Islam+Current+Events+2010

= = =Mosque to be built at Ground Zero=

In this article there is something huge going on………a mosque is getting built near ground zero. This is so huge because the group that knocked down the twin towers claimed to be Muslim. There are a lot of mixed feelings about this…some think its ok, ”But Muslims also got killed on 9/11. It would be a good sign of faith that we're not condemning all Muslims and that the Muslims who did this happened to be extremists.” Others have different ideas, “Lower Manhattan should be made into a shrine for the people who died there," said Michael Valentin, a retired city detective who worked at ground zero. "It breaks my heart for the families who have to put up with this. I understand they're [building] it in a respectful way, but it just shouldn't be down there. The thing is that the place isn’t only a mosque it’s a gym, swimming pool etc. I think that its good that they are putting it up it expresses how America is adapting to the attack and fixing it.

= = =NYTMuslim groups proclaim deceiving facts in Islam textbooks=

A Muslim Civil Liberty Group is accusing a series of children’s textbooks about Islamas biased. They believe the textbook is incorrectly portraying Muslims as violent and deserving of mistrust. The accused textbooks are entitled, World Of Islam by Mason Crest Publishing. No one knows exactly where the false textbooks are being used, but estimated in about 24 states. In my opinion, the Mason Crest Publishing didn’t take the necessary precautions if people are making accusations. Also I think it is a problem because it is a children’s textbook and know children may not think of Muslims and the Islam religion respectfully. In class, we learned that Muslims were peaceful and are charitably and forgiving people, and now some of the children in our country have a different opinion

. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =**Muslim women refuse to pray separately in Mosque**=

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In this article, two Islamic women give their opinions about how they should pray in their mosque. One of the women believes strongly that all women should be able to pray alongside men. Once while she was at her mosque, she started praying up front, with the men. She refused to pray in the back with the women, and was eventually escorted out by the police. The other woman thinks differently. She says that she is not bothered by it at all, and actually likes it better. I believe that anybody should be able to pray wherever they like. Even in the Koran it says nothing about gender segregation, so there is nothing against it. It is just part of the culture, not the religion. Sources: islamconcepts.com for image, npr.org for article ===== =[|TWIN TOWERS ARE GONE BUT MOSQUE WILL BE BUILT IN ITS PLACE]= This article came from http://www.energypublisher.com/article.asp?id=32534 In a building that was grazed by one of the jet liners that crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, a more then 10 story Islamic cultural center and mosque is to be built. Two Muslim organizations have worked together in purchasing a property that promises to be a place of worship and education in lower Manhattan which is close to where Twin Towers once stood. Despite some voices of opposition, Daisy Khan the executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement (ASMA) who is also board member of theCordoba Initiative. The Muslim cultural center and mosque will be called Cordoba House.

I think this will help the american image a lot and not just to Islamic people but to a lot of countries. It shows how we don't blame the group of Islam for september 11 2001, and even if we do that we are forgiving. this will protect us hopefully from mean things said about the USA and get us some more allies across the world. To me I love what this article is talking about i think its very important that all people, race, religion...etc just get along we don't have to all be best friends but there does not have to be mean things said about one another. I strongly believe in that. = = = = [|mosque blue print] [|mosque new york city twin towers] = = = = = = = = = = =[|Mosque to be built just two blocks from Ground Zero]=

A mosque is going up just 2 blocks away from ground zero in New York. It will be part of a 15-story community center complete with a Gym, performing arts center, and even a swimming pool. Even though the community board of lower Manhattan all unanimously voted yes, there is still mixed reviews from people that are a part of the community. Daisy Khan, executive director of Muslim society, says that this center is important because it will “support the needs of the growing Muslim community. But another man, Michael Valentin, says that he “understands they’re building it in a respectful way, but it just shouldn’t be down here.

I agree with Michael Valentin. Though I think its great that Kahn is making this effort to create a place of worship for the Muslim community, I’m not sure that the area is ready to have a Muslim worship place so close to where tragedy struck jut 9 years ago. People might not be ready to put beside their stereotypes and forget and forgive. There could be a very negative reaction to the

I too agree. i think that the people might still be a little hurt and hurt the mosque. the community of Muslims should probably have a vote on weather or not they are willing to risk it. it probably also depends on how big the population is. I think that Khan is right to want them to have a place of worship and that they have a large right to it but, do they need such a big building and since it sounds close to where the terrorists flew in could they move it somewhere a little father away?



