tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-197545212024-03-14T05:55:12.067-04:00Moved to: forcommongood.comWait 3 seconds to be automatically directed. If unable to do so, go directly to new website by entering the new address noted above. Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-91504051283423844462014-04-20T20:22:00.002-04:002014-04-20T20:22:34.980-04:00Moved to forcommongood.com<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Moved to <span style="color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: 20px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 30px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://forcommongood.com/blog/">forcommongood.com</a></span></h2>
</div>
Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-70382269208576665302011-05-08T13:12:00.001-04:002011-05-08T13:14:55.445-04:00Memo to Osama bin Laden, now deadPublished in Turkey's <a href="http://www.todayszaman.com/news-242719-opinion-memo-to-osama-bin-laden-now-dead.html">Today's Zaman</a>, May 3, 2011. Also on <a href="http://www.todayszaman.com/news-242719-opinion-memo-to-osama-bin-laden-now-dead.html">Huffington Post</a>. An edited version appears in the <a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2011-05-04/story/guest-column-bin-laden-was-failure-life-and-death">Florida Times Union</a>.<br /> <br />MEMO TO OSAMA BIN LADEN, NOW DEAD<br />Parvez Ahmed<br /><br />Although rejoicing death is not part of the religious traditions of Muslims, Christians or Jews, I cannot help but feel a sense of joyful relief now that you are no longer capable of plotting your evil. Your elimination as a terrorist threat is a victory for peace and justice. Thousands of people from different nationalities, ethnicities and religions around the world have reacted with understandable emotions. Capital markets have reacted by bidding oil prices down and stock prices up, indicating that they are hopeful of greater stability in the Middle East. <br /> <br />You have caused untold misery to people who had no enmity with you. You have dragged the good name of Islam through the mud by wrapping your heinous actions with the banner of Islam. Your views and your methods have long been discredited by credible and mainstream Muslim scholars. But that did not persuade you from ceasing to poison the minds of gullible and vulnerable youths. You took our children brainwashed them into being maniacs and then used them as weapons against us. And in the end you did not even prove your self-proclaimed warrior mantle. You hid behind a woman and used her as a human shield. You are not a martyr. You are a criminal who deserves to be punished by death, under American, international and Sharia laws. <br /> <br />The cancer that you have left behind will still be with us. We will still have to deal with terrorists like you. But we hope that your death will inject rationality in the discourse about terrorism. It will allow our policy makers and leaders to see terrorism less as a political football and more as a criminal activity undertaken by mafia figures like you. Instead of criminalizing a faith, our leaders will use sensible method to go after the criminals without stigmatizing the faith group they belong to. <br /> <br />We are hopeful that your demise will bring some measure of comfort to all the families who have to contend daily with the loss of their loved ones. We are also hopeful that your departure provides renewed opportunities for building stronger bridges of understanding across faiths and cultures. <br /> <br />As peace loving Muslims, we unequivocally reject terrorism and reiterate that no grievances can ever justify the taking of innocent human lives. Islam strictly condemns religious extremism and the use of violence against innocent lives. Any group that imitates your methods is just as guilty as you are of crimes against their faith and all of humanity. <br /> <br />We are heartened by the fact that no Muslim country took the responsibility of your burial. It is permissible, in fact recommended in Islam to not afford terrorists full burial rites. Terrorists are considered deviants and thus denying them the opportunity for burial rites that seek mercy and forgiveness for the deceased are religiously accepted.<br /> <br />President Barack Obama has eloquently reminded the world that you were not a Muslim leader. He went on to say, "Indeed, al Qaeda has slaughtered scores of Muslims in many countries, including our own. So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity." <br /> <br />In your death you have united us as Americans once more, the same way we were in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. Today, like that ill-fated day, people of conscience are once again ready to rediscover the value of peaceful coexistence, so jaded by your rhetoric of war. Even when lamenting or protesting unfair and unjust conditions, we do not want to forget our Prophet's teachings of seeking peace and forgiveness even in the midst of our harshest hardships. Your fellow Arabs are increasingly rejecting your messianic worldview. In Egypt and Tunisia they have peacefully overthrown dictators. What your violence never achieved, their peace did. <br /> <br />It is my hope that your life and death serve as a lesson to all who ever contemplated using the shortcut of violence to satisfy their desires and needs. In your death as in your life, you have failed. You have dishonored your family and the over one billion Muslims from whom you hijacked the good name of Islam.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-58477327153953108852011-04-25T15:55:00.002-04:002011-04-25T16:00:00.510-04:00Editorial in Florida Times UnionApril 25, 2011<br /><br />There is nothing especially unusual about awards or appreciating the good works of outstanding individuals.