAT AGAIN, may offer a clue as to who has influenced her thinking.

In her Twitter profile, she describes herself as a “Proud wife mommy – Free market Capitalist – Constitutionalist – Catholic – Confederate – Lily-wearing – Metal lovin – Grass Roots – American Badass.”

Yeah, she called herself a “confederate.”

On January 24, the St. Louis Post Dispatch ran this article with the headline, A self-described ‘Confederate’ is running for Parkway School Board. Residents are alarmed. The article called her out not only for wanting to ban Islam, but also for referring to Michelle Obama as a “giant rat.”

Ames’ attitudes had begun to alarm a lot of people. Some who spoke to the newspaper noted:

“Jeanie Ames’ record of racism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, and other bigotry prove beyond any doubt that she has no place on the Parkway School District’s Board of Education … All people of conscience who believe in the value and place of all children at Parkway schools should oppose Ames’ candidacy in the strongest terms.”
— Anna Baltzer of Jewish Voice for Peace

“It is quite disturbing to say the least that a person with views such as ‘banning Islam from America’ is running for the Parkway School Board.”
— Mufti Asif Umar, imam of Daar-Al-Islam Masjid a mosque situated in the school district.

What else motivates Ms. Ames? Have a look at the banner on her Twitter page.

What does Jeanie Ames really want to do for the Parkway School Board? Is she misunderstood? Have her many offensive tweets somehow been taken out of context? The people in the photo below protested outside the March 25 candidate forum because they don’t believe she’s been misunderstood. They think Jeanie Ames has made herself perfectly clear.

This is an important moment in the community. Will Ames win or lose? And what will that tell us about ourselves?

Postscript:

Many of Ames’ neighbors have yard signs for the more progressive candidates in the race. None have Ames signs. Some are coming more to the point by posting yard signs stating “Hate has no home here.”

In the end, Ames lost, getting just 12.2% of the vote.

The post “Xenophobic, anti-Islam, anti-Semitic racist.” Who, me? appeared first on Occasional Planet.

A short primer on countering some of the anti-Muslim myths and misinformation politicians and the media are feeding us following the terrorist attacks in Paris:
Fiction
America is a shining example of religious tolerance for all.

Fact
There are 784 known hate groups in the U.S. In 2014 Muslims were the targets of 154 hate crimes. In 2015 there have been 63 recorded attacks on mosques in the U.S. Since the horrific attacks in Paris and Saint-Denis on November 13, 2015, there have been 71 documented Islamophobic attacks in the U.S., many of them involving women wearing hijab.

Fiction
Only “real” Americans belong in America.

Fact
Out of a total population of 308.7 million Americans, 305.8 million of us are either immigrants or refugees or the descendants of immigrants, refugees, or slaves brought to these shores involuntarily. Only 2.9 million of us can claim historically to be “real” Americans.

Fiction
Muslims and Islamic organizations are failing to speak out against terrorists and terrorist organizations.

Fact 1
Brave and determined Muslim journalists are risking their lives to expose the crimes of ISIS—journalists like Syrian Ibrahim Abdul Qader of the journalist alliance Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently, who along with his friend Fares Hamadi were brutally murdered in Turkey after smuggling news of ISIS crimes out of the Islamic State.

Muslim academics, politicians, and ordinary citizens of all ages in countries around the world, sickened by the crimes perpetrated against innocent Muslims and non-Muslims, are risking—and sometimes losing—their lives to speak out and reject the violence and those committing it.

Fact 2
Following the attacks at Le Bataclan, the list of Muslim organizations issuing unequivocal condemnations of terrorist tactics and attacks has grown ever larger

Here is just a partial list culled from various online sources:

United States
American Muslims for Palestine
Council on American-Islamic Relations
Islamic Circle of America
Muslim American Society
Muslim Alliance in North America
Muslim Umman of North America
Muslim Legal Fund of America
Mosque Cares
The Council on American-Islamic Relations
Republican Muslim Coalition

Germany
Muslim Coordination Council of Germany
Milli Gorus Organization
Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat

Netherlands
Council of Moroccan Mosques
Liaisons to Muslims and Government

France
Etudiants Musulmans de France
French Muslim Council
The Grand Mosque
Islamic Centre in Courcouronnes

Great Britain
Muslim Council of Britain
Representing 500 affiliated Muslim organizations and communities

India
Ahmadiyya Muslim Community

Ireland
Al-Mustafa Islamic Center
Irish Muslim Peace and Integration Council

The post Anti-Muslim myths and misinformation in post-Paris America appeared first on Occasional Planet.

In the wake of the recent attempted suicide bombing at the Wichita airport, I fear a new resurgence of Islamophobic sentiment. The actions of one man based upon his perception of an otherwise peaceful religion ought not to be generalized to an entire population, but that does seem to be the media’s special talent. So, in an attempt to provide the information the media much prefers to suppress, allow me to inform you: Terry Lee Loewen did not act under the edicts of Islam. To say that he was a radical Muslim is pushing the boundaries of the truth. While I do not wish to blaspheme by saying he was not a Muslim, I cannot reconcile his violent notions with the peaceful religion of Islam, and to even say that Loewen is a radical Muslim is to acknowledge his connection to Islam. The media has overly and incorrectly used the words “Islam,” “Muslims,” “radicals,” and “jihad” so much that they no longer represent their true meanings in their everyday usage.