= CORDOBA HOUSE COMING TO NEW YORK CITY!! =

**What this article is about is they say more Muslims are coming to Lower Manhattan in New york. So to now that more Muslims have came they decided to make a mosque since the closest mosque is the Tribeca Mosque and they have been holding 3 Friday evening services every week. A man named Kahn and the members of his organization have decided to help build a mosque where Burlington Coat factory was once before in got damaged by a airplane on 9/11. Kahn says "We decided we wanted to look at the legacy of 9/11 and turn it into something positive."To build the mosque Kahn's and group members have to raise $100 million dollars to be able to build it.**

====** My thoughts about this is I think this is really nice thing to do. It shows that Kahn's group really wants to do something for the Muslim communities. I think that if people read this article it will make peoples stereotypes about Muslims less greater cause if they read that they are trying to make a positive impact on others to show they just want to worship there god and have peace. **====

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= = = = = = = = = = =Bombings inside Somali mosque kill 30= Web source: ** CNN.com Picture source: google.com(search:face-covering veil) There was a girl who was in her 20's living in italy. She was wearing a face covering veil and was fined for doing so. She was fined a large amount of money too, $653. Her and her housband are citizens of Italy. Her housband is a construction worker and is around 36 years old. The city has an ordinance preventing people from wearing clothes that cover the face and full body. Under a 1975 national anti-terrorism law, Italy prohibits the covering of one's face in public places. This applies only to the city of Novara, which has a population of about 100,000, out of which 8 percent are immigrants. I think that this is unfair because this is someones religion and nobody should be able to interfear with that. Like we said in class, if a muslim were forced to take this off it would make them feel naked and un-pretected. Just because that makes muslims look a little different that shouldn't mean that they can't wear it. For Christians this would be like saying that if someone prayed then they would have to pay a fine. For Judaism this would be like say that if they were studying hebrew then they would have to pay a fine. Women Fined For Face-Covering Veil =Islam in America= = =
 * __COVERING FACE COSTS MONEY__

This article is about a young girl who...

Blasphemy Upheld in Indonesia

This article is about a law that is upheld. The law is that blasphemy, something that Jesus Christ was accused for, is illeagal and that the 6 major religions may be practiced: Islam, Hinduism, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. Some Muslims were outraged by this and started to protest do things that were against the governments official religious laws. It is because there were certain groups of Muslim beliefs that were banned. For example in 2008, a decree was made that a sect called Ahmadiyah was banned for not believing that Muhhamad was not the last prophet. Many Muslims were arrested after heard that the decree of blasphemy had been signed and after protesting and a few of them were sentenced for more than three years. Do you think banning blasphemy and other Islamic sects should be banned from Indonesia? And what do you think about the Muslims and the government?
 * __Blasphemy by Muslims in Indonesia__**

=[|French Muslims feel victimized by the new veil law]= = =

__**Face veils ban from France along with money fines and years in jail... TERRIBLE! **__

The government in France is proposing a law against muslim women wearing face veils. They plan on fining women 150 euros ($200.00) for wearing a full face veils and fining people that force women to wear face veils 15,000 euros and a year in jail. There were also witnesses of bullets shot at mosques. A French muslim group think the French government has 'Islamophobia' and racism to muslims. Mamadou Alpha Diallo a 73 year old muslim said "It's getting tougher and tougher. It's as if people have had something against us for a long time and now that the politicians are saying it, they are letting it all out," Muslims are very disappointed with the french government for the veil ban and I would be too. For muslim women wearing this face veil is like wearing normal clothes. Although eventually less and less muslims are wearing a veil as time goes by, I think they are just so used to wearing one that this veil ban is very hard to handle. In my opinion this was a very bad choice for the french government to make because I mean, what do they have against muslims way of religion? Muslims veils don't hurt the government in anyway and this is a partially important part of muslims way of life, so why should they have to change? = This article was found on French 24 and the photo was found on google (search: full-face Islamic) = = = = = =Local Muslims Step Up to Help Haiti= __Muslims Helping Haiti Survivors__ In this article, it says that people in Haiti are recieving good donations from Muslims. There is a website were Muslims are raising benefits for the Hiati earthquake survivors called muslimsforhaiti.org. Muslims had already been gathering and donating things to certain countries like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Kenya and Sudan, but now Haiti has been added to the countries that will benefit from the donations of the Muslims. Muslims in Orange County have sent out a lot of basic things that they think the people that are in Haiti will need, in boxes. Now, people in Haiti are recieving boxes of things that they will need to survive this earthquake, and all of these things are from Muslims. The people that are contributing to this relief organization fell that it doesn't matter what the people that are getting this look like, believe in or anything else that other people would let affect them.

