Category Archives: USA

Study: Muslim job candidates may face discrimination in Republican states

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A new study by Carnegie Mellon University found that in the most Republican states in the country, employers may be less likely to interview job candidates whose social networking profiles indicate that the applicants are Muslim.

As part of a social experiment, the researchers created four fictitious job candidates – each with a unique name that most likely points to someone who is male, U.S. born and Caucasian. The candidates had identical resumes. The researchers also created social network profiles for each of the candidates that revealed either his sexual orientation or whether he was a Muslim or Christian. All other information, including the profile photograph used for each candidate, was the same. The resumes, which did not mention the candidates’ online profile, were then sent out to more than 4,000 employers nationwide with job openings.

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Hundreds of Muslims attend conference to eradicate Islamophobia

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Eradicating Islamophobia conference

Several hundred Muslims were in Atlanta this weekend to tackle two big issues: how do you overcome people’s fear of Islam, and how should the Muslim community address issues facing Muslim women. Those issues were the focus points of this Islamic World International Conference held near the Atlanta Airport.

The event space of the hotel was filled with a variety of tables from people selling Hijabs to outreach programs and academies for Muslim children.

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Florida school board rejects Islamophobic hysteria over history textbook

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Volusia school textbook supporters
Opponents of the call for a ban on the ‘World History’ textbook demonstrate at the school board meeting

A world history textbook that sparked a heated controversy over the way it covers Islam will remain in Volusia County high schools, the School Board decided Monday after hearing four hours of public comments about its merits and shortcomings.

“I’m still confident with this book and its presentation to our students,” School Board Chairwoman Diane Smith said after hearing from nearly 80 speakers with widely differing opinions.

The board didn’t take a formal vote, but only member Linda Costello pushed for a more thorough review. Candace Lankford, Stan Schmidt and Ida Wright sided with Smith to keep the textbook in Volusia classrooms.

“It’s kind of what I would have expected,” said Walter Hanford, a book opponent who stuck around long enough to hear the board discussion. Hanford told the board earlier in the meeting the “World History” textbook published by Prentice Hall “whitewashes” the history of Islam and its Muslim followers, including involvement in the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the shootings at Fort Hood, Texas.

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Muslim woman bombarded with slurs at New School: suit

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The New SchoolA New Jersey Muslim woman slapped The New School with a lawsuit on Friday alleging she had to quit her job there in March after being routinely bombarded with racist slurs by co-workers – and was even ordered not to wear her Hijab to work.

Jamilah Moudiab filed a civil-rights lawsuit in Manhattan federal court that also alleges her supervisor, Monique Ngozi Nri, told her shortly after she was hired in 2011 that the Manhattan university is a “religious free zone” and that “if [she] wants to stay at The New School, [she] must not wear a headdress.”

Moudiab, who quit her job as an international student advisor in March, claims mischievous co-workers even anonymously placed a Christian cross and Rosary beads on her desk to “further castigate” her Muslim beliefs.

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Anti-Muslim license plate battle back in court

Posted on by Bob Pitt

ICUHAJI plateIraqi War vet, Sean Bujno, who is suing to use the license plates “ICUHAJI,” had his case dismissed for a second time by a circuit court judge.

The license plate is deemed offensive and racist towards certain groups, such as Arabs and Muslims. Bujno’s attorney says it is a First Amendment issue. They are considering a third appeal, this time possibly with a U.S. District Court.

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Muslim text protest sows hostility

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The Orlando Sentinel has a good editorial condemning the Volusia County school textbook campaign. It argues:

“This concocted controversy calls to mind another appeal to antipathy toward Muslims – the ongoing effort in the Florida Legislature to ‘protect’ state courts from the non-existent threat of Islamic Shariah law.”

See also “Christian history taught before Islam in state curriculum”, Daytona Beach News-Journal, 9 November 2013

Bad news for Communists – they’re even less popular than Muslims

Posted on by Bob Pitt

When asked to rate their feelings for atheists and Muslims, fewer than one-third of U.S. adults fell on the favorable side of the scale.

As part of its 2013 American Values Survey, the Public Religion Research Institute asked respondents to use a 1 to 100 scale, with 100 being the most favorable, to rate how they feel about various groups.

Twenty-nine percent rated atheists 51 or higher, while 27 percent rated Muslims above 50.

Muslims received an average rating of 42.4, ranking them second-from-last on the list, just below atheists but above communists. Christians received the highest average rating, 74.6.

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Posted in USA

Muslim workers claim they were fired for prayer

Posted on by Bob Pitt

CAIR DHL press conferenceAt the DHL Global Mail plant in Hebron, Kentucky, 24 Muslim workers took a break to pray. They say it cost them their jobs. The company denies any wrongdoing.

At a news conference Thursday, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) says the workers were fired unjustly. “These workers contend that they were dismissed from their jobs for asserting their right to a reasonable accommodation for their religious practices including daily prayer,” said Karen Dabdoub, executive director of CAIR-Cincinnati.

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