Habib Siddiqui

I just came across an article in Christianity Today. Its editor is David Neff who wrote an article “Give Franklin Graham Some Slack—and Some Credit,” which is problematic on several grounds. By writing such praises for one of the worst chauvinists of our time, the editor has shown that the paper promotes bigotry. Neff endorses Franklin Graham’s offensive remarks about Islam. This is a sickening display of selective amnesia when one finds worst kinds of crimes committed in the name of Christianity over the last two millennia. Just in Iraq alone, Franklin Graham and his spiritual student George W. Bush killed more than a million innocent Iraqi Muslims, all under the false pretext of finding never-to-be-found WMDs. Is lying kosher in Christianity? Is killing human beings kosher in Christianity? And then Franklin Graham had the audacity to appear in Iraq with his Samaritan Purse, which did not fool anyone as to where his motivation lied. It was not helping unarmed and maimed Iraqis, thanks...

In an earlier article, I have compared politicians as prostitutes and pimps. I have also mentioned that fortunately there are some exceptions to this rule, where I mentioned amongst others the New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. As to why I sounded so negative about the politicians, just remind yourself with what John McCain and Joe Lieberman had said during the 2008 primary election. When McCain was endorsed by John Hagee, McCain said he was "very honored" to receive this endorsement and, when asked about some of Hagee's more twisted views, responded: "all I can tell you is that I am very proud to have Pastor John Hagee's support." McCain's sainted supporter, Joe Lieberman, spoke to Hagee's group in 2007 and lavished him with such obsequious praise that Lieberman actually compared Hagee, favorably, to Moses. Now who is this John Hagee? He is, of course, the white evangelical who is the pastor of a sprawling "mega-church" in Texas. He is the ...

The blessed month of Ramadan is upon us. To a Muslim no other month is as meritorious as this particular month is when the reward of every good deed done is multiplied several times. It is not difficult to understand why the Prophet Muhammad (S) said that fasting is like a curtain against the Hellfire. It is also the month when the Qur’an was sent down as a guide to mankind – with clear signs for guidance and judgment between right and wrong. As instructed in the Qur’an every able bodied Muslim who is not ill or on a journey is obligated to fast the entire month from dawn to dusk (2:185). In that practice, Muslims are also reminded that it is something that was also prescribed to people who came before them so that they may learn self-restraint (2:183). Thus, teaching self-restraint is the essence of fasting. Probably at no other time in America is this message more relevant than this Ramadan. Truly, it has been a very difficult month for most Muslim Americans who are viciously attacke...

As I feared, Islamophobia has its latest victim in a hate crime that saw a Muslim cab driver in New York city severely stabbed several times by a White American. The Republican leaders and right wing conservative talk show hosts cannot escape from being held responsible for spreading hate crime against Muslims. Such propaganda and hatemongering is sure to bring the worst from bigots and chauvinists. Here is the report from the USA Today : NEW YORK — A Manhattan cabbie who was stabbed Tuesday night by a Putnam County man questioned Wednesday whether the attack stemmed from the contentious debate over creating a mosque near ground zero. Ahmed H. Sharif, 43, of Queens, was stabbed several times by Michael Enright, 21, of Southeast, N.Y., after Enright had asked Sharif if he was Muslim and the cabbie responded that he was, a police spokesman said. When officers responded to the scene around 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, Sharif was outside the vehicle, suffering from stab wounds, after attempting to l...

There is no doubt that Islamophobia is on the rise. It is no longer an isolated issue that is thriving in some bigotry-ridden corner in Europe. Thanks to its evil promoters, the beast has become a global phenomenon today. One such promoter is the group called Stop the Islamization of Europe (SIOE), which is led by Anders Gravers. As is evident from its motto “Islamophobia is the height of common sense,” the group doesn’t sugar-coat its bigotry. The group has its American equivalent in Stop the Islamization of America (SIOA), which was created by anti-Muslim bloggers, bigots and militants Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer. One may recall that in 2008, Geller announced that Barack Hussein Obama is not, as previously reported, the son of Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., but rather the illegitimate son of Malcolm X. In a 2009 blog she called for the destruction of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. Sadly, conservative politicians and the media in the USA continue to lend her insanity credence the...

When I first came to Vancouver, Canada nearly 32 years ago, Ramadhan – the holiest month of the Islamic calendar, in which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk – was in its last week. Because of the strike by the employees of the Air Canada, I had to settle for the Greyhound Bus to complete the last leg of my journey. It was a 28-hour long trip via some of the most scenic places on earth. I ended up arriving in Saskatoon just the night before Eid-ul Fitr, the day of festivity after the month-long fasting. With all the schedule changes with my date and time of arrival, there was no university official from the Office of the International Students to receive me at the bus terminal. Instead, Dr. Shakeel Akhtar, an Indian Canadian and an old-time friend and roommate of Professor Nuruddin Ahmed of BUET (who did his PhD from the University of Saskatchewan), whom I had called soon after my arrival was gracious enough to pick me up from the terminal. He was a noble soul and took me to his home. [In ...

