Web research shows there are plentty of reasons to be concerned
about the proposed Islamic center in San Martin
The spate of letters from local Muslims claiming that Islam is a religion of peace, claiming to be good neighbors, and asking that the Islamic center in San Martin be welcomed by South Valley residents has been interesting.
The letters from locals say, “We are nice. We are your neighbors,” and not much more. They are vaguely reassuring, but not high on semantic content.
A letter from Mariam Moustafa of Irvine was more concrete. She castigated Andrew Serrano for making inaccurate statements. She wrote, “Several American Muslim organizations, such as the American Muslim Alliance, the American Muslim Council, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Muslim Public Affairs Council, the Muslim American Society, the Islamic Society of North America, and the Muslim Alliance in North America have openly condemned terrorism.”
Well, that was a very reassuring statement, so I googled each organization to see what they had said to denounce terrorism.
The American Muslim Alliance has provided funds to the terrorist organization Hamas.
The American Muslim Council’s leadership has openly supported terror groups – groups plural — such as Hamas. AMC founder Abdurahman Alamoudi is quoted by the AP (1/9/02) as saying, “We are all supporters of Hamas! Allahu Akhbar! … I am also a supporter of Hezbollah.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Islamic Society of North America are both un-indicted co-conspirators in an ongoing federal case to investigate terrorist funding.
The Muslim Public Affairs Council denies that there is such a thing as Islamic terrorism. They seem to be basically a propaganda mill, in my opinion.
The founding incorporators of the Muslim American Society, Ahmad Elkadi, Jamal Badawi, and Omar Soubani, are also members of the board of directors of the Muslim Brotherhood, a terror sponsoring group. The acknowledged role of MAS is “to educate the brothers in all work centers, mosques and organizations on the necessity of stopping any contacts with the Zionist organizations and the rejection of any future contacts” with such. Not particularly tolerant.
By now thoroughly alarmed, I visited the website of the South Valley Islamic Community, the group which wants to build the Islamic center in San Martin, and found nothing.
I mean, nothing. Most organizations have their board of directors listed on their websites, complete with bona fides. The SVIC says they have a seven-member board of directors, and advises viewers to get to know them, but does not list so much as their names. The website has a button to click to learn about the school, but lists no faculty.
The website has a button to click to make donations, but does not say where the donations are going.
The website does have a very elaborate system for determining exactly when and the precise direction in which to pray toward Mecca. First things first.
Probably the donations will go to build the SVIC Cordoba Center, not to aid and abet Hamas or Hezbollah. And probably the local residents who wrote in support of the Cordoba Center, Judy Anderson-Hamed, Nuzhat Alavi, and Farhana Afroz, are just nice, peaceable South County residents yearning to be able to practice their religion freely.
(It is too bad that Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia do not allow the free exercise of religions other than Islam. But of course, if Muslims ever did become a majority in the United States, they would adopt the values of our country and continue to allow religious freedom here. Naturally.)
And probably the SVIC has nothing to hide. They probably just have a webmaster who works a real job and has not had time to post the names of the board.
But if I were the board of directors of SVIC, I would write a cheerful letter to Mariam Moustafa of Irvine, thanking her for her good intentions and asking her to not write any more. If SVIC wants the support of this community, linking themselves to American Muslim Alliance, the American Muslim Council, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Muslim Public Affairs Council, the Muslim American Society, the Islamic Society of North America, Hamas, and Hezbollah seems ill-advised.
Cynthia Anne Walker is a homeschooling mother of three and former engineer. She is a published independent author. Her column is published in The Dispatch every week.
