Posted on 10/21/2006 12:01:33 PM PDT by lowbridge
Muslim Student Groups Praise Authorities For Handling Of Koran Incidents
October 19, 2006
Representatives of city Muslim organizations gathered Thursday to condemn two possible anti-Muslim bias crimes at Pace University. But as Criminal Justice Reporter Solana Pyne explains in the following report, the groups are impressed with authorities for the way they're investigating the incidents.
In the space of a month there have been two separate incidents where a Koran, the Muslim holy book, was found in a Pace University toilet. The most recent was found just last Friday.
"This is no different from placing a burning cross in front of a house or painting a swastika on a locker," said Aliya Latif of the Muslim-American Lawyers Association.
Representatives of New York Muslim organizations came together Thursday to make sure the incidents aren't forgotten, even as they praised the way authorities are handling them.
"We spoke to [the] NYPD yesterday and they said they are doing everything they could to make sure there will be an arrest. They will work really hard on this," said Omar T Mohammedi of the American-Islamic Relations Council.
The Pace Muslim Students association, which criticized the University for not being aggressive enough in its handling of the first incident where a library copy of the Koran was found in the library toilet, praised the administration's actions this time.
"I would say that the university has kind of done a 180 and is definitely working with us in terms of labeling it as a hate crime and then, the sensitivity forums that I spoke about earlier, they're actually helping us facilitate those," said Faiza Ali of the Muslim Students Association.
Pace University released a statement on Thursday in response to the incidents announcing an anti-hate campaign.
"Pace University has aggressively reached out to our many student organizations and campus councils that are concerned with promoting acceptance and combating intolerance," said part of the statement. "All of them are responding with deep concern and constructive suggestions; we are very united."
The Muslim Students Association said the fact that these incidents happened here on campus has made some fear for their safety. But they say that overall the reaction of other students has been more than reassuring.
"We actually have been welcomed by a lot of student groups on campus that have been standing in solidarity with us," said Ali.
And they are standing in solidarity with others in two more possible bias-related incidents over the last month, directed toward other groups.
"The same week that the first incident occurred with the Koran, that Friday a swastika and racial slurs were spray painted on a bathroom stall in Pace University, said Ali. In our Westchester campus on someone's car there were racial slurs spray painted as well."
The NYPD hate crimes task force is investigating all four incidents. So far they haven't identified any suspects.
Or putting a cross in a jar of urine and calling it "art"? Or putting elephant dung on an image of the Virgin Mary?
"We spoke to [the] NYPD yesterday and they said they are doing everything they could to make sure there will be an arrest.
So we can look forward to the arrest of Andres Serrano?
Sorry, I disagree. A burning cross on someone's lawn or a swastika is threatening. How threatening is a Koran in the toilet?
"This is no different from placing a burning cross in front of a house or painting a swastika on a locker," said Aliya Latif of the Muslim-American Lawyers Association.
Or burning the American flag?
"Muslim Student Groups Praise Authorities For Handling Of Koran Incidents"
No doubt!! I like it to when others kowtow to me!
This is incredibly disgusting - we're surrendering more and more of our values and rights. And the left is worried about the Patriot Act???
I think it is noteworthy that this group of Muslims does not seem to be reacting like fanaticals that pledge death to America and anyone non-Muslim at the slightest hint of an insult or a cartoon or a mispoken word. I think we should be encouraging this kind of measured response - they seem to be willing to work within the laws and existing framework for dealing with something like this.
A burning cross would certainly be threatening to blacks and offensive to most others, a swastika would be offensive to a jew and most others, a so called work of art with Jesus or Mary covered in feces or urine would be offensive to most God loving people (including a non-Christian like myself), and a Koran in the toilet would certainly be offensive to even a moderate Muslim.
Don't get me wrong, I firmly believe that the only viable solution to the extremist Muslim problem is extermination, plain and simple, but I have no problem with moderate and forward thinking Muslims who prefer not to return to the year 1100, other than their relative silence on the extremist elements within their religion.
It's just a book. Real men don't worship books. Neither should anyone else.
Yet Muzzies are now going door to door handing out pamphlets and saying Christianity is a false religion, and only Islam is a true religion.
Better not come to my door. I will not hold the dogs back.
As the NYPD strives to clear this heinous crime, hopefully they'll think about that hole where the Twin Towers were.
You need to study up on the way muzzies work. They want all kinds of things outlawed. They are hoping to use the democrat playbook of slowly eating away at everything we've always stood for in this country. They won't stop here.
Maybe the dogs will end up having to hold you back.Muzzies have a lot of brass trying to tell us anything about their so-called religion of peace.
The only way that this could be considered a hate crime is if the toilet containing the Koran were placed on the front lawn of a Muslim.
No doubt - one day the praise will be in the form of a command!
Well stealing library property is a crime. What if I go to Barnes and Nobles, buy a nice large size Koran with the Arabic on every other page, and take it to a public restroom where I proceed to use the a few pages to wipe my butt. If I then leave the desecrated book in the stall am I guilty of a crime? Just curious??
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You seem to believe that they did not dunk the prophet themselves. I don't.
I think Korans look quite nice in toilets.
I can't discount the possibility off-hand - although a true Musilm would never do such a thing, it is all too easy for the fanatics among them to get a 'pass' from whatever mullah they happen to follow to do anything as long as it hurts non-Muslims.
All I am saying is (again, assuming these guys are legit), this is an offensive act and it's good that they are following the laws and protocol of this country to resolve it.
I wish CNN would go financially bankrupt. They are already morally and ideologically so.
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I suggest that you nor I can accurately predict what a "true muslim" would do.
By all means, put the whole NYPD on this. No crime is bigger than this. /s
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