CHICAGO (Reuters) - False rumors that Barack Obama was secretly a Muslim or had ties to Islamic extremism angered Muslim-Americans, who overwhelming supported him in Tuesday's presidential election, experts said on Thursday.
Unpublished polling data indicated that the Democratic President-elect got somewhere between 67 percent and 90 percent of the Muslim vote, probably nearer the higher end, Ahmed Younis of Gallup Center for Muslim Studies, said in a telephone briefing.…
Barack Hussein Obama's victory didn't just belie the so-called Bradley effect for black candidates. Experts say it also defied an "Osama effect"—opposition efforts to sway voters by connecting Obama to radical Islam.
In fact, experts say the scare tactic mobilized record numbers of American Muslim voters and others to forgive Obama's slights of the Muslim community and choose him as the nation's next president.…
Muslim students at New York University gathered on Wednesday to discuss the presidential election, among them Momtaz Yaqubie, Meherunnisa Jobaida, Sule Akoglu and Wamiq Chowdhury.
It was easy for them to love the candidate. With the same passion, and for the same reasons…
Incredible! What a Defining, Victory, and Wonderful moment made in history that will be talked about for years to come. Election 2008 was particularly an exciting year in American politics, a historic and exciting race to power, people’s voice and influence. Finally the people have spoken and the combination of voters who supported Barak Obama demonstrates that America has come a long way as a nation. It does prove in making of this history, that anything is possible….
A momentous milestone has been reached in the history of America: An African-American is a president-elect to be sworn in to become the 44th president of the USA. In an hour of great need for resolute leadership, America has turned to a black man to take her out of the economic mess of the Bush Administration, which threatens to bring the whole of the world economy down. History has been made: congratulations to Mr Obama and the American people!
The answer is simple. There is a sense of urgency in the Muslim community because so many issues are affecting them; with the Iraq war and the war on terrorism, they have been victims of anti-Muslim policies of the Bush administration, such as the Patriot Act, secret detentions, and the "secret evidence" laws used against them. Muslims are genuinely optimistic that a sweeping change promised by Obama will restore the civil rights that have been usurped by the Bush administration and end the…
Meanwhile, like in many cities and towns across the country on Election Day eve, massive get out the vote efforts are underway. Under Karl Rove in the 2000 and 2004 election, the 72-hour strategy successfully turned out hundreds of thousands of Republican voters – a tactic McCain's campaign hopes to replicate. Meanwhile, the Obama campaign is using its own grassroots organizing strategies hoping to turn out even bigger crowds. And independent groups have their own voter mobilization efforts. In…
There are all sorts of people who have volunteered for the Obama campaign for passionate reasons of their own. One of the hardest-working subsets of Obama campaign volunteers are Muslim-Americans, who have struggled for acceptance into American culture ever since 9/11. Whisper campaigns designed to paint Obama as a Muslim (and therefore, a terrorist) has been particularly hurtful to them, especially after John McCain commented to a supporter that Obama was not an Arab, but "a good man, a family…
By Zeyad Maasarani, Mukhtar A. Khan, IOL Correspondents
WASHINGTON — Hours before the opening of America's historic White House elections, IslamOnline.net correspondents interviewed American Muslims in different states.
We asked if they would be casting their ballot, their favorite candidate, the basis for their election choice, candidates' stances on Islam, and whether America is ready for a Muslim president.…
Those who elevate Joe the Plumber as the symbol of America while simultaneously denigrating Obama for being Hussein miss the point: both are symbols of the greatness of America.
A friend of a friend - a physician - declared categorically almost 18 months ago that she could never vote for anyone whose middle name was "Hussein." In stark contrast, a Jewish friend of mine recently joined a Facebook group of over a thousand participants who have all adopted the middle name, "Hussein." The purpose…
It has been an interesting and strange race. As the race in its final weeks became more intense and negative, the Republicans, in a desperate attempt to discredit Barack Obama, dredged out anything and everything they could find on him.