<br /><br />But it is unique to have the sponsoring organization celebrating the audience. That is what happened last Tuesday night during "An Evening of Gratitude" by the Muslim community.<br /><br />The sentiments were so touching, the positive energy in the Hyatt Regency ballroom so powerful, that it left participants grasping for words.<br /><br />The Islamic Center of Northeast Florida gave a series of awards at the benefit that in a broad sense were aimed at all the people of good will in the community.<br />And the sponsors made it clear that this good will did not start recently, but from those days about 30 years ago when there was just a handful of Muslims here.<br /><br />Speakers from the Islamic Center said thanks for the support they have received from Christians, Jews, Hindus and many others. For instance, help was provided to purchase land for a mosque, for architectural work, for legal work.<br /><br />And during the unfortunate opposition in the community to the appointment of Parvez Ahmed to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission, many people of good will stood up and spoke out.<br /><br />As Imam Joe Bradford said, Jacksonville's "gracious nature" turned negative energy into a positive.<br /><br />John Delaney, president of the University of North Florida where Ahmed serves as a professor, said that his support was easy compared to the incredible patience and grace shown by Ahmed.<br /><br />Mayor John Peyton said that Ahmed was "amazingly unflappable," that his grace was an inspiration during a grueling confirmation process.<br /><br />"A lot of good came from this," Peyton said, by mobilizing the right-thinking people in the community.<br /><br />But shouldn't the right-thinking people speak out? What a tragedy if they had not. Times-Union Editor Frank Denton described the coverage as the "journalism of hope."<br />To quote the Quran: "By no means shall you attain righteousness unless you give of that which you love" (3:92).<br /><br />It was a beautiful night that made us proud to be living in Jacksonville.<br /><br />Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/opinion/editorials/2011-04-25/story/three-cheers-turning-tables#ixzz1KZCXMEMvParvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-16632143188977268582010-12-29T10:45:00.000-05:002010-12-29T10:46:15.835-05:00Person of the YearProfessor, father, author, activist, citizen, Muslim. The man who made 2010 a turning point for Northeast Florida. <br /><br />On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Parvez Ahmed slept in. After teaching a late-night investment class at the University of Pennsylvania, and working in his home office until after midnight, he took the rare luxury of sleeping past 8 a.m. His<br />parents, visiting from Calcutta, milled about downstairs with his wife Savana, fixing breakfast and watching the morning news. When the first jetliner crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m., Savana called up to her husband. Ahmed was just coming down the stairs when the second plane<br />crashed at 9:03 a.m.<br /><br />Like everyone in the United States, Ahmed’s family spent the day in shock. By 10:30 a.m., both the south and north towers had collapsed, killing more than 3,000 people. By 4 p.m., CNN was reporting that radical Muslim extremist Osama bin Laden and his al Qaeda terrorist organization was responsible.<br /><br /><a href="http://folioweekly.com/documents/main_122810.pdf">Click here</a> to read more of this week's cover story.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-27134552657125825162010-12-05T13:16:00.004-05:002010-12-09T14:18:10.382-05:00Is Islam Compatible with American Values?On Oct 9, 2010, the Clay County chapter of<a href="http://www.au.org/"> Americans United for Separation of Church and State</a> organized a lecture on "<span style="font-weight:bold;">Is Islam Compatible with American Values?</span>" I was invited to speak at the Fleming Island Public Library. What happened at the event is well summarized in a letter to the editor by Rev. Harry Parrott, President of the local chapter of AU. <a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2010-12-04/story/parvez-ahmed-victimized-belligerent-group">Click here to read Rev. Parrott's letter</a>.<br /><br />Listen to a radio interview on <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/wjcts-first-coast-connect/id328347910?i=89526875">WJCT's First Coast Connect</a>. Listen to the Dec 6, 2010 show. <br /> <br />A group called the ACT! For America, which by most accounts is <a href="http://www.loonwatch.com/2010/04/act-for-america-is-better-known-as-hate-for-america/">a hate group</a>, organized a smear campaign to oust me from the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission, to which I was confirmed just a few months ago. You may remember the contrived controversy my nomination generated at that time. If you need a refresher, visit my <a href="http://drparvezahmed.blogspot.com/2010/04/some-jacksonville-council-members.html">blog</a>. Most of April 2010 entries on my blog are about that controversy. <br /><br />Unfortunately, once again the media played into ACT's ploy and gave legs to the unfounded allegations made by ACT. The local NPR station, on their show First Coast Connect analyzed the situation. <a href="http://www.wjctondemand.org/">Click on Fri show of First Coast Connect</a>. <br /><br />On Sunday Dec 5, 2101 the <a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2010-12-05/story/guest-column-islam-compatible-american-democratic-values">Florida Times Union</a> today, published a summarized version of my speech stating, "We are running excerpts from the speech on this page so readers can judge for themselves. The entire speech can be read on our Opinion Page Blog: <a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/blog/406107/mike-clark/2010-12-03/parvez-ahmed-speech-transcript-islam-compatible-american">jacksonville.com/opinion</a>." <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Guest column: Is Islam compatible with American democratic values?