Posted on 11/08/2001 12:48:49 PM PST by rface
For five years, the American Muslim community lobbied the U.S. Postal Service to issue a stamp honoring the Islamic religion.
Thousands of Muslim children conducted a letter-writing campaign, drawing pictures of what the stamp could look like. Members of Congress were enlisted as supporters, especially if they had large mosques within their districts.
Finally, on Sept. 1, the commemorative Eid stamp was issued.
Ten days later, hijacked planes hit the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, killing about 5,000 people.
And American Muslims found themselves explaining that mainstream Islam is a peaceful religion and has nothing to do with such terrorists sects as Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network, the group suspected for the attacks. But to a confused American public, the much-anticipated stamp began to resemble a symbol of the enemy.
"We saw it selling in the first few days, but then came the holocaust of September 11, and unfortunately it has become a catastrophe for the stamps, too," said Aly R. Abuzaakouk, executive director of the American Muslim Council.
The EID stamp commemorates the two most important Islamic festivals, called eids, in the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Adha and Eid al-fitr.
The holidays are decided by a lunar calendar and follow the holy month of Ramadan, a period of fasting and penitence. This year, Ramadan begins Nov. 17.
The stamp has a deep blue background and the Islamic greeting "Eid Mubarak" written in golden script. The phrase can be translated to mean, "May your religious occasion be blessed."
"It was meant to be universal," Abuzaakouk said. "It was meant to be a reflection that Islam is a universal religion."
Islam is the world's fastest-growing religion. Religious experts say Islam is like all faiths, with some extremists who mix politics and culture under the guise of religion.
The Postal Service does not track individual sales, so there are no hard figures. But anecdotes suggest that the stamp may not fare well in some parts of the country, including Kansas City.
In some areas, people have asked the Postal Service to stop selling the stamp, a request that has been refused.
In Kansas City, some avid stamp collectors are avoiding the stamp, said Gina Walter, of the Show Me Philatelic Center at the area's main post office at 315 W. Pershing Road.
Some people say they are avoiding the stamp for patriotic reasons, Walter said.
"I really thought that this was going to be a big stamp," Walter said. "It is a beautiful stamp. And it has nothing to do with the attack."
A likely big seller will be the United We Stand stamp, released nationwide Monday. It depicts an American flag flying in the breeze.
The Postal Service printed 75 million of the 34-cent Eid stamps, and officials say a few post offices have sold out. Muslim organizations are launching a buying campaign. They hope to reach their goal of having the stamp reprinted twice, a designation that can make it a permanent stamp.
But Mohamed Zakariya, the calligrapher who drew the stamp, thinks its fate may be sealed.
Zakariya was walking near his home, three miles from the Pentagon, on Sept. 11. He heard the explosion as the hijacked plane hit. His wife, working in a nearby office, saw flaming debris through a window.
"You can drive by and see that horrible, ghastly hole," Zakariya said.
An American convert to Islam, Zakariya specializes in Islamic calligraphy.
"People are hurt and they are scared and they see pictures of people protesting, jumping up and down on the news with signs in writing that resembles the stamp in some distant fashion," he said. "It is an unfortunate connection."
Infidel, unbeliever! Have you not read, as posted on FR, the words of the prophet in the
Holy Koran, that the ass is to be wiped with stones, and only with the left hand.?
Until the they can lick it and stick it.
Do these stamps cover airmail to Afghanistan to post this package?
and has nothing to do with such terrorists sects as Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network,
=>As evidenced by what exactly?
the group suspected for the attacks. => For which there is apparently ample evidence.
But to a confused American public
=> Only if one defines the public as being made up of media chowder-heads, nihilists and members of the Florida Supreme Court can it be said to be confused. Otherwise I would say that the average person I have heard from is expressing a new level of clarity [the sort I wish they'd had eight years ago].
, the much-anticipated stamp began to resemble a symbol of the enemy
=> So, if you are the author of this article you can look at the image and not understand the association?
I guess the news media have an insatiable desire to demonstrate that despite their intense stupidity, what they have to say is really interesting.
Not yet, but if some people get their way...
Regarding the usual "Islam is a peaceful religion" claim, Chapter 9 (The Repentance):123 states "O you who believe! Fight such of the disbelievers as dwell near to you and let them find firmness in you..."
While other religions have had their message perverted by humans for personal gain, I've never seen a quote from the Bible or Torah that explicitly tells the followers to kill anybody.
Couple the above Qur'anic reading with Chapter 8 (The Voluntary Gifts):41 "And know that whatever you acquire on winning a victory, a fifth of it belongs to Allah, to the Messenger..." and what you have is a group not worthy of 1st Amendment protection but, rather, a group worthy of RICO prosecution.
Read their own words in the "Perfect Book".
"Religious occasion"--i.e., funeral.
A post office clerk tried to get me to buy some and I told him..."THEY ARE TOO EXPENSIVE AND TOO SMALL TO USE AS TOILET PAPER!!!" I am pretty brash at times when it comes to the musli...
He laughed and said....quietly...."nobody is buying these things."
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.