He's been called an Arab, a Muslim, and a friend of terrorists. Despite his categorical assertion that he is a Christian and not a Muslim, Republican surrogates continue to reinforce the myth. The semblance of any connection, no matter how tenuous and remote,…
TUNE IN TODAY
Pacifica Radio - www.kpfk.org streaming LIVE Today
Thurs. Oct. 30 @ 3pm PST
ELECTION 2008 - What's in Store for Americans of Arab, Muslim, West and South Asian Descent?
on RADIO INTIFADA - WWW.KPFK.ORG - Streamling LIVE
Co-produced and co-hosted by Nile El Wardani
and Sejal Patel, SWANA Collective, KPFK
In advance of next week's election, Radio Intifada will explore the meaning/impact of the election for the Americans from the SWANA region, discussing immigration policies, the…
SAN FRANCISCO--American Muslims are feverishly working for the largest-ever Muslim voter turnout on Nov. 4, with a particular focus on battleground states.
Muslim civic organizations have worked in coalition to generate dozens of rallies, town hall meetings and neighborhood get-togethers, all geared toward voter mobilization.
"Our goal is to maximize Muslim voter turnout, support candidates who support civil liberties, world peace, universal healthcare, better education, a fair immigration…
We are citizens who work hard, pay taxes, send kids to school, and participate in community activities – in short, we are as much America as "Joe the Plumber." Unfortunately, we often don't act it.
If we want our place in American political life, we have to earn it. If we want our voices heard, we should not need prominent citizens such as Colin Powell to defend the American Muslim identity as part of our nation's political fabric and denounce Islamophobia in American politics. We should raise…
More Muslims, particularly women, are running for political office, spurred by the perceived erosions of their civil liberties.
Dozens of Muslim Americans of both genders have seats on city councils and work on Capitol Hill, Saeed said, though few hold statewide office. Only two Muslims _ Democrats Keith Ellison of Minnesota and Andre Carson of Indiana _ serve in Congress. READ MORE
The 2008 presidential election is forcing many Americans to deal with issues pertaining to Arab and Muslim culture. How has traditional media outlets handled the issue and what can we learn?... Full article
Arab American voters say they share the same concerns as other segments of American society. They are worried about jobs and the economy, the war in Iraq, healthcare and education. But many have also expressed concerns about the way the words "Arab" and "Muslim" have been used negatively in the race for the White House. full text
First of all, there is nothing wrong with being Muslim. My heart goes out to American Muslims who have had to endure hearing Barack Obama called a Muslim as though it were a bad thing. Second, it is plainly untrue. Furthermore, the assertion that Obama is a Muslim is something that should be found scratched into the wall of a public restroom, not on the lips of senior members of our political parties. We should not have to hear about it on the news.…
Here is an interesting paragraph from this article on Obama in the Times:
As a law professor at the University of Chicago, Mr. Obama taught a young woman named Uzma Sattar, who was unpopular in class, students said, because of comments she made that others frequently found abrasive. But in a recent interview Ms. Sattar said that Mr. Obama, whom she visited during office hours, was kinder to her than any other faculty member — the only one, she said, who seemed to understand the loneliness of…
This weekend, the Muslim Public Affairs Council held seven election townhall forums on the in Ohio and Pennsylvania in an effort to educate Muslim American voters on key issues and provide an opportunity for interaction with candidates for local, state and federal offices.
At each forum, MPAC leaders also distributed copies of the "Activate 08 Voter's Guide" which explores the Presidential candidates' positions, in their own words, on six key issues affecting the nation. These issues are…
Listen to Sheik Hamza Yusuf discuss the need for Muslims to be involved in our government in order to create justice for our Muslim brothers and sisters around the world who are suffering under oppressive government or situation. He dictates the need for Muslims to stand up and be heard and that its not enough to solely wish for suffering to stop, but to take a physical active role in trying to bring about peace as Allah has commanded us to…
We need to let Gen. Powell know that our community is deeply appreciative of his comments.
General Powell is happy to hear from Muslim Americans (individuals and organizations). His office though is a private office - for his retirement activities, essentially his non-profit work, etc - and is thus - very small. We would like to make sure that the letter from Muslim American individuals and organizations do not get lost in the emails that his small office is receiving - so please - send emails…