I think that this is really good and it shows that Muslims are very nice. I already belived that Muslims are very caring and in class i have learned that they are god-centered. Islam is one of the calmest and nicest religions and the people that are doing this organization are presenting there religion very well. I think that they are doing a really nice thing for these Hatians and they are joining a lot of other people. These people are very kind and they are just like all the other people that are helping and people should see them as good people. Just because there are a group of people that are bad from the religion, doesn't mean that everyone else in this religion are bad and this group of people are just making there religion look better, I think they are very good! == = = =Thieves steal 11 bronze statues in Tehran, Iran = In Tehran, some statues got stolen. Starting in late March, taking a few statues at a time, the people took the bronze from public parks. The thieves are Muslim, and it's against the Qur'an to steal. The statues were of famous Iranian people, like Sattar Khan and Bagher Khan. These statues were worth a lot of money. What Muslim that practices Islam in their daily basis, would go against the Qur'an? = = = = =[|Anti Muslim ads in Maimi to be reinstalled]=

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Ten advertisements by an anti Muslim group were removed from the Miami-Dade Transit Buses, but after complaints were filed, they were put back up. The ads were taken down because of "offensive language toward Muslims", with messages like "Fatwa on your head?, "is your community or family threatening you?" "Leaving Islam?", "Got questions? Get answers!" and told Muslims to go to a websie telling them to leave the "Falsity of Islam". After reveiwing the ads the county decided that "although they may be considered offensive by some, they do not fall under the general guidelines that would warrant their removeal." They are to be reinstalled May 3, Pamela Geller said "it was a violation of free speech that they were removed".=====

I think that this is not something that the state should allow, these could be considered very offensive to a Muslim. But I understand why they put the ads back up, because it is a violation of free speech, since the anti Muslim group had no say and the were the ones who payed for the ads. But the state should go back and look for anything that violates the guidelines. I do think that the situation could backfire on the anti Muslim group. It could cause people to look at Islam more closely. =__Arab Woman Speaks Agianst Her Own Religion__=

media type="youtube" key="oZKaiZjGWWs" height="385" width="480"

__Arab Woman Speaks Agianst Her Own Religion__ This article is about an Arab woman named Wafa Sultan who doesn’t agree with her religion. When she was growing up in Syria, she found that as a Muslim girl, she had no say in her future. To this day she has spoken out against Islam. When she was interviewed on T.V., Wafa was interrupted by an imam she said, “Shut up. It is my turn.” (In Arabic). This was the first time in history, that a Muslim woman has told a man to “Shut up.” on T.V. Wafa believes Muslim woman are being brainwashed, and Islam can’t change like Christianity, she just doesn’t agree with her religion. I am surprised about what Sultan had to say, but I agree that Muslim woman should have some rights. I think it’s very surprising that she doesn’t agree with her religion. Also, instead of switching to a religion she agrees with, she’s trying to change the religion. Muslim woman should be free to do what they want. They might want to follow Islam, but if she forces them to change, it’s just as bad as before. On the other hand, I haven’t experienced any of the things she has, so I don’t have the right to make that judgement. Wafa was right and had some very interesting things to say. =[]= = = = = =**Driver Wearing Islamic Face Veil Fined In France**= =Fine Pressed On Innocent Muslim Driver in France=

