Sharia Activist Linda Sarsour to give Commencement at CUNY

[icehorse]

Well known pro-Sharia activist Linda Sarsour is scheduled to give the commencement speech at the City University of New York (CUNY). This uni. is partially funded with tax-payer's dollars.

I'm not sure if the separation of church and state is being maintained here, but even if it is, it should give the "no such thing as the threat of Sharia" apologists pause:

Sharia Law Advocate to Give Commencement Speech at Taxpayer-Funded University

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Like Bill Maher said (in response to the protest against him giving a commencement speech), it isn't about the speaker, it's about the achievements and accomplishments of those graduating. It serves no good in taking that recognition and celebration away from them by making it about your own personal politics.

 

[icehorse]

Like Bill Maher said (in response to the protest against him giving a commencement speech), it isn't about the speaker, it's about the achievements and accomplishments of those graduating. It serves no good in taking that recognition and celebration away from them by making it about your own personal politics.

Can you clarify, I'm finding that to be ambiguous? Whose personal politics are you talking about? Mine? Sarsour's? The folks who invited Sarsour?

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Sharia Law Advocate to Give Commencement Speech at Taxpayer-Funded University

Brought to you by Fox News Insider no less. It must be true: we see Spreading Sharia everywhere we turn. Be afraid; be very afraid - the Muslims are coming!

Meanwhile, from Snopes, ...

Sarsour was also accused of “romanticiz[ing] Sharia law and hint[ing] at it taking over America whereby we would have interest free loans.” Those claims appeared to stem from tweets in which she stated that as a Muslim she abides Sharia law (a “set of principles that govern the moral and religious lives of Muslims”) and in which, depending upon one’s point of view, she either advocated that legal system in the U.S. or lamented the poor understanding of its meaning and application (particularly that its principles apply only to Muslims and not those of other faiths) in America: ...​

Oh, well; nothing here but the continuing sound of the dog whistle.

 

[icehorse]

Brought to you by Fox News Insider no less. It must be true: we see Spreading Sharia everywhere we turn. Be afraid; be very afraid - the Muslims are coming!

You can have tea with the Archbishop AND Sarsour, I'm sure you'd all get along famously.

But Jay, again with the mischaracterizations... this is not about fear, this is about defending human rights and secularism.

Are you somehow saying that the tweets of Sarsour's listed in the article are somehow not a promotion of Sharia? Or are you saying perhaps a little Sharia might be a good thing? How do YOU interpret the tweets in that article?

 

[Lyndon]

If you define your beliefs with hatred of other religious beliefs, its hard to expect tolerance for your own religious or non religious beliefs.

 

[Notanumber]

Banning the burqa will be difficult, but Sharia Law should be outlawed in a liberal democratic functioning western democracy.

 

[Debater Slayer]

Well known pro-Sharia activist Linda Sarsour is scheduled to give the commencement speech at the City University of New York (CUNY). This uni. is partially funded with tax-payer's dollars.

I'm not sure if the separation of church and state is being maintained here, but even if it is, it should give the "no such thing as the threat of Sharia" apologists pause:

Sharia Law Advocate to Give Commencement Speech at Taxpayer-Funded University

1) I think if she's giving the speech strictly and only as a civil rights activist with accomplishments in that field, then she's qualified to do so regardless of her views on Shari'a.

2) "Shari'a" (or, as it is often redundantly called, "Shari'a law") is merely Islamic law, and it encompasses everything from the Islamic penal code to Islamic teachings concerning giving to charity, praying, fasting, and being kind to one's parents. In most of what I have seen of Linda Sarsour's tweets about Shari'a, she wasn't advocating for anything extremist or dangerous to the freedoms of her fellow citizens in a secular society.

I think the American conservative camp is more dangerous both to me as a native of an Arab country and to the secular freedoms of the U.S. than Linda Sarsour is. It's just that right-wing moral and intellectual bankruptcy like that advocated by the Republican Party and Fox News isn't called "Shari'a" in the U.S.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Can you clarify, I'm finding that to be ambiguous? Whose personal politics are you talking about? Mine? Sarsour's? The folks who invited Sarsour?

It's the personal politics of everyone who ignores those who the day is about and instead say "my beliefs do not agree with the speakers beliefs." The day is not about those complaining or those speaking. It is about those graduating.

 

[sun rise]

Brought to you by Fox News Insider no less. It must be true: we see Spreading Sharia everywhere we turn. Be afraid; be very afraid - the Muslims are coming!

Meanwhile, from Snopes, ...

Sarsour was also accused of “romanticiz[ing] Sharia law and hint[ing] at it taking over America whereby we would have interest free loans.” Those claims appeared to stem from tweets in which she stated that as a Muslim she abides Sharia law (a “set of principles that govern the moral and religious lives of Muslims”) and in which, depending upon one’s point of view, she either advocated that legal system in the U.S. or lamented the poor understanding of its meaning and application (particularly that its principles apply only to Muslims and not those of other faiths) in America: ...​

Oh, well; nothing here but the continuing sound of the dog whistle.

All I needed to know was the source of this scurrilous attack to dismiss it. Sadly Muslims are this generation's Jews but many of us can smell the stench of bigotry because of what happened to us not so long ago.

 

[icehorse]

2) "Shari'a" (or, as it is often redundantly called, "Shari'a law") is merely Islamic law, and it encompasses everything from the Islamic penal code to Islamic teachings concerning giving to charity, praying, fasting, and being kind to one's parents. In most of what I have seen of Linda Sarsour's tweets about Shari'a, she wasn't advocating for anything extremist or dangerous to the freedoms of her fellow citizens in a secular society.

I think the American conservative camp is more dangerous both to me as a native of an Arab country and to the secular freedoms of the U.S. than Linda Sarsour is. It's just that right-wing moral and intellectual bankruptcy like that advocated by the Republican Party and Fox News isn't called "Shari'a" in the U.S.

