Muslim Apple

Mildred Loving of the Virginia vs. Loving case fame died last week Friday. In 1958, she married her white sweetheart Richard in Washington DC since interracial marriage was illegal in their home state of Virginia. Virginia’s tourism motto is “Virginia is for Lovers” and the Lovings helped make that a little truer for interracial couples.

Mildred Jeter Loving, 68, a black woman whose refusal to accept Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1967 that struck down similar laws across the country, died of pneumonia Friday at her home in Milford, Va.

Washington Post: Quiet Va. Wife Ended Interracial Marriage Ban

Martin Luther King Jr. on interracial marriage:

Races do not fall in love and get married. Individuals fall in love and get married. Why don’t you want your fellow men and women, your fellow Americans to be happy? Why do you attack them? Why do you want to destroy the love they hold in their hearts? Why do you want to crush their hopes, their dreams, their longings, their aspirations? We are talking about human beings, people like you, people want to get married, buy house, and spend their lives with the one they love. They have done no wrong.”

Read more »

Yesterday, in my math class, sitting one seat away from me at the end of the row was another student attentively taking notes on logarithms, preparing for our final exams. Our professor asked him why he hadn’t been in class recently and he said that he had been away on army business.

Professor: Have you been to Iraq?

Student: Yes, and I have to go back. I don’t want to go back.

Professor: Did you kill people over there?

Student: Quietly, almost like a whisper under his breath he said, “yeah” and nodded his head.

Professor: That’s terrible. If you don’t want to go back, I’ll take you to Africa. They won’t find you over there.

Student: They’ll find me.

This is just about as close as I get to the war in Iraq. Other than the Iraqis I know here in the US that are worried about their loved ones over there, and my time at the airport when we used to see military men and women shipping out and some coming home in small boxes and urns, the war doesn’t affect me on a day-to-day basis except that I know that the lives and money spent over there could be put to better use over here or elsewhere around the world.

Last Tuesday, I received a citation from a Prince George’s County police officer for “following too closely”, which I think is one of the more bogus citations a person can receive especially if there no was resulting accident because clearly the vehicles were both able to maneuver and operate safely.

I was on my way to class, behind the police officer for a while on Powder Mill Road for those of you familiar with my section of Maryland. There was a farm tractor on the road, moving slowly of course, and I wanted to pass it but didn’t feel comfortable because that would have meant that I would have had to pass both the cop and the tractor and I’m sure the cop could have found some other excuse to pull me over. So a back up of cars formed behind the tractor, the cop, and I, as no one was willing to try to pass the cop.

Then we moved onto 197 (another roadway) still behind the cop, going slower than the usual rate of speed for the road. At the flashing red light, left turn onto the campus, the cop stopped for an exceptionally long time before proceeding and then I stopped and pulled into campus. Then he pulled me over.

Cop: “You seem to be in quite a hurry this morning.

Silently, thinking to myself, “Yeah, I was trying to be on time for my class at 9:30″.

Cop: Is there any reason why you were pushing me down the road?

Me: I was not pushing you down the road.

Cop: You didn’t stop at the flashing red light.

Me: Yes, I did stop.

Cop: No, I stopped and you stopped behind me and then I went and you went as well.

Me: No I stopped behind you, and again after you went. Read more »

Amnesty International: You can tear down Guantanamo and end illegal U.S. detentions. One pixel at a time.

View a panoramic photo of a cell at Guantanamo

Coming Soon The Guantanamo Cell Tour: Experience Guantanamo in a town near you.

This Thursday (April 10th) the University of Maryland at College Park Muslim Students Association is hosting a free screening of USA vs. Al-Arian in the Hoff Theatre, Stamp Student Union @ 6 PM.

If you have not already seen the documentary then you should make a point to see this thought-provoking film. When I saw the film, one of Dr. Al-Arian’s sons was at the panel discussion afterward and today one his daughters will be speaking afterward so even though I have class at that time, I will try to go again.

In December 2005, a Tampa jury acquitted Dr. Sami Al-Arian of “terrorism” charges. Two years later he is still in prison because the Bush administration refuses to honor a May 2006 promise to release and deport him. Dr. Al-Arian was due to be released in weeks, but is now on a hunger strike to protest the government’s refusal to honor a plea agreement.

Come find out why.

“USA vs Al-Arian” Screening at University of Maryland
Featuring Guest Speaker: Laila Al-Arian, Journalist and daughter of Dr. Al-Arian.
Please join us on Thursday April 10, 2008
From 6:00pm - 10:00pm in the evening.
The event will take place the Hoff Theater, located within the University of Maryland Stamp Student Union
College Park, MD

Sponsored by: The Muslim Students Association, International Socialist Organization, Feminism Without Borders, Organization of Arab Students, Students for a Democratic Society, and Peace Forum

From the Storehouse:

Free Sami al-Arian Now!

I like to play Scrabulous. Do you?

In light of all the invitations that I have received lately to celebrate the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam, I thought it would be a good time to reprise the I Don’t Get Mawlid & Hadra series of posts. I don’t participate in these sort of events but I’m not going to knock those who do, there is a difference of opinion, and Allah knows best. I’ve always liked the quote by Maya Angelou that we are more alike than unlike, indeed.

And just so I’m not asked for the third time to delete this video, this mawlid celebration has nothing to do with the RIS Convention. It was a completely private affair between the individuals that took part.

From the Storehouse:

Mawlid & Hadra - I Don’t Get It

Shaykh Abdullah bin Bayyah on Mawlid

Deleted non-RIS Mawlid video

Check it out, one of our local imams, Imam Johari AbdulMalik on NPR: Class Teaches New Muslims About Faith’s Practices.

From the Storehouse: Imam Johari AbdulMalik - Preparation & Words

I was a Richardson supporter until he dropped out of the race. Then I was an ardent Hillary supporter after I listened to a rally for Hillary in California with Maxine Waters and a lot of other enthusiastic Clinton supporters and the debate between Clinton and Obama at the Kodak Theatre. Now, after listening to Obama’s speech on race, he’s got my vote in sha Allah.

The way our government has treated Sami al-Arian, a fellow American citizen is an absolute disgrace. No doubt that we will look back at this period in our history with shame just as we do when remembering the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII.  Not much hope from the cast of characters in the current administration but hoping the next administration will apologize to and pardon Dr. Al Arian.

I had the opportunity to watch the documentary film USA vs. Al-Arian in Washington DC last year and highly recommend it to everyone. It’s the sort of film that exposes unpalatable truths about the injustice regularly perpetrated by the government in this pseudo-war-on-terror on innocent individuals and families that no one wants you to see, which is one reason that the film can’t seem to find a distributor in the US.