The murder of Shaima Alawadi was a likely honor killing, not a hate crime -- unfortunately for Linda Sarsour, who doubtless penned this shameless orgy of Muslim victimhood and deflection from the reality of jihad terror before that news broke. And CNN, just as shameless, doesn't take this farrago down now that the truth has come out.
Be sure to register for our Jessica Mokdad Human Rights Conference on honor killings on April 29th in Dearborn, Michigan. Register here.
"My Take: My hijab is my hoodie," by Linda Sarsour, national advocacy director of the National Network for Arab American Communities and director of the Arab American Association of New York, for CNN, April 5 (thanks to Charles):
(CNN) - I’ve been among the millions mourning the killing of Trayvon Martin, but I’m also mourning the fact that another recent killing has gotten little national attention.Last week, a 32-year old Iraqi Muslim mother named Shaima Alawadi was found brutally beaten with a tire iron in her El Cajon, California, home and died three days later. A note reportedly left beside her said, “Go Back to your country, you terrorist.”
As an Arab-American Muslim mother of three, I instantly thought about myself and my family.
Alawadi's death put a mirror up to my face. I am 32, I wear a headscarf, like Alawadi did, and I live during one of the most hostile moments that the Muslim American community has ever experienced, especially in the decade since 9/11.
Blacks in America continue to face racism on a daily basis, from the workplace to interactions with law enforcement. And yet racism against African-Americans is publicly acknowledged as unacceptable.
No one in power dares use the N-word publicly, fearing the wrath that will be bestowed upon them.
Unfortunately, that’s not the case for Muslims in America. Bigotry against Muslims is quite acceptable. From media pundits to elected officials to presidential hopefuls, spewing misinformation and hatred about Muslims and Islam has been normalized.
Utter fiction. In reality, everyone in media and government bends over backwards to pander to Muslims, and to ignore or deny the reality of jihad and Islamic supremacism -- as the publication of this article by Linda Sarsour indicates. Would CNN publish an article from me telling the truth about honor killing and how it is acceptable in so many Muslim countries? Of course not.
In America, terrorism has become synonymous with Arabs and Muslims. We see that clearly stated in the note left next to Alawadi.
If "terrorism has become synonymous with Arabs and Muslims," it is not because of "Islamophobia" and "bigotry," as Sarsour would have you believe, but because of the activities of Muslims such as Naser Abdo, the would-be second Fort Hood jihad mass murderer; and Khalid Aldawsari, the would-be jihad mass murderer in Lubbock, Texas; and Muhammad Hussain, the would-be jihad bomber in Baltimore; and Mohamed Mohamud, the would-be jihad bomber in Portland; and Faisal Shahzad, the would-be Times Square jihad mass-murderer; and Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad, the Arkansas military recruiting station jihad murderer; and Naveed Haq, the jihad mass murderer at the Jewish Community Center in Seattle; and Mohammed Reza Taheri-Azar, the would-be jihad mass murderer in Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Ahmed Ferhani and Mohamed Mamdouh, who hatched a jihad plot to blow up a Manhattan synagogue; and Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the would-be Christmas airplane jihad bomber; and many others like them who have plotted and/or committed mass murder in the name of Islam and motivated by its texts and teachings -- all in the U.S. in the last couple of years.
Law enforcement is investigating Alawadi’s case and says it will not rule out the possibility of a hate crime but also called the killing “an isolated incident.”According to a report released by the FBI in 2011, anti-Muslim hate crimes increased by nearly 50% in 2010. The latest statistics show a jump from 107 anti-Muslim hate crimes in 2009 to 160 in 2010....
In reality, hate crimes against Muslims are infrequent:
Just-released New York 2009 report: Hate crimes against Jews: 251. Hate crimes against Muslims: 11.
And so in order to deflect attention away from jihad activity and try to portray Muslims as victims, so as to shame non-Muslims into not investigating or even being suspicious of further jihad activity, Islamic supremacist groups have resorted to making it up. Hamas-linked CAIR and other Muslims have not hesitated to fabricate "hate crimes." CAIR and other groups like it want and need hate crimes against Muslims, because they can use them for political points and as weapons to intimidate people into remaining silent about the jihad threat.
Given mosque vandalism and opposition, proposed anti-Sharia laws and congressional hearings on American Islam, the rash of anti-Muslim hate crimes is not so surprising. As appears to be the case with Trayvon Martin, what’s dangerous is when ordinary citizens act on bigotry, born of misinformation and fear of the unknown.
No, what's dangerous is when Islamic supremacist activists such as Linda Sarsour equate attempts to protect Constitutional freedoms (anti-Sharia laws) and prevent future jihad terror attacks (Congressional hearings on Islam) with hatred, bigotry, vandalism and the killing of innocent people. Clearly she doesn't want non-Muslims to protect themselves against the erosion of our freedoms in the face of Sharia advocacy, or against jihad terror.
While there has been some effort to connect Martin and Alawadi by focusing on their attire – a hoodie for the African-American teen and a hijab for the young mother – there has been a deafening silence and reluctance to take Alawadi’s case to the forefront of public debate by some in the Muslim community.Major Muslim organizations and activists have been treading carefully, warning community members not to “jump to conclusions.”
I for one have been disheartened and feel disempowered by this response. As in Martin’s case, there is still an ongoing investigation into Alawadi’s death.
But with only initial evidence – a dead black teenager, an iced tea, a pack of Skittles, a neighborhood watchman – many of us have presumed the Martin killing is an unfortunate result of racism in America.
Some have even gone so far as to compare Martin's death to that of Emmett Till.
Why not the same for Alawadi?
Is an Arab Muslim woman drowning in her blood with a note deeming her a terrorist and telling her to go back to her “country” not explicit enough?
Instead of looking at Alawadi’s death in light of the anti-Muslim environment we live in, Muslims allow our internalized oppression to lead us to believe the stereotypes perpetuated against our community.
I have seen tweets and comments from Muslims suggesting the possibility Alawadi’s killing might be an act of domestic violence or, worse, an honor killing.
In the United States, we need to come to terms with anti-Muslim bigotry, stand up to it and unequivocally deem it unacceptable. An injustice toward any one person or community is an injustice to us all.
I am Trayvon Martin. I am Shaima Alawadi, too.
No, but you are Reza Aslan, and Justin Raimondo.
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Reza Aslan "If a 32 year old veiled mother is a terrorist so am I..."
Reza Aslan that 32 year old veiled mother was NOT a terrorist.
She wanted to get herself UNVEILED and away from the crippling servitude of Islam.
That is judged as a "crime"under Muslim law and for that "crime" Muslims killed her.
And then blamed their crime (an actual crime under our western laws) to "Islamophobia".
Criminal Muslims put the blame on the victims and innocents.
And their western useful idiots and aiders and abettors have, as usual, nodded their heads in agreement.
Reza Aslan "If a 32 year old veiled mother is a terrorist ..."
Reza Aslan YOU are a liar, a bully and a coward and that has nothing to do with whether a 32 year old veiled mother is a terrorist or not but everything to do with the fact that you are a lying coward.