==**On April 23rd a 31-year-old Muslim woman was wearing an Islamic face veil in France. At the current time she was driving a car and was fined by the French police for not having a clear "field of vision." The fine was minor-$29, but caught great attention. The woman's husband might even lose his French nationality for being suspected of "illegal behavior." President Nicolas Sarkozy is trying to ban all the "encompassing" veils in the public areas of France, even though this law is found "unconstitutional" by France's highest administrative body. He says that it oppreses women, to support his case. The driver's lawyer says the veil is just like the full helmet motorcyclists wear or a nun's veil.-Opinion- This case is wrong because I believe that this driver is not at fault. The president should not pursue this matter because their are many things that can be argued with this case. Mr. Sarkozy says it oppresses women but I don't agree because from prior knowledge I know it is a woman's choice to wear the hijab/veil. People should be free to express their religion no matter what that religion is. I agree with the words of the driver's lawyer- the veil is just like a motorcyclist's helmet. This fine should be dropped as should the questionable law.**==

**@http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126158387**
=Muslim Group Targeting South Park=

[|Link to the article]


This article is about people questioning wether the South Park episode was offensive or not. The article was saying they discriminate against Jesus and Hindu gods but it is NOT ok to discriminate against Muhammad. They were also talking about how the show is a cartoon that was made to make fun of things on earth and above the sun. The whole point of the show is to make fun of people and religion. The creators of the show were also being compared to Theo Van Gogh, a director who was murdered by Muslims after he had directed a short film claiming to expose the abuse of women as commanded by the Qur'an. Thehe article was also saying how comedy central censored out parts of the show because of the threats that the show creators were getting. The article also contradicted itself saying that people must keep in mind that it is a comedy and in every episode they make fun of someone or something. The article contradicted itself again and said the point of the episode was to in-rage Muslims so they put Muhammad in a bear suit saying that we did not actually show Muhammad and the article said that the network may have a point. The main point of the article was so say if it is ok to make fun of Jesus in basically every episode so why it not ok to make fun of Muhammad? I agree with this article is wrong but they do have a point. I think that the reason that so many people made such a big deal over it being a Muslim prophet because there are so many stereotypes about Muslims that all Muslims are terrorist, that all Muslims have to have the same skin color they all have to be from the same place, that all Muslim men wear turbans and all Muslim woman wear hijabs, and so on. That people thought that the creator were just creating another stereotype about Muslims.

__Arab Woman Speaks Agianst Her Own Religion__ =[]=

This article is about Wafa Sultan, an Arab woman who doesn't agree with her religion.
. = = =[|Daughters and Hijab]= = = =This article is about a mother and her perspective about her daughter not being allowed to wear her Hijab in school. The examples that girls are not allowed to wear a hijab are Singapore, Spain, France and Britain. In Singapore two seven year old girls were thrown out of school, for wearing the Hijab after the principal banned it. In Spain, a 13 year old muslim girl wore her hijab to school, the education minister said it was "a sign of discrimination". etc. I think that muslim girls should have the choice to wear a hijab or not if that is part of their religion. If girls feel comfortable wearing something that they believe in they should be able to wear it. If someone is allowed to wear a cross necklace they should be able to wear a hijab.=

==== ====

==The article that I read is about a entrepreneurship summit that the White house convened for 2 days. The hope of this program is to extend political ties to the muslim world and to other countries, even if the other countries politics are rough. This article talks about how it's trying to get muslim entrepreneurs to get to come to america and explore business here. I think that the President is doing a good job of trying to make peace with other places of the world. This is a good start for peace making for the U.S. Also, I like this because it's a good chance for entrepreneurs to view different business systems from different countries.== **[|The Article]**

==Sana Haq is a seven teen year-old girl living in New Jersey. Her parents are immigrants from Palestine and she observes Islam. Sana describes the impact that being muslim has on her daily life and how it separates her from her friends. She finds that even regular activities like shopping can be challenges because she can't find clothing that is modest enough. The article also compares and contrasts the populations of muslims in the U.S. and in Europe and the different obstacles that muslims face in the two places.==

==I really enjoyed this article because it gives insight on how Muslim teens excperiance the world. I liked hearing what people's opinions were and what they thought. I thought that it was really interesting to compare their perspectives to mine.==

[[image:muslim-hs-300x226.jpg width="269" height="197" align="left"]]
===Priscilla Martinez is a teacher, principal, and a guidance counselor in her own home. She teaches Muslim traditions along with grammar and math. On the walls it says " I fast in Ramadan", "I pay Zakat", and "I will go on Hajj". Muslim homeschooling wasn't very popular until recently. Islamic schools are too far away, and she wanted her kids to have Muslim schooling along with math, science...Similar to Moqsood and Zakia Khan, whose children are 15, 14, and 9 years old study the koran for a half an hour each day over the internet with a woman in Pakistan. OPINION- I can understand why parents are doing this. It is no different then a Christian child being home schooled, or a Jewish child, they just want their children to be closer to their religion. ===

