—FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—
 
WASHINGTON D.C. (April 19, 2013) – The Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) issued a statement during a joint press conference today with other national Muslim organizations at The National Press Club in the capital.

“The death of innocent lives is heartbreaking and we offer our condolences to the families of the victims of the Boston Marathon Bombings. And, we pray for the speedy and full recovery of the injured. Our thanks go to the law enforcement officers for working around the clock in identifying and going after the terrorists. ICNA stands with the rest of the American Muslim community in condemning such heinous crimes.

We want to make it very clear to our fellow Americans that such acts of terrorism have no place in Islam. These acts are not just against Americans but against all mankind. Islam, our faith, condemns those who murder innocent people and God Almighty declares the killing of even a single innocent person as murdering the entire humanity.

ICNA calls upon the American Muslim community to engage in social justice and service work being offered by ICNA Relief and other Muslim relief organizations.

We also thank the media for not jumping to any conclusions and showing responsibility in reporting of the situation in Boston.

We pray for peace and harmony, and may such moments of trials bring our hearts closer to one another.

The Islamic Circle of North America is a leading American Muslim organization dedicated to the betterment of society through the application of Islamic values. Since 1968, ICNA has worked to build relations between communities by devoting itself to education, outreach, social services and relief efforts.

—END—

Islamic Circle of North America
E-mail:
Office: (718) 658-1199

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The Islamic Education & Research Academy has issued a statement in response to the controversy over the "Islam or atheism" debate at University College London last Saturday.

iERA Investigates Complaints about Seating Arrangements at the debate, "Islam or Atheism: Which Makes More Sense?"

The University College London (UCL) has decided to not take any further bookings from the Islamic Education & Research Academy (iERA) after the event entitled: "Islam or Atheism: Which Makes More Sense?" that took place on its premises on Saturday 9th March 2013.

UCL's reasoning is that they do not allow enforced segregation on any grounds at meetings held on campus and their assertion is that "attempts were made to enforce segregation at the meeting (sic)." iERA complied with the request from the University to cater for all preferences by having seating that was open for all attendees, male or female, and two sections to accommodate those that wished to adhere to their deeply held religious beliefs. We also adhered to UCL's request to make sure that the respective areas were clearly marked and ushers were employed in order to facilitate the seating. Please access the following link that is a time-lapse video which demonstrates this.

iERA is an inclusive organisation and its lecturers are the most popular on UK campuses. iERA aims to bring different people together and with this goal seeks to accommodate varying needs. It is a common practice amongst Muslim communities across the UK, based across different schools of thought, to have separate seating arrangements for men and women out of modesty. In light of this iERA accommodated various preferences on the matter, whether religious or non-religious, by having areas to suit everyone. iERA has a responsibility under the Equalities Act 2010 to accommodate any reasonable adjustment to enable all members of society fair access of opportunity including those of religious orthodoxy.

UCL claims to have received some complaints from attendees who say they were asked to sit in a different section to what they chose. In a formal meeting we asked UCL to furnish us with details of those attendees and they were not forthcoming. We then offered UCL our entire guest list to check the email addresses to that of the complainants, they declined this also.

iERA is an organisation committed to constructive dialogue between people of all faiths and none, people of all colours, creeds or sexual orientation so it takes any complaints very seriously. In the absence of co-operation from UCL (although we are hoping that this will no longer will be the case), iERA is conducting an internal investigation with immediate effect. If we find there were any failures on implementing the agreed guidelines on the day, we will be the first to admit this and we will apologise for not honouring our word to UCL, our attendees as well as the general public. This is in accordance with the ordinance from Almighty God who states in the Quran, the final testament to mankind:

"You who believe, uphold justice and bear witness to God, even if it is against yourselves, your parents, or your close relatives. Whether the person is rich or poor, God can best take care of both. Refrain from following your own desire, so that you can act justly– if you distort or neglect justice, God is fully aware of what you do." [Surah An-Nisa, Verse 135]

For further enquiries, please contact our Head of Public Relations, Saleem Chagtai. He can be reached at media@iera.org.uk.

iERA press release, 15 March 2013

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American Muslims for Palestine, the Asian Law Caucus, the Council on American-Islamic Relations and Jewish Voice for Peace have issued a joint press release cautiously welcoming a statement by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency in response to complaints about the anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic advertisements that Pamela Geller's so-called American Freedom Defense Initiative has placed on San Francisco buses.

The SFMTA has said that although the First Amendment prevents it from removing them, Geller's advertisements have "no value in facilitating constructive dialogue or advancing the cause of peace and justice". The statement went on to commit the SFMTA to directing all resulting advertising revenue to the SF Human Rights Commission.

It would, of course, have been preferable if the SFMTA had defied Geller and taken her on in the courts. She pursued her lawsuit in New York on the basis that the city's Metropolitan Transport Authority had previously allowed ads critical of Israel and that she was being discriminated against. The SFMTA, however, has a policy of refusing all political advertising, so Geller's case would surely have been much weaker here.

Still, at least Geller's money will be going to support an organisation that really does defend freedom.

See Adam Serwer. "Who's behind the anti-Islam ads on MTA and Muni?", Mother Jones, 15 August 2012

And Sheila Musaji, "Bus ads: Of savages and idiots", The American Muslim, 15 August 2012

Also "Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs: Bus ads inspired by Ayn Rand's racist views of Arabs and Muslims?", Loonwatch, 14 August 2012

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"Sikhs Against the EDL" have issued a press release in response the shootings at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin. It states:

"Media reports have linked the senseless killings in Wisconsin to the 9/11 terrorist attacks and have claimed that violent hate crimes against Sikhs have occurred due to mistaken identity with Muslims because of the distinct Sikh appearance of wearing Turbans and unshorn beards. This sort of reporting in the media can send an indirect message that attack on Muslims are legitimate. We are appalled at this careless reporting...."

Turban Campaign, 9 August 2012

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