Suit Challenging San Diego Schools' Anti-Islamophobia Program Is Settled

Freedom of Conscience Defense Fund announced Monday that it has finalized a settlement agreement (full text) with the San Diego Unified School District, resolving a lawsuit that it filed in 2017 challenging an Anti-Islamophobia program instituted by the school district to combat bullying and harassment of Muslim students.  (See prior posting.)  According to FCDF:

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, the District distributed a policy memo to area superintendents and principals regarding the First Amendment’s "limits on the conduct of public school officials as it relates to religious activity."

Terrorist Shootings By White Supremacist In 2 New Zealand Mosques Kill 49

The Sun has details of the mass shootings by a white supremacist at two mosques in New Zealand today which killed 49 and injured 48 others, 20 of them critically. The Guardian and Perth Now describe the killer's rambling 74-page manifesto which he titled The Great Replacement.  The full text of the manifesto is available here.

House Passes Resolution Condemning Anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and Other Bigotry

Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 407-23 passed House Resolution 183 (full text) condemning anti-Semitism, anti-Muslim discrimination and bigotry against other minorities as contrary to the values that define the people of the United States. New York Times reports on the complicated history of the 7-page resolution, saying in part:

It started as a resolution condemning anti-Semitism. Then, anti-Muslim bias was added in. After that came white supremacy. And by the end, it cited “African-Americans, Native Americans, and other people of color, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, immigrants and others” victimized by bigotry.

The resolution condemning “hateful expressions of intolerance,” which passed the House by an overwhelming 407-to-23 vote Thursday afternoon, was as much a statement of Democrats’ values as their factionalism. Caught in the middle was Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who worked for days to quell the internal uproar that erupted after a freshman Democrat, Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, insinuated that backers of Israel exhibit dual loyalty....

Republicans mocked its all-inclusive approach....  Some veteran Jewish Democrats, who had pushed for a measure that would solely condemn anti-Semitism, were equally dismayed.

Anti-Muslim Display In West Virginia Capitol Sparks Controversy

WV News and NBC News report on an anti-Muslim display and pamphlets set up in the West Virginia Capitol Rotunda as part of "WVGOP Day" by the organization ACT for America. According to NBC:

The display featured a picture of the World Trade Center in New York City as a fireball exploded from the one of the Twin Towers, set above a picture of Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, who is Muslim.

"'Never forget' - you said. . ." read a caption on the first picture. "I am the proof - you have forgotten," read the caption under the picture of Omar, who is wearing a hijab....

Several Democrats strongly objected to the display, and got into an argument with the House's sergeant at arms, Anne Lieberman, who allegedly remarked that "All Muslims are terrorists." Lieberman resigned Friday night.  Republican House speaker Roger Hanshaw issued a statement saying in part:

The West Virginia House of Delegates unequivocally rejects hate in all of its forms.

Texas County Republicans Keep Muslim Doctor As Vice Chairman

Texas Tribune reports that the precinct chairs of the Tarrant County, Texas Republican Party last night rejected by a vote of 139-49 an attempt to remove trauma surgeon Shahid Shafi as vice-chairman of the county Republican Party. A small faction had attempted to remove Shafi because he is a Muslim.  They argued that he did not represent all Tarrant County Republicans because he is a Muslim, and that Islamic ideologies are opposed to the U.S. Constitution.  A former county precinct chair had sat outside the meeting wearing a burqa which, she said, represented "the Islamization of our county, our state and our country."  Shafi's defenders say the vote for religious liberty.

No Preliminary Injunction Against Schools' Anti-Islamophobia Initiative

In Citizens for Quality Education San Diego v. Barrera, (SD CA, Sept. 25, 2018), a California federal district court refused to issue a preliminary injunction against an initiative undertaken by the San Diego school district to address Islamophobia and anti-Muslim bullying. The court held that plaintiffs are unlikely to succeed on the merits of their Establishment Clause and state constitutional no-aid clause claims. San Diego Union Tribune reports on the decision.