Vandalized Mosque
 [|http://politics.nashvillepost.com/2010/02/10/nashville-mosque-vandalized/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+postpolitics+(Post+Politics)]

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(Summary) One day, it was found that the Alfarooq Masjid of Nashville, Tennessee has been vandalized. Hateful messages against Muslims were spray painted on the side of the mosque. The same person also left a hand written note to the mosque. (Opinion) I am outraged that a person would do this, even though I know it doesn't happen that rarely. It was fine for the person to write a letter, unless it was blackmail, but the spray paint was just too far. ======

U.S. Muslims Debate English or Arabic worship
= = == = =

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Sana Rahim is a 20 year old Muslim but can't speak, read, or write Arabic very well. She doesn't have very much time to study Arabic, so she enjoys mosque's that have sermons in English. The debate is if the prayer language should be English or Arabic, but the Friday prayer no question is going to stay in Arabic. Many mosques don't have prayers in English but some do. Abdullah fears that children who don't think the mosque is satisfying will leave. Many Muslims don't even understand the language.

I think the prayer language should be English, so that people who convert don't have to learn Arabic, but I shouldn't be the one to decide because I'm not the one going to be saying the prayers in English or Arabic. Or each individual mosque could decide so that people could say the say the prayers in ether language.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =Belgium Decides to Ban the Burkha in Public=

[|Belgium Decides to Ban the Burkha in Public]



====**This article is all about the controversy on whether or not Burkha's should be allowed to be worn in public. Belgium is trying to pass a law that they should not be allowed to be worn in public, but some Muslims are going against this. The law includes fines for people that break it. There may a fine of thirty dollars or a jail sentence around a week. This is a very big deal because Muslim's worry that if this is the first European country to try and activate this law other countries may follow suit. Now that Belgium has almost pasted the law, France is trying to pass a similar one which is likely to be passed. I disagree with this law and do not think it should be passed. It is part of these peoples religion and i think they should have the right to expression. They believe that if they do not wear the Burkha they will be judged on their outer beauty and not their inner beauty and individual character. Without the Burkha some Muslims may feel naked and like they are disobeying the words on god Allah. I would compare this to a law passing that a Christian cross or the Star of David can not be displayed in public.**==== = = =Comic book publisher praised for reflecting 'tolerance of Islam'=

Comic book publisher praised for reflecting 'tolerance of Islam' 

Image Source: CNN Article Source: CNN
 * [[image:http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/LIVING/04/27/kuwait.comics/story.the99.afp.gi.jpg]]

This article is about Naif al-Mutawa, a comic book publisher who was praised by Obama, who commented on the fact that Mutawa uses lessons from the Qur'an and teaching about Islam, making people realize that Islam isn't just about violence. Mutawa says he was inspired to teach about Islam after the September 11 attack so people would realize that Islam isn't all violence and terrorism. The title means that 99 superheroes, from all over the globe, all different backgrounds, team up together to fight evil. There isn't any religion in the comic book, but Mutawa studied the Qur'an to find lessons.

I find it very interesting that a comic book can contain lessons. When I think of superhero comic books, I think of violence, not teamwork, and defiantly NOT a religion. I think that what Mutawa is doing is amazing. He is trying to clear up the Islam name, from what most people think of. Overall, this is a very cool article!**

Belgium's lower house votes to ban burqa ​** Image Source: Google Images Article Source: CNN Student News
 * Ban Burqa?!

Summary: In this article, the congressmen of Belgium are trying to, by law, ban the burqa, an Islamic head covering that women wear. "Lawmakers in Belgium on Thursday approved a ban on the wearing of burqas and other Islamic garb that covers a woman's face but the bill must still be approved by the upper house of parliament before it becomes law." This is very important because not only will it become a worldwide law, but Belgium may become the first country in Europe to officially ban the burqa. "If the Senate approves it, Belgium would become the first country in Europe to ban the burqa." According to the article, it sounds like they may pass this law. "Senate passage seems likely since the Chamber of Deputies approved it." A group who heard about the idea, did not like the sound of it. "Human rights group Amnesty International immediately condemned the vote." People were actually motivated in helping to push the ban of the burqa. "Members of parliament have said they're motivated both by security and morality in pushing for the ban." Denis Durcame estimated that a few hundred people wore either the niqab-another type of Islamic head covering-or the burqa. "He estimated that 300 to 400 women in the country wear the niqab or the burqa."

