CAIRO (Marwa Awad)
As President Barack Obama was in Turkey on his first outreach visit to a Muslim country, America's own Muslims urged him Monday to focus on the civil liberties concerns of its citizens and consider Muslim-Americans as a "bridge" between the United States and the Islamic world.
American Muslims called on Obama to address domestic civil rights issues, like the spread of Islamophobia and racial profiling, that prevent them from integrating into American society at a press conference at Washington’s National Press Club.
" While it is vitally important for President Obama to reach out to the Muslim world, it is equally important that he address serious concerns American Muslims have about domestic policies that negatively impact civil liberties and seem to reflect the growth of Islamophobic attitudes in our nation " Dr. Agha Saeed, AMT chairman "While it is vitally important for President Obama to reach out to the Muslim world, it is equally important that he addresses serious concerns American Muslims have about domestic policies that negatively impact civil liberties and seem to reflect the growth of Islamophobic attitudes in our nation,” Dr. Agha Saeed, chairman of American Muslim Taskforce (AMT), told AlArabiya.net.
With the change in administration, many American Muslims hoped to address the many civil rights hurdles created during the previous eight years of George W. Bush, whose 'war on terror' policies eroded their liberties, according to several civil rights organizations.
Saeed hailed Obama’s visit to a Muslim country as "a major symbolic shift" in American foreign policy, which he said he believes now aims to build a partnership of collaboration instead of confrontation. |
Obama said in Turkish parliament that US has been enriched by Muslim Americans. The ethnic and religious ties American Muslims shared with their coreligionists in other countries makes them a valuable asset to a president whose job is to “communicate” with the Muslim world.
Appointing Muslims for key government positions, including them in the policy consultation process and addressing the new Justice Department guidelines that permit race and ethnicity to factor into opening FBI probes would be a start toward better integration and building trust.
Salim Akhtar, a taskforce spokesperson, said the outreach briefing was planned because Muslims in America are now proactively seeking and demanding integration.
"There was definitely more clarity given to the media about how the Muslim community in the U.S. felt about its position vis-à-vis the Obama administration and American society at large," Akhtar told AlArabiya.net, adding that Christian and non-Muslim civil rights groups backed the call for improving civil liberties violations Muslims faced in the U.S. |
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Good timing An ABC NEWS poll found 55 percent of Americans lacked a clear understanding of Islam The taskforce’s call for domestic outreach came on the heels of an ABC news/Washington Post poll that found most Americans backed Obama’s outreach to Muslim nations but nonetheless remained wary of Muslims and Islam.
The poll showed 48 percent of Americans held negative opinions of Islam and 29 percent believed it preached violence towards non-Muslims. Unfamiliarity with Islam and Muslims was the main factor behind these unfavorable views, which were the highest since 2001 and have doubled since 2002.
“These findings show that communication and reciprocal outreach is paramount to the future of the Muslim community in America and this is why we extending our hands in friendship and work to be part of the American political process,” said Akhtar.
Fifty-five percent of Americans admitted they lacked a clear understanding of the religion while 53 percent said they did not personally know a Muslim. Meanwhile, those who knew Muslims or understood the basic tenets of Islam had a far more positive view. |
" These findings show that communication reciprocal outreach is paramount to the future of the Muslim community in America and this is why we extending our hands in friendship and to become part of the American political process " Salim Akhtar, AMT spokesman Suspicion of Muslims has come to the fore recently when Muslim groups accused the FBI of sending undercover agents into mosques, pressuring Muslims to become informants, labeling civil rights advocates as criminals and spreading misinformation.
The AMT announced it was considering suspending outreach relations with the domestic intelligence agency over the controversy. To date, 38 organizations and 117 community activists and scholars have endorsed its position.
The American Muslim Taskforce is a coalition of Muslim organizations in America that seeks to mainstream the American Muslim community through voter participation and building alliances with other Americans on political, economic, social and ethical issues. |
