A useful summary piece on CAIR’s war on free speech at the American Library Association. “The Invisible War And Our Enemies: The Untold Story Of Terrorists And Radical Islamists In Our Own Backyard,” by Herb Denenberg for the Philadelphia Bulletin, August 10 (thanks to James):
[Steve] Emerson continues to publish investigations on the dangers we face that should have been front-page news across the country, but were censored out by such publications as the New York Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and other mainstream outlets which seem to be among the best friends of terrorists and other enemies of America. They are eager to publicize any slight misstep of our armed forces, but are reluctant to warn us of the threat coming from radical Islam and terrorists. Like our president, they seem to hate America. Here are some of the details of Emerson’s latest investigations:
The American Library Association On The Side Of Terror
One of the most disturbing developments involves professional associations, colleges, universities and other important institutions that seem to be more sympathetic to the enemies of America than to America.
The latest incident involves the American Library Association, the largest and leading library association in the U.S. The ALA had planned a panel discussion entitled “Perspectives on Islam: Beyond the Stereotyping” at its annual convention. One of the invited speakers was Robert Spencer, author of eight books on Islam and jihad, and along with Emerson, one of the giants in contributing to the understanding of terrorism and radical Islam (or what some call Islamofascism). All of the books of Spencer and Emerson should be must reading for Americans.
But when the Council on Islamic Relations (CAIR) spearheaded an attempt to silence Spencer, because it doesn’t like his ideas critical of CAIR, terrorism and Islamofascism, the ALA quickly buckled. CAIR had pressured all the other panelists to withdraw, and Spencer was the only one left standing. But instead of replacing the other panelists or letting Spencer speak by himself, the ALA simply cancelled the panel.
Emerson notes the multiple ironies in this scenario. The ALA holds an annual banned books week to celebrate “the freedom to express one’s opinions even if their opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular.” Nonetheless, ALA cancelled the panel rather than replacing the vacated slot or letting Spencer go on alone. There’s another delicious irony: The CAIR official who complained about Spencer said he offers “grotesque viewpoints that lie well outside the bounds of reason and civilized debate.” But that CAIR official is the one who offers such grotesque viewpoints. He is someone who can’t bring himself to condemn two leading terrorist groups, Hamas and Hezbollah; he minimizes the Holocaust; and he claims the Jews control the media, a classic anti-Semitic ploy.
Emerson notes this is only “the latest in a series of successful efforts to silence viewpoints considered offensive to, or critical of, radical Islam.”
The ALA is in the pathetic and disgraceful position of being unwilling to listen to Spencer, one of the leading authorities on radical Islam, and yields to the views of CAIR, which Emerson describes as follows: “In its frenzy to placate CAIR, the ALA does not seem to have taken any notice of the fact that CAIR is an unindicted co-conspirator in a Hamas terror funding case, whose operatives have repeatedly refused to denounce Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist groups. Several of its former officials have been convicted of various crimes related to jihad terror. Several of its other officials have made Islamic supremacist statements. CAIR was also involved in the “˜Flying Imams” intimidation suit against the passengers who reported their suspicious behavior.”
So here the ALA, which should stand for freedom of speech, has become a symbol of censorship and obedience to America-hating terrorists. Emerson writes, “And so they have set yet another precedent in which a group with numerous ties to terrorists and Islamist organizations determines what Americans will learn about Islam, jihad, and the terror threat. What’s the point of having principles if they are so easily tossed aside in the name of political correctness.” The ALA is obviously unprincipled, and that’s why librarians should drop their ALA membership….
American survival is at stake. And whether America survives depends on whether we listen to people like Emerson and Spencer or to the biased dishonest and fraudulent mainstream media.