I think that the senate shouldn't pass the law. But, it would be good for Belgium because if the senate actually approves of this law, then Belgium would become the first country in Europe to ban the burqa. But, after hearing about that, I still don't think that they should approve of this law. According to this article, the senate may approve of this law. I feel sorry for the Muslim people who live in Belgium because they were probably the first people to hear about this future law. Of course, there are Muslims out there who are disapproving the law and I feel sorry for them, too.

= = =Differences Uniting;=

[|A Photographer's Take On Island Islam]
Article Source: National Public Radio (NPR). Image Source: National Public Radio (NPR). This article was about a photographer named James Nachtwey. Nachtwey looked at and photographed the heart, mind and spirit of Islamic traditions from all perspectives for National Geographic. Beyond this part, it talked about the jam-packed Islamic culture in the of Indonesia. Soon after mentioning the idea of democracy creeping up into the country, it has now been 10 years and the Muslims are on the verge of making a change.

I think that it is interesting how the variety and amount of Islamic culture correspond together in the community. I also think that it is good for the people to make the change onto democracy for a better government. Even thought hey have been working on it for years and not completed it, I still think that the change will come soon. Also, I think that it is great the Nachtwey wants to capture the true thoughts and emotions of the every day Muslims and express it his own way to the world.

=**Civilians killed in Muslim bombing Pakistan Strike kills 45**= article source:Wall Street Journal

A senior Islamic military official from Pakistan admitted that atleast 45 cilvilians died in an airstruck bombing that was supposed to target Talibanian leaders last weekend. They were killed when Pakistani planes bombed a hideout near the Afghan border. Many of those killed actullay belonged to a tribe who opposed the Taliban. Our leaders in Washington D.C. have praised Pakistan for fighting the Islamic militants in the tribal areas. I think that this is awful that these people were killed, there was no reason they should have been, since they were in a tribe fightning for the same things as the people who killed them were. Even though they weren't shot by enemies, it still makes it sad, and maybe even worse since they were "teamates" if you know what I mean. However, the people in the good tribe were dressed in oufits that looked like those of the Taliban, so in a way I don't blame the Pakistan airplane pilots entirely for the death of the civilians.



Israeli Settlers Threaten Bordering Muslims[|Vandals Attack West Bank Mosque]
 * Article Source:** New York Times **Image Source:** New York Times

In a West Bank village (in Israel), a group of threatening Israeli (probably Jewish) people attacked a Muslim mosque. They also tore down 300 olive trees and started fires in cars. Not only this, but they also wrote the name of the prophet Muhammad in Hebrew letters on the wall of the mosque (see above). Israeli military officials believe that this was part of a bigger threat to Palestinians.

I have read other articles that have talked about attacks on other Palestinians in this area. To have this much anger is very scary and I think that they should try to express this anger in a less violent way. This article makes me wonder who is really to blame in all of this mess. At the very end of the article it says that two Israelis were severely injured recently by Palestinians throwing stones. The only answer I can come up with is that nobody is truly innocent in this. They all rebel and have so much anger in them it leads to an endless cycle of violence. This makes me wonder just what type of a world we live in.

=Muhammad Shown In TV Show South Park [|South Park Muhammad Episode Airs Despite Uproar]=

Article Source:National Public Radio. Image Source:Fox News.
The famous T.V show South Park Airs 1 episode featuring the prophet Muhammad with his body hidden by a black box. Muslims consider any physical representation of Muhammad Disrespectful and wrong. After that episode, Muhammad was also dressed up in a bear costume. Some Muslim people were angry with the shows producer, so they sent a warning to the producer of the show with a picture of Theo Van Gogh, a filmmaker killed by a Muslim after making a movie about a person who disagreed with Muhammad's teachings.

