Alternative Universe: Being Muslim always means denial of responsibility….
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Al-Awlaki & New McCarthyism Witch-Hunt Against UK Muslim Organizations |
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In the wake of the tragic killing of 13 US soldiers at Fort Hood in Texas, a number of Britain-based think tanks, newspapers, and websites have sought to capitalize on reports saying that the suspected gunman, Nidal Malik Hasan, was allegedly in contact with a well-known Yemeni imam called Anwar Al-Awlaki. The purpose of such focus is to engage in a modern version of a McCarthyite witch-hunt against leading UK Islamic organizations and Muslim individuals. During a period in US history known as the Second Red Scare, which lasted roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s, US Senator Joseph McCarthy achieved notoriety for his aggressive anti-Communist pursuits. Thousands of Americans were hauled before investigatory panels and accused of being Communists or Communist sympathizers, despite the often very questionable or inconclusive evidence. Many innocent people’s careers were destroyed as a result. The term McCarthyism has come to describe the politically motivated practice of making accusations of disloyalty or subversion against others without proper regard for evidence.
Following the Fort Hood shootings, Al-Awlaki used his website to post a message praising the suspected killer as follows:
Al-Awlaki’s Influence
Al-Awlaki is by no means a marginal figure. He briefly served as an imam at the Dar Al-Hijrah Mosque in Great Falls, Virginia, US, where he is said to have performed the funeral ceremony for Nidal Hasan’s mother in 2001. He was also invited to the UK by a number of prominent Islamic organizations for a number of conferences, and he proved to be a popular speaker from the late 1990s onward. To this day, Al-Awlaki is thought to retain a significant following among more disillusioned British Muslim youths.At that time, Al-Awlaki’s views were far more sensible, with no hint to his later extremism. Indeed, in an interview with National Geographic Magazine [1] following the 9/11 attacks, Al-Awlaki’s responses were notably measured and reasonable. Observers say that Al-Awlaki’s world view underwent a radical change following the start of the US war against Iraq in 2003, his subsequent move to Yemen in 2004, and especially his incarceration in 2006 for more than a year, which took place despite the fact that no charges were brought against him. Just as Al-Awlaki is using his influence to incite Muslims in the West to violence, it is essential that credible Muslim scholars with far more impressive Islamic learning use their authority to forcefully speak out against indiscriminate violence and in favor of democratic and peaceful engagement. The prominent Islamic scholar Dr. Jamal Badawi who resides in Canada and regularly visits the UK on speaking engagements strongly refuted Awlaqi’s argument that the killings at Fort Hood could be considered as a part of jihad [2]:
Last month, the influential Saudi scholar Salman Al-Oudah issued a call denouncing Al-Qaeda and its supporters in no uncertain terms [3]:
Al-Qaradawi, an Asset
It is very unfortunate that Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi has been barred from visiting the UK since early 2007 by the British government, following pressure from pro-Israeli lobbies. Sheikh Al-Qaradawi is an Islamic scholar who commands huge respect among millions of Muslims worldwide. As a regular past visitor to the UK, he would consistently urge British Muslims to shun all forms of extremism and to focus their energies on ensuring that their children excelled in education.His long experience of dealing with youths influenced by extremist and takfiri ideas (ideas involving accusations of backsliding from Islam) would surely have been a valuable asset in the struggle against Al-Qaeda-inspired propaganda. Nonetheless, it should be made clear that those same Muslim organizations that had in the past invited Al-Awlaki to the UK are horrified by his more recent extremism and are well aware of the damaging impact his views could now have on British Muslims. Following Al-Awlaki’s praise for the Fort Hood suspect, some of these UK Muslim organizations (including the Islamic Society of Britain [4] and the Jam`iat Ihyaa’ Minhaaj Al-Sunnah [5]) issued public statements disavowing his latest comments. However, this was not enough for the new McCarthyists. A group of them — including the Centre for Social Cohesion (whose director, Douglas Murray, advocated in 2006 that “conditions for Muslims in Europe must be made harder across the board”), Shiraz Maher from Policy Exchange, and the pro-Israel blog Harry’s Place — have not been slow in seeking to smear those Islamic organizations that had invited Al-Awlaki to the UK in the past. These new McCarthyists must be firmly resisted. In the famous words of Edward R. Murrow, the CBS broadcast journalist who did so much to expose the original McCarthyists, “We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. We must remember always that accusation is not proof and that conviction depends upon evidence and due process of law. We will not walk in fear, one of another. We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason, if we dig deep in our history and our doctrine, and remember that we are not descended from fearful men.” Sources: [1]:Attack on America: An Islamic Scholar’s Perspective—Part 1 |
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Poor Hasan, maybe he can sue for being shot & having his fun interrupted. Isn’t it some sort of discrimination to prevent Moslems killing Americans whenever they wish? The ACLU will help him out for sure.
The only McCarthy active these days is Charlie McCarthy, the ventriloquist’s dummy, babbling endlessly about muslim attacks & terrorism being nothing to do with islam.