</span><br />Source URL: http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2010-12-05/story/guest-column-islam-compatible-american-democratic-values<br /> <br />In 2005, a Danish newspaper printed a cartoon depicting Muhammad, who Muslims believe to be the last Messenger and Prophet of God, with a bomb in his turban. This set off an international row as protests erupted from Europe to Asia.<br />In some Muslim countries, newspapers that reprinted the cartoon were closed. European countries evacuated staffs of embassies and Muslim countries withdrew ambassadors. The fallout also had economic repercussions. According to the Gulf News, Danish exports began to fall as consumers in Muslim countries shunned Danish products in protest.<br /><br />This provoked the question: Is Islam incompatible with Western values? Are Islam and the West destined to have a clash of civilization?<br /><br />Those who answer yes point to events like 9/11 or the cartoon controversy as proof positive of the inherent incompatibility of Islam and with the West.<br /><br />Others who are more knowledgeable about Islam and Muslim societies say that neither 9/11, nor the cartoon controversy, are indicative of any inherent clash of values. The antecedents of such events are socio-political. Religion may at best be a contributing factor.<br /><br />While people debate the place of Islam in American society, another reality is taking shape right before our very eyes.<br /><br />According to The New York Times, a record number of Muslim workers are complaining of workplace discrimination ranging from being called "terrorist" to being barred from wearing headscarves or taking prayer breaks.<br /><br />According to federal data, discrimination complaints by Muslims are up 20 percent from last year and up 60 percent since 2005. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has found enough credibility in these complaints that they have filed several lawsuits on behalf of Muslim workers.<br /><br />This summer we have seen tensions boil over as a pastor attempted to burn the Quran and many opposed to building of an Islamic community center in New York descended to embarrassing levels of incivility.<br /><br />Unlike you, who are attempting to dialogue and learn, most Americans choose to remain ill-informed. As a result, today more people have a negative view of Islam than in the immediate aftermath of 9/11.<br /><br />Our media outlets, mostly cable news shows and radio talk shows, are major contributors to this trend that bodes ill for the long-term sustainability of our national interests.<br /><br />A few politicians and religious leaders have only exasperated the situation by trying to ride the coattails of fear of Islam to electoral victories.<br /><br />The situation has gotten so out of hand, that Time magazine ran a cover story, "Is America Islamophobic?" with the following comment: "In France and Britain, politicians from fringe parties say appalling things about Muslims, but there's no one in Europe of the stature of a former House speaker who would, as Newt Gingrich did, equate Islam with Nazism."<br /><br />So how do we go past this rancor? By doing exactly what you are doing today. Trying to learn and attempting to dialogue.<br /><br />President John Kennedy summed it best, "Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one's own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others."<br /><br />To the question: Is Islam compatible with American values? The answer is yes.<br />Why? Because in a normative sense (Excerpted from Michael Wolfe's The Next American Religion):<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Islam is democratic in spirit</span>. The Quran, on which Islamic law is based, enjoins Muslims to govern themselves by discussion and consensus.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Islam is tolerant of other faiths</span>. Like America, Islam has a history of respecting other religions. In Prophet Muhammad's day, Christians and Jews in Muslim lands retained their own courts and enjoyed considerable autonomy. It was the Muslims who made it possible for Jews to return to and live in Jerusalem after centuries of being outcasts.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Islam encourages the pursuit of religious freedom</span>. The Quran clearly states that there is no compulsion in matters related to faith and religion.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Islam emphasizes individual responsibility</span>. Every person is responsible for the condition of her or his own soul. Everyone stands equal before God. America is wedded to an ethic of individual liberty based on righteous actions. For a Muslim, spiritual salvation depends not just on faith, but also righteous actions.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Islam is egalitarian</span>. The Pledge of Allegiance (one nation, "under God") and Lincoln's Gettysburg Address (all people are "created equal") express themes that are also basic to Islam. If you visit mosques in America, you will find them among the most racially integrated congregations of faith.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Democracy and Islam</span><br /><br />I would like to spend a little bit more time on the issue of democracy and Islam with particular emphasis on Sharia.