There can be only one rule of law. I'd like you to consider what might on the surface seem "not dangerous": in the UK there are many Sharia courts that are limited to only family, civil matters. Seems innocuous enough, but the occurrence of violent coercion behind closed doors is high. So a seemingly innocuous "Sharia civil court" is in fact allowing horrible misogyny.

As far as the danger of the far right, I'm with you. But both camps (the far right and Islamists), can be criticized independently.

To put it another way, I've become a centrist and I see most forms of extremism as being dangerous. Far right extremism, far left extremism, Islamism, Oligarchy... all are forms of extremism, and all are dangerous.

 

[icehorse]

All I needed to know was the source of this scurrilous attack to dismiss it. Sadly Muslims are this generation's Jews but many of us can smell the stench of bigotry because of what happened to us not so long ago.

Every Jewish person on this forum should be massively offended by that comment. Please tell us more of the holocaust that Muslims living in the west are experiencing...

 

[icehorse]

It's the personal politics of everyone who ignores those who the day is about and instead say "my beliefs do not agree with the speakers beliefs." The day is not about those complaining or those speaking. It is about those graduating.

A commencement speech is a monologue. A while back Bill Maher was disinvited from giving a commencement speech (Berkeley I believe?), on the grounds that he might offend some students. you don't think Linda Sarsour will offend many?

How do we square barring Maher but promoting Sarsour?

 

[Shadow Wolf]

A commencement speech is a monologue. A while back Bill Maher was disinvited from giving a commencement speech (Berkeley I believe?), on the grounds that he might offend some students. you don't think Linda Sarsour will offend many?

If they are offended, waaa. It's not about them their special snowflake feelings.

 

[icehorse]

If they are offended, waaa. It's not about them their special snowflake feelings.

Then I hope you'd be outraged that Brandeis dis-invited Ayaan Hirsi Ali for fear of offending the snowflakes? And that Berkeley is trying to cancel Ann Coulter (who I despise), for fear of offending the snowflakes?

And I gotta say, there are many folks who think that a commencement speech ought to be about the graduates...

 

[von bek]

I don't want to be forced to live under the religious laws of a faith different from mine. I doubt anyone does. At the same time, Sharia is not synonymous with killing non-Muslims. It incorporates a number of practices that Muslims should be freely allowed to practice and willingly submit themselves to. (Such as keeping halal, praying five times a day, being allowed to wear religious clothing, and so forth.)

 

[icehorse]

I don't want to be forced to live under the religious laws of a faith different from mine. I doubt anyone does. At the same time, Sharia is not synonymous with killing non-Muslims. It incorporates a number of practices that Muslims should be freely allowed to practice and willingly submit themselves to. (Such as keeping halal, praying five times a day, being allowed to wear religious clothing, and so forth.)

You're presenting a false choice here. Sharia codifies many assaults on the human rights of Muslims. Here are a few.

Under Sharia:

- Apostasy is a crime, often considered to be a capital crime. There goes freedom of religion for Muslims.
- Men can divorce their wives in a matter of seconds. The process for a wife to divorce is MUCH more complex and convoluted.
- Women's legal testimony is devalued.
- Women's access to inheritance is unequal.
- Homosexuality is illegal.
- Blasphemy is a crime, again sometimes a capital crime. You can be stoned to death for insulting Islam. So much for freedom of speech.

 

[ADigitalArtist]

You're presenting a false choice here. Sharia codifies many assaults on the human rights of Muslims. Here are a few.

Under Sharia:

- Apostasy is a crime, often considered to be a capital crime. There goes freedom of religion for Muslims.
- Men can divorce their wives in a matter of seconds. The process for a wife to divorce is MUCH more complex and convoluted.
- Women's legal testimony is devalued.
- Women's access to inheritance is unequal.
- Homosexuality is illegal.
- Blasphemy is a crime, again sometimes a capital crime. You can be stoned to death for insulting Islam. So much for freedom of speech.

If you don't actually believe Sarcour wants these things (And she's made it pretty clear she doesn't) then you must conclude that Sharia doesn't mean the same thing to all Muslims. Making your post a false dichotomy.

 

[danieldemol]

B

You're presenting a false choice here. Sharia codifies many assaults on the human rights of Muslims. Here are a few.

Under Sharia:

- Apostasy is a crime, often considered to be a capital crime. There goes freedom of religion for Muslims.
- Men can divorce their wives in a matter of seconds. The process for a wife to divorce is MUCH more complex and convoluted.
- Women's legal testimony is devalued.
- Women's access to inheritance is unequal.
- Homosexuality is illegal.
- Blasphemy is a crime, again sometimes a capital crime. You can be stoned to death for insulting Islam. So much for freedom of speech.

But if we are truly for free speech we must allow pro-Shariah activists the equal opportunity to express their opinions as well.

In my view shutting their speeches out of places of critical thinking such as university does not give them equal freedom of expression.

 

[von bek]

You're presenting a false choice here. Sharia codifies many assaults on the human rights of Muslims. Here are a few.

What is the false choice I am presenting? I said I have no desire to live under another religion's laws. As @Debater Slayer has shown, there is much more to Sharia than inflicting violence for non-conformity. In fact, I bet there are multiple interpretations of what Sharia means. I liken this to people who vehemently oppose any sort of restrictions on gun ownership. Not everyone who wants gun control is looking to outright ban all gun ownership, while others do want that. If you continue to shout down the reasonable voices on the other side, you will only be left with the most extreme voices. Does that make sense? I agree that capital punishment for apostasy should not be allowed in our society. On the other hand, Muslims insisting that they should have the freedom to pray while at work or have access to halal food at schools should be allowed.