SPLC Pays $3.375M For Wrongful Inclusion On Extremist List

In a press release yesterday, the Southern Poverty Law Center issued an apology to Mr. Maajid Nawaz and his organization, the Quilliam Foundation, for wrongfully including them on its list of anti-Muslim extremists. SPLC said in part:

As part of our settlement, we have paid $3.375 million to Mr. Nawaz and Quilliam to fund their work to fight anti-Muslim bigotry and extremism. It was the right thing to do in light of our mistake and the right thing to do in light of the growing prejudice against the Muslim community on both sides of the Atlantic. We will look to our insurance carrier to cover the cost of the settlement.

Islamic School Consultant Files Religious Freedom Lawsuit Over Impediments To Its Purchase of Property

WFJM News reported yesterday on a federal court lawsuit filed last month by a consulting firm for Islamic schools over impediments placed in its way as it attempted to purchase a now-vacant 150 acre site in Shenango Township, Pennsylvania from the state.  The property, containing 13 building, was formerly used to provide rehabilitative services and housing for juvenile offenders.  Plaintiff intended to use the site in part for a youth intervention center and partly for an Islamic boarding school.  The complaint (full text) in HIRA Educational Services of North America v. Augustine, (WD PA, filed 4/13/2018), alleges that local residents were unhappy that the property was being sold to an Islamic institution.  At a community meeting, a representative of an advocacy organization opposing the sale falsely claimed that the property would be used as a center for thousands of refugees. State and local officials took a variety of elaborate steps to block the sale, making it impossible for the purchaser to obtain financing for the property. The lawsuit contends that actions by officials to prevent the purchase imposed a substantial burden on religous exercise in violation of RLUIPA, the Pennsylvania Religious Freedom Protection Act and federal civil rights laws.

Report Finds Increase In Anti-Muslim Bias Incidents

Yesterday CAIR released its 2018 Civil Rights Report which it titles Targeted (full text). Here is part of the Key Findings section of the report:

Anti-Muslim bias incidents have continued to increase in 2017. Additionally, a greater percentage of these instances have been violent in nature, targeting American children, youth, and families who are Muslim or perceived to be Muslim.

CAIR recorded a 17 percent increase in anti-Muslim bias incidents nationwide in 2017 over 2016.  This was accompanied by a 15 percent increase in hate crimes targeting American Muslims, including children, youth, and families, over the same period.

Of particular alarm is the fact that federal government agencies instigated 35 percent of all anti-Muslim bias incidents recorded in 2017. This represents an almost unprecedented level of government hostility toward a religious minority within the United States, and is counter to the American value of religious freedom.

Following the executive order barring the entry of individuals from several Muslim-majority countries into the U.S., the first version of which was signed on January 27, 2017, CAIR received a deluge of cases. Over the course of the year, CAIR recorded 464 incidents pertaining to the unconstitutional Muslim Ban. That is a staggering 18 percent of the total number of anti-Muslim bias incidents documented in 2017.

Suit Over News Photo of Arabic-Speaking School Child May Continue

In Mahdy v. Mason City School District, (SD OH, March 15, 2018), an Ohio federal district court refused to dismiss equal protection and false-light claims growing out of the use of a photo of a 5-year old (identified as J.M.) to illustrate a newspaper story criticizing a rise in the number of Arabic-speaking students in the Mason City, Ohio schools.  The student was the daughter of an Egyptian-born urologist at the University of Cincinnati. The article reported that most of the Arabic-speaking students were from Saudi Arabia on temporary visas to be treated at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, and that their enrollment placed strains on the school system's budget. The court describes plaintiff's claims:

The Complaint alleges that neither Dr. Mahdy nor his wife gave permission to anyone to photograph J.M., to disclose her identity to the public, or to falsely associate her with the Children’s Hospital Destination Excellence Program.... The Complaint alleges that J.M. had to be removed from MECC due to the "wave of Islamophobia that is currently sweeping across our country," and because her family was "so distressed over the prejudice and discriminatory treatment expressed against Arabic-speaking students."