After reading this article, I am shocked that anyone would even refer in such a way to someone deeply respected to some people. I think that the producer of the show should have known not to do that, and even if they did not know that Muhammad cannot be shown. Even though I strongly disagree with the South Park creators, I also think that the Muslim that threatend the producer could have been less harsh, yet I still can understand why a person would be mad at something like this. The show South Park sometimes makes other disrespectful refrences to important or famous people, which is never ok. The show South Park Is a show that most people would find innapropriate, but I think the producers have gone to far.



=[|Protesters Rally In Indonesia After Deadly Clash]= Article Source: The Associated Press Image Source: The Associated Press

Hundreds protested in Jakarta, Indonesia, over the possilbe removal of tomb of an Arab cleric who was impotant to the spread of early Islam in the 18th century. The protestors thought that city officals were going to remove the tomb. Riot police were told to move them away and not let them destroy anything, such as cars, buildings,ect. There was a huge protest, and a fight. Dangerous weapons were used, and people were seroiusly hurt, 156 were injured, and 3 dead. However, the plan was to actually evict illeagal settlers nearby and to not move or destroy the tomb.

[|mosque to be built just 2 blocks from new yorks ground zero] I think that the whole fight was unecesarry, and the city should have told the protesters about what they would do. It was partly the city's fault, because they didn't tell protesters. It was also the protesters fault, because they could have just sent complaining letters. If the city was actually going to destroy the tomb, than that would be offensive to Muslims and wrong. Needless to say, the violence was unnecessary and this was a chaotic situation.

=The Malaysian High Court Doesn't Ban "Allah" Ban of Non-Muslims using word Allah Not Passed= Article Source: Pluralism Project: Religious Diversity News Image Source: Wikipedia A ban of non-Muslims using the word "Allah" as a synonym for "God" was not passed in Malaysia. The people who wanted to pass the ban were concerned that by using "Allah" in substitute of "God" some Christians could be trying to subtly convert Muslims to Christianity, which is illegal in that country. The ban was not passed in the end because it was "unconstitutional" as put by the Muslim High Court. I think it's a good thing that the ban was not passed. The other day in class Ms. Sadler said "Allah is the same God as the God in Christianity and the God in Judaism," which made me think the names should be interchangeable. I understand that the Malaysian Government doesn't want people to discreetly break the law of not converting Muslims to Christianity, but I don't think this is the right way of enforcing that. Also, I think all people should have freedom of speech, and that the idea of

=Reactions To Times Square Car Bombing Attempt=

Will Mountzoures
[|http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sumbul-alikaramali/times-square-car-bomb-an_b_563303.html] One Muslim speaks for many about feelings towards terrerist atacks. "As an American Muslim myself, whenever I hear of a potential terrorist attack, I cannot help falling into a repetitive litany of "Please let it not be Muslims who did this..." My prevalent feeling when I listen to the news these days is dread," Say's Amarican Muslim Sumbul Ali-Karamali. She say's she feels "deeply bewildered and infinitely saddened by the violence that's being associated with Islam." However she says she feels relieved somewhat that the first person to notice the smoking S.U.V. was a Senegalese Muslim Immigrant. I can definitely 100% see why and how she feels this way. I feel that these terrorists that are claiming to Muslim and are doing what the Qur'an says by "fighting oppression" are wrong. Qur'an aren't telling people to kill civilians if you feel others are doing something wrong.

[] The attack at Times Square may be directed directly towards the comedy TV show South Park. In a recent episode they mocked an entire religion as one by showing Muhammad in a bear suit for nobody is supposed to see him as accidental worship towards the messenger Muhammad might take place. this TV show was wrong to do this but The terrorist was wrong too. He probably claimed that he was Fighting oppression as the Qur'an says to but only under attack. As the Qur'an says, this is not what it meant. It also says sacrificing your life for Allah is not wanted. That means suicide bombing/attacks is not permitted even fighting

oppression.

Ban The Burqa in Europe?
Artical source: NY Times online @http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/05/opinion/05cope.html Summery: Politicins in Europe (France, and Belgium) are cnsidering banning the burqa, a mask that woman wear all day as a part of being muslim. With this mask on, it makes it impossible to identify the woman. It's also a secruity reason because security cameras can't catch the identity of the person durnng a crime. Is it fair? I think that they should allow covering of the head, but not full body burqa for idenity reasons. But it isn't fair to outlaw just the head covering. I woder what the charge would be if a woman was caught with a full body burqa? I hope that it dosen't involve jail time because most of the time, it's just case they are muslim.