Community News (V14-I33)

Interfaith Iftar held at Oklahoma Capitol Building

EDMOND, OK–An interfaith iftar dinner was organized at the Oklahoma state capitol building last week which was attended by members of all faiths, the Edmond Sun reported.

The keynote speaker for the dinner was Oklahoma City University President Robert Henry, who said he was proud to share a holy occasion with fellow Oklahomans of the Muslim faith. The university president also pointed out that the “right to worship as we please is the most basic American right.” Henry quoted from the Qur’an verses which command Muslims to be just in their dealings with others and to be compassionate to the less fortunate, and said that those requirements are also part of Christianity and Judaism.

Imam Imad Enchassi of the Islamic Society of Greater Oklahoma City also addressed the gathering, and said that the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) told his followers that if they look at those who have less than they do that they will be grateful to God for what he has given them.

The meeting was also addressed by  State Sen. Tom Ivestor,  Father Sami Chaaya of the Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Catholic Church, and  Oklahoma City Rabbi Abby Jacobson.

Dupage County sued over mosque denial

NAPERVILLE,IL–A federal lawsuit has been filed by the Islamic Center for Western Suburbs against the Dupage County for alleged discrimination by not allowing the group to convert a house into a mosque.

The attorney for the plaintiffs says that the action was taken as a last resort after exhausting all other options. “We think the county violated federal law and the decision needs to be reversed in court,” said the lawyer of the group.

One of the lawsuit’s nine counts says the county violated the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act by applying “different standards and procedures in considering ICWS’s application for conditional use as an Islamic religious institution than it applied in considering applications for similar non-Islamic uses.”

Muslims aid food drive in Memphis

MEMPHIS,TN–The Muslim communities in Memphis joined the Asian American and Pacific Islander organizations to raise $8,300 and more than 5,000 pounds of food for the Mid-South Food Bank. The items were dropped off at a special celebration at the city of Memphis Office of Community Affairs.

Some of the organizations that made contributions included the Pakistani Association of Memphis Raindrop Turkish House, Memphis Islamic Center, as well as the Bangladeshi community.

CAIR Offers $10K Reward After Mo. Mosque Destroyed by Fire

JOPLIN,MO–The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called for stepped-up police protection at Muslim institutions and other houses of worship nationwide after a fire destroyed a Missouri mosque that had previously been targeted by an arsonist and after yesterday’s deadly shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

CAIR is also offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever may have caused today’s fire. The Washington-based Muslim civil rights organization is in touch with the FBI about the case.

Fire officials are investigating the second fire at the Islamic Society of Joplin this summer. The blaze, which engulfed the entire structure, was reported early Monday. Mosque officials tell CAIR the facility, valued at an estimated $600,000, had been targeted by bias-motivated incidents a number of times in the past.

A small fire at the same building in July was determined to be arson. At that time, CAIR called for state and federal hate crime investigations of the fire.

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