Misconception #1: Muslims hate America.

It is a miniscule minority of extremists who believe America is the “spawn of the devil.” According to a poll by Gallup, 93% of Muslims do not support these extremist views or terrorism. Yet listening to some media stations, one would think all Muslims are terrorists. The truth, however, is that America is home to nearly 3 million Muslims, and of them about 2,790,000 fully support America. Islam promotes unity between people of all colors and religions. “O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you,” (49:13). Islam teaches that all people should be accepting of every person, for after all they are human, too.

Misconception #2: Islam supports and encourages terrorism.

It is extremely important to note that Islam is a peaceful religion, despite any media sensationalizing. In fact the Qur’an “…decree[s] upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul… – it is as if he had slain mankind entirely,” (5:32). Islam discourages violence in every form and condemns it as a sin.

Misconception #3: “Jihad” means suicide bombing, death, violence, etc.

Contrarily, jihad means “the struggle” and is most commonly used in reference to each individual’s internal struggle towards salvation and away from the earthly temptations of Satan and damnation. “The believers are only the ones who have believed in Allah and His Messenger and then doubt not but strive with their properties and their lives [in jihad] in the cause of Allah . It is those who are the truthful,” (49:15).

As for the idea that Islam promotes suicide bombing as a form of martyrdom that guarantees men virgins in heaven, this too is a common misconception. “…Do not kill yourselves [or one another]. Indeed, Allah is to you ever Merciful. And whoever does that in aggression and injustice – then We will drive him into a Fire.” (4:29-30). Suicide is explicitly prohibited in Islam; no exceptions. Suicide that would also cause innocent deaths is an even greater sin.

Misconception #4: Islam oppresses women and views them as inferior to men.

While this doesn’t necessarily directly relate back to Terry Lee Loewen’s heinous acts, it is important still to clarify: Islam does not disrespect women. Muslim women are not oppressed or inferior due to the edicts of their religion. Granted, in some Islamic countries, Muslim women are denied certain rights, but the actions of a group of people should not be generalized to an entire faith. To understand a religion, one should look to their book, not their people. While Saudi Arabia may only be now joining the modern era of gender equality, Islam was the first religion to explicitly deny men the right to oppress their female counterparts. Men cannot beat women. They cannot physically abuse them. Women have the right to ask for a divorce that carries equal weight as a man’s request. Women can bear witness to actions as men can. Consider this famous Islamic saying: “Heaven lies beneath your mother’s feet.” If Paradise lies beneath women, how can Islam oppress women?

Misconception #5: Muslims reject Jesus and worship “Allah,” a distinct entity from the Christian “God.”

Rather, “Allah” is simply the Arabic word for God. If one was to look at an Arabic translation of the Bible, they would note “Allah” frequently appears. Furthermore, Muslims believe there is only one true god whom all three monotheistic religions worship; thus the Jewish Yahweh, the Christian God, and the Muslim Allah are one and the same. The Qur’an tell Muslims to “say, ‘O People of the Scripture, come to a word that is equitable between us and you – that we will not worship except Allah and not associate anything with Him and not take one another as lords instead of Allah,’” (3:64). Muslims also believe in Jesus and his virgin birth, but do not worship him as the son of God. Under Islamic creed, he is a mortal man of great moral fiber whom God made a prophet.

What I’m trying to say is that though some Muslims commit awful, heinous acts, it is not Islam (or the Qur’an) that commits those acts. We should always remember that there are people who commit awful heinous acts, regardless of the faith with which they identify themselves. After all, Timothy McVeigh, the man who bombed the FBI building in Oklahoma, was a terrorist but not a Muslim. Yes, there are Muslim extremists- such as Terry Lee Loewen- who have distorted the teachings of the Qur’an, even if they regard it as the ultimate authority… but there are similar extremists in every other religion, including Christianity. We simply cannot always take the prejudicial comments of the media and/or politicians at face-value. Consider this final statistic: 90% of all terrorist attacks are by non-Muslims.

Loewen asserted that

“the Muslim who is labeled ‘a radical fundamentalist’ is closer to Allah than the ones labeled ‘moderates.’ Just my opinion; if l’m off base, please set me straight.”

Well, Mr. Loewen, I hope this has set you straight. Islam does not hate America or encourage the attempted terrorism you perpetrated. So while you were correct that “the Qur’an and the sunnah of the Prophet [demand] jihad and the implementation of Sharia… of all the Muslim Ummah (people),” you were pretty far off base about what jihad in and of itself is. Please reread the Qur’an and do not place your contempt for the American government under the guise of Islamic sentiment.

The post 5 myths about Muslims, Islam and jihad appeared first on Occasional Planet.