Some Allegations About CAIR Stricken From Complaint

In Citizens for Quality Education San Diego v. San Diego Unified School District, (SD CA, Feb. 12, 2018), a California federal district court granted a motion by defendants to strike from plaintiffs' complaint certain allegations regarding the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).  The motion was filed in a suit alleging that the San Diego school district's anti-Islamophobia initiative is a "discriminatory scheme that establishes Muslim students as the privileged religious group within the school community." The court held that seven allegations claiming a relationship between CAIR and terrorism should be stricken as "impertinent, immaterial, and scandalous."  The court however refused to strike claims relating to CAIR’s views on Israel and Judaism.

Parents Challenge Teacher's Distribution of Material Disparaging Muslims

According to yesterday's Pasedena Star-News, the parents of a 7th grade boy have filed an appeal with the California Department of Education over the Mesa Union School District's clearing of a teacher's who distributed material disparaging Muslims.  The boy is being bullied by other students because of his religion. The paper reports:

The material the teacher distributed contained information taken from the website billionbibles.org, which makes “inaccurate and disparaging” statements about Islam and Muslims,” said Masih Fouladi, CAIR-LA’s advocacy manager.

The sheet of paper distributed by the teacher states Sharia Law, or Islamic religious law, gives Muslim men sexual rights over any woman or girl not wearing the hijab or head scarf; allows a man to marry an infant girl and consummate the marriage when she is 9; and requires Muslims to lie to non-Muslims to advance their faith.

“The main issue at hand with this incident of bullying is that the material was drawn from a website that is clearly intended to promote one religion at the expense of another,” Fouladi said. “This has no place in our public school system and is a clear violation of the First Amendment.”

Trump's Retweets of Islamophobic Videos Distress British Leaders

The Independent this morning reports that Donald Trump's retweeting of Islamophobic videos first posted by Jayda Fransen, deputy leader of the far-right Britain First movement, has caused consternation among British leaders. 

Head of DHS Faith Based Office Resigns Over Anti-Muslim, Anti-Black Statements

CNN reports that Rev. Jamie Johnson resigned yesterday as head of the Department of Homeland Security's Center for Faith-Based & Neighborhood Partnerships.  His resignation stems from inflammatory statements about Blacks and Muslims which Johnson made in radio appearances in years prior to his appointment to his position at DHS.  For example, in one appearance he said in part:

I agree with Dinesh D'Souza, your friend and mine, who says really all that Islam has ever given us is oil and dead bodies over the last millennia and a half.

New California Law Bars State Role In Any Future "Muslim Registry"

On Sunday, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law SB 31, the California Religious Freedom Act (full text).  As reported by Law Newz, the bill prevents any participation by local or state agencies in any federal "Muslim Registry" that might be developed.  As summarized in part by the Legislative Counsel's office:

The bill would prohibit a state or local agency or a public employee ... from providing or disclosing to the federal government personal information regarding a person’s religious beliefs, practices, or affiliation ... when the information is sought for compiling a database of individuals based on religious belief, practice, or affiliation, national origin, or ethnicity for law enforcement or immigration purposes. The bill would also prohibit a state agency from using agency resources to assist with any government program compiling such a database ... [and] would prohibit state and local law enforcement agencies ... from collecting personal information on the religious beliefs, practices, or affiliation of any individual, except as part of a targeted investigation ... or where necessary to provide religious accommodations.

European Court Upholds Defamation Judgment For False Charges of Anti-Muslim Statements

In Case of Medzlis Islamske Zajednice Brcko and Others v. Bosnia and Herzegovina, (ECHR, June 27, 2017), the European Court of Human Rights Grand Chamber by a vote of 11-6 held that the free expression rights of a Muslim religious community and three non-governmental organizations representing ethnic Bosnian Muslims were not infringed by a defamation judgment entered against them.  The suit grew out of a letter sent to authorities of the Brčko District's multi-ethnic radio station objecting to the appointment of "Ms. M.S." as director of the station.  Among other things, the letter claimed that M.S.:

(1) stated in an interview ... commenting on the destruction of mosques in Brčko, that Muslims were not a people ..., that they did not possess culture and that, accordingly, destroying mosques could not be seen as destruction of cultural monuments,

(2) as an employee of the BD radio demonstratively tore to pieces on the radio’s premises ... the calendar showing the schedule of religious services during the month of Ramadan...

