Sharia

09/15/2011
FBI

9/11's Legacy of Religious Discrimination

By Heather L. Weaver, ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief at 4:23pm

It's no secret that, after 9/11, a wave of anti-Muslim bigotry washed over the country. The intensity of that prejudice has sustained it for a decade, and, in many ways, anti-Muslim sentiment and fear of Islam seem even stronger and more deeply rooted today than in the months and years after the attack. In the last few years, for instance, a number Muslims or people perceived to be Muslims have been violently assaulted; and scores of mosques and Islamic Centers have been vandalized, with attacks ranging from racist and anti-Muslim graffiti to arson and firebombing.

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01/10/2012
Sharia

Constitutional Law 101: Federal Court Rules That Discrimination Against Muslims Violates the First Amendment

By Heather L. Weaver, ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief at 2:20pm

If implemented, the amendment would have rendered Oklahoma’s Muslims second-class citizens before the state courts.

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08/01/2011
Sharia

ACLU Lens: The Truth Behind the Anti-Sharia Movement

By Alicia Gay, ACLU at 2:52pm

Over the past few years, anti-Sharia organizations and politicians have introduced versions of anti-Sharia legislation in 26 states -- with some bills expressly singling out Sharia law for condemnation, and others sweeping Islamic law under broader categories of “foreign” or “international” law. The ACLU is currently working to overturn an example of this kind of legislation in Oklahoma.

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08/04/2011
Sharia

Gov. Christie Is Tired of Dealing with the Crazies

By Daniel Bullard-Bates, ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief at 5:35pm

"Ignorance is behind the criticism of Sohail Mohammed," said Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey during a press conference last week. "They're criticizing him because he's a Muslim American." Sohail Mohammed was appointed as a New Jersey Superior Court judge last week, having been nominated by Gov. Christie.

Gov. Christie's comments came after the state Senate Judiciary Committee focused on his faith instead of his credentials, questioning Mohammed about Hamas, the Muslim community's reaction to terrorism, and the terms "jihad" and "Islamo terrorist" during his confirmation hearing last week. These questions were asked despite the fact that Mohammed has, in Gov. Christie's words, "never been accused of doing anything but honorably and zealously acquitting the oath he took when he became a lawyer," and despite his assistance in setting up "dozens of meetings with Muslim American leaders to convince them that federal law enforcement could be trusted in the aftermath of September 11th and that they should provide information and leads to help to combat potential terrorist attacks in our state."

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04/16/2012
Religious Discrimination

A Look at the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

By Dena Sher, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 12:31pm

In 1998, Congress created the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom to draw attention to violations of religious freedom in other countries. The commissioners vote annually to list countries that are of particular concern or place others on a watch list of countries that should be monitored closely for religious freedom violations.

But, since its inception, the commission's been beset by controversy. People who watch the commission closely say it was created to satisfy special interests, which has led to bias in the commission's work. Past commissioners and staff have reported that the commission is "rife, behind-the-scenes, with ideology and tribalism." They've said that commissioners focus "on pet projects that are often based on their own religious background." In particular, past commissioners and staff reported "an anti-Muslim bias runs through the Commission's work."

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09/15/2011
Sharia

Oklahoma Seeks to "Save" Itself from the Requirements of the U.S. Constitution

By Chandra Bhatnagar, Senior Staff Attorney, ACLU Human Rights Program at 5:17pm

On Monday, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals heard argument in Awad v. Ziriax, a legal challenge to Oklahoma's proposed "Save our State Amendment", which would prohibit Oklahoma state judges from considering international law, foreign law, or Sharia (Islamic law).

While the proposed amendment is clearly intended to demonize American Muslims and limit their religious freedom and access to Oklahoma's legal system, there is another equally troubling and unconstitutional element to its character — the amendment would prevent Oklahoma's judges from appropriately considering international law, including treaties that the United States has ratified.

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09/13/2011
Sharia

Defending the Indefensible: Oklahoma Struggles to Salvage Its Unconstitutional Sharia Ban

By Daniel Mach at 2:06pm

Are all faiths equal under the law? Does the fundamental right to worship in this country depend on approval of the majority? These questions lie at the heart of a legal challenge by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Council on American-Islamic Relations to Oklahoma's "Save Our State Amendment," which bars state courts from applying — or even considering — Islamic "Sharia law" and "international law."

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