A reader Freek (geubel@home.nl) wrote: "You wrote about Religious Intolerance in America. What about Religious Intolerance in the Muslim countries? Why can't Christians build a church in, let say Saudi Arabia or read even a Bible? Do you understand the meaning of the word "tolerance"? It must come from both sides will we ever live in peace on this world. FG, The Netherlands" My comments follow: Religious intolerance is against the very spirit of the Qur'an, as enunciated in many verses. One can read my detailed article on the subject, based on my lecture at the interfaith conference in Nashville, Vanderbilt University. If some Muslims are violating the noble precepts then it is they themselves who are blameworthy. Such intolerance against anyone including fellow Muslims of different sects is simply unacceptable, and would be punished by God on the Day of Judgment. The question on Saudi Arabia (SA) is a flawed one. Nonetheless I shall...

There is no doubt that Islamophobia is on the march. In New York, opponents of a Muslim community center and mosque are trying to stop its construction near the site of the 9/11 attacks. They are hatemongers. Just a reading of their statements and speeches show that they are closet fascists. The Slate writes, "There's that telltale phrase again: a mosque. It's the same phrase Gingrich used a week ago: "It is simply grotesque to erect a mosque at the site of the most visible and powerful symbol of the horrible consequences of radical Islamist ideology." The same phrase Sarah Palin used: "To build a mosque at Ground Zero is a stab in the heart of the families of the innocent victims of those horrific attacks." The same phrase Rudy Giuliani used when he called it "a mosque that's in exactly the wrong place." The same phrase Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a Republican presidential aspirant, used this weekend: "I'm strongly opposed to th...

The following are New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's remarks as delivered on Governors Island. We have come here to Governors Island to stand where the earliest settlers first set foot in New Amsterdam, and where the seeds of religious tolerance were first planted. We've come here to see the inspiring symbol of liberty that, more than 250 years later, would greet millions of immigrants in the harbor, and we come here to state as strongly as ever - this is the freest City in the world. That's what makes New York special and different and strong. Our doors are open to everyone - everyone with a dream and a willingness to work hard and play by the rules. New York City was built by immigrants, and it is sustained by immigrants - by people from more than a hundred different countries speaking more than two hundred different languages and professing every faith. And whether your parents were born here, or you came yesterday, you are a New Yorker. We may not always agree w...

Today my attention was drawn to Dr. Fareed Zakaria's letter to ADL in which he deplored the latter's opposition to the construction of a mosque on a Muslim property, located a couple of blocks from the Ground Zero. While I have sometimes critiqued Zakaria on some issues relating to his analysis of the Muslim world, I have always admired his ability to present his views in a concise manner. His successful career as the International editor of the Newsweek and the popular host of the Fareed Zakaria GPS in the CNN all speak high about his talent and skill as a good communicator, something lacking in many good writers and analysts of global politics. I have also read his books, and found them to be serious books for anyone interested in global politics to read. I must however admit that I have often entertained some doubts about him whether he would have the moral guts to stand on highly controversial positions that are politically incorrect. I have imagined that he would behave li...

As I noted earlier, religious intolerance is penetrating America. It is a sign of fascism that is led by some hateful, bigoted elements within the American society. Unless, this evil is smashed promptly, America will traverse the same fate that visited many such countries that once embraced xenophobia. It is time for America to wake up and stop this hatred once and for all time. Here is a NY Times article that discusses resistance to some proposed mosques in various localities in the USA. It is a sign of disgrace and shame for America.

Last Tuesday, August 3, 2010, New York City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission voted 9 to 0 approving the construction of the mosque and Islamic center. As the New York Times editorial rightly concluded “It was not just the right thing to do, it was the only thing to do.” With this vote, the commission reaffirmed one of the basic tenets of democracy: religious tolerance. New York Mayor Bloomberg has also endorsed the mosque proposal and correctly said that the owners of the building (i.e., the Muslim) have the right to use their property as a house of worship. “The government has no right whatsoever to deny that right,” he said. What the opponents wanted was use the mosque controversy to foment hatred and bigotry against some six to eight million Muslims who live in the USA. As we know quite well the Republicans have been shamelessly playing the politics of fear since 9/11. It was therefore not surprising that with just about three months left for the mid-term November election, the R...