These statements were inaccurate.  The majority concluded:

the authorities of the respondent State struck a fair balance between the applicants’ interest in free speech, on the one hand, and M.S.’s interest in protection of her reputation on the other hand, thus acting within their margin of appreciation....

The Court's press release on the decision summarizes the Court's reasoning.

Suit Challenges School District's Anti-Islamophobia Program

Freedom of Conscience Defense Fund announced yesterday that it has filed a religious discrimination lawsuit in a California federal district court against the San Diego Unified School District.  The suit, filed on behalf of a group of parents, challenges an Anti-Islamophobia program instituted by the school district to combat bullying and harassment of Muslim students.  The lawsuit particularly objects to the school board's collaboration with CAIR, a group which plaintiffs say has ties to radical Islam.  The complaint alleges in part:

Under the guise of this anti-bullying program, Defendants have fallen in with [CAIR] to set up a subtle, discriminatory scheme that establishes Muslim students as the privileged religious group within the school community.  Consequently, students of other faiths are left on the outside looking in, vulnerable to religiously motivated bullying, while Muslim students enjoy an exclusive right to the School District’s benevolent protection.

Swiss Court Says Anti-Muslim Referendum Is Invalid

Daily Sabah reports that yesterday Switzerland's Federal Tribunal held that a referendum supported by the right-wing Swiss People's Party is unconstitutional. The referendum was an attempt to prevent state funding of the University of Fribourg's Swiss Centre for Islam and Society. Four of the high court's 5 judges agreed with the Fribourg regional Parliament that the referendum is unconstitutional because it singles out a particular religion.

Suit Challenging Social Media Policing of Anti-Islamist Posts Is Dismissed

In American Freedom Defense Initiative v. Lynch, (D DC, Nov. 9, 2016), the DC. federal district court dismissed a suit against the federal government by two anti-Islamist organizations and their leaders, including well-known activist Pamela Geller.  The groups complain that Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter have repeatedly removed their postings.  They sue the U.S. Attorney General seeking a declaratory judgment that Sec. 230 of the Communications Decency Act is unconstitutional.  That section protects social media sites from liability for policing content to remove objectionable material.  Plaintiffs contend that if Sec. 230 were held unconstitutional, the sites would no longer censor their posts.  The court dismissed for lack of standing, holding that any impact of a declaratory judgment here is speculative, and at most would only indirectly affect the behavior of social media companies.

Massachusetts Supreme Court Upholds Rulings In Landlord's Assault On Muslim Tenant

In Commonwealth v. Obi, (MA Sup Jud Ct, Sept 21, 2016), the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court upheld a series of rulings by a trial court judge in the criminal trial of a female landlord for assault and battery after she pushed a tenant, who is Muslim, down a flight of stairs. Defendant Daisy Obi, described by the court as "a septuagenarian Christian minister," had  history of harassing tenants, but in this case she also made a number of anti-Muslim statements to tenant Gilhan Suliman with whom she had a number of landlord-tenant issues.

After a jury trial, the trial judge sentenced Obi to 6 months in jail and 18 months probation with two special conditions: (1) she must disclose to prospective tenants that she had been convicted of assaulting a tenant and she had several previous harassment prevention orders issued against her, and (2) she must attend an introductory class on Islam. The court upheld the disclosure requirement, and refused to consider Obi's challenge to the requirement she attend a class on Islam since objections to it were not raised at trial. However the court observed:

conditions of probation that touch on religion and risk incursion upon constitutionally protected interests should be imposed only with great circumspection.

Finally the Court upheld the trial judge's refusal to allow defendant to exercise a peremptory challenge against a juror who wore a headscarf of the type commonly worn by Muslim women.