Citing numerous contributions by American Muslims and growing discrimination, Ralph Nader challenged Obama and McCain to campaign at mosques. Posted at VoteNader.org:
Ralph Nader will be holding a news conference Friday, October 3 at 11 a.m. outside the Grand Mosque Islamic Center in Washington DC where he will challenge Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain to visit a mosque, like they have churches and synagogues, before the November election as a show of respect and tolerance.
Nader recently wrote a letter to Obama and McCain asking the men to act on such a request.
“As you know, discriminatory acts against Muslim-Americans have soared in recent years. They emanate from stereotyping, ethnic profiling, bigotry and, unfortunately, actions by some local, state & federal officials. The documentation is broad and deep on this unfortunate situation that spreads fear and anxiety among millions of Muslim-Americans…,” Nader wrote in his letter to Obama and McCain. “Out of respect for Muslim-Americans who have served in all the dimensions of our society from the professions to the armed forces, from the trades to the arts and sciences, from blue collar to white collar work, while raising their children to surpass their own achievements as befits the American horizon, we urge you to visit a Mosque before November 4, 2008.”
The full letter is at http://www.votenader.org/media/2008/10/03/mosquevisit/
2 responses so far ↓
1 Steven R Linnabary // Oct 3, 2008 at 11:18 pm
I was with Bob Barr at the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) annual conference last month. 30,000 people were there.
Obama and McCain AND their running mates were in town, but refused to come. Obama and Biden spoke at a swank suburban High School, and McCain and Palin stopped at a gift shop to buy OSU jerseys (OSU football IS the local religion).
The Barr campaign seems to be rather squeamish about letting anybody know about this. The American Muslim media is STILL largely unaware.
PEACE
2 Michael Seebeck // Oct 4, 2008 at 1:44 am
Give Nader credit here for guts and appealing to a crowd that seems to go unnoticed in the electorate.
In 2001 in Colorado Springs the local LP teamed with some local liberal religious groups to provide security for the local mosque for their prayer services after some nutcase threatened to firebomb it. Until that local affiliate collapsed from life getting in the way, they enjoyed a mutual alliance.
I was there, which is why I know what happened. Why the LP doesn’t work more with them is beyond me. Why Barr doesn’t publicize that appearance doesn’t make any sense, since that is something he should be proud of (except that it goes against pandering to disgruntled conservatives who think that all Muslims are complicit in terrorism and 9/11!).
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