<br /><br />The former deputy prime minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim wrote:<br />"It is true that the founding principles of constitutional democracy, as we know it today, have their antecedents in the political philosophy of John Locke, which entered France through the writings of Voltaire and then deeply influenced the framers of the U.S. constitution. <br /><br />"But the fact that these principles of political freedom and democracy were first articulated in the West does not preclude them from universal application, nor can it be asserted that they have not been expressed in other contexts."<br /><br />A majority of the world's 1.4 billion Muslims live in democracies, ample proof that there is no inherent discord between Islam and democracy.<br /><br />But what about those Muslim majority countries, most of them in the Middle East, which are not democracies?<br /><br />Is Islam the reason for them being held back?<br /><br />The Council of Foreign Relations concludes that "a mix of historical, cultural, economic and political factors - and not Islam as a religion - explain why democracy has failed to take root in many Muslim countries."<br /><br />In fact, surveys by Gallup and Pew show that clear majorities in the Arab world would favor democracy as a form of government. The people most animated about this are the so-called Islamists.<br /><br />Outside of the Middle East (which accounts for fewer than 20 percent of the global Muslim population), Alfred Stepan in the Journal of Democracy argues that Muslim nations are on par with - or outpace - comparable non-Muslim developing nations in terms of civil liberties and free and fair elections.<br /><br />The democracy deficiency in the Arab world is more a function of oil than religion.<br />State ownership of oil has stifled the development of market economies and government transparency. Oil has allowed the monarchies in the Middle East to make a Faustian bargain with their citizens.<br /><br />That bargain: Governments will not tax its citizens (oil revenues pay for government budgets) and in exchange the citizens will not demand voting or representation.<br />Let me quote Anwar Ibrahim, the erstwhile deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia: "If democracy is about giving dignity to the human spirit, then freedom is the sine qua non."<br /><br />Within Islam, the great Andalusia jurist Abu Ishaq al-Shatibi in the 14th century, articulated a perspective on the Maqasid al-Shari'a (the higher objectives of the shari'a), demonstrating the central role of freedom as a higher objective of the divine law. The very same elements in a constitutional democracy are moral imperatives in Islam - freedom of conscience, freedom to speak out against tyranny, a call for reform and the right to property."Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-64103468906644299222010-04-29T14:34:00.001-04:002010-04-29T14:36:18.142-04:00Morning Show InterviewsClick on links below to view:<br /><br />Video: <a href="http://www.news4jax.com/video/23288670/index.html">Interview on The Morning Show, WJXT, Channel 4</a>.<br /> <br />Video: <a href="http://www.firstcoastnews.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=81702506001#/News/Controversial+Question+Sends+Shock+Waves+Through+Meeting/50619441001/50624658001/81702506001">Interview on Good Morning Jacksonville, First Coast New</a>s.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-48238737093033126562010-04-29T14:28:00.003-04:002010-04-29T14:44:21.338-04:00Some Jacksonville council members embarrassed themselves<a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/blog/400904/rand-miranda/2010-04-29/some-council-members-embarrassed-themselves">Florida Times Union</a><br /><br />Submitted by Ron Littlepage on April 29, 2010 <br /><br />Opponents of Parvez Ahmed's nomination to the Human Rights Commission are demanding retribution at the polls after City Council approved his appointment.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/S9nTNLsHR7I/AAAAAAAACYI/MnoU6W9HiaU/s1600/Redman.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 155px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/S9nTNLsHR7I/AAAAAAAACYI/MnoU6W9HiaU/s200/Redman.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465631846220384178" /></a> I agree. There should be retribution - against those council members who voted no on Ahmed's nomination and shamed the city in the process.<br />Start with Don Redman.<br /><br />I've been covering the City Council as a columnist for more than two decades, and I've never seen a more embarrassing moment than when Redman called Ahmed, a Muslim, to the podium Tuesday night and asked him "to say a prayer to your God."<br /><br />Whatever point Redman was trying to make in his bumbling, disjointed inquisition of Ahmed was inappropriate.<br /><br />When Redman's name appears on the ballot next spring, surely the voters in District 4 can find a better candidate to represent them.<br /><br />Clay Yarborough in District 1 also needs to go.<br /><br />His previous questions of Ahmed about "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, gay marriage and whether he would support and defend the U.S. Constitution - with the underlying hint being that Ahmed would replace it with Islamic law - kicked off this ugly mess.<br /><br />Glorious Johnson joined Redman and Yarborough in voting against Ahmed. Using incredibly twisted logic, she confused all of those listening.<br /><br />"Look at us," she said of the polarization surrounding Ahmed's nomination. "Just look at us. We have separated ourselves from one another."<br /><br />Then she said she would vote no because Ahmed would be a distraction on the commission, a bizarre conclusion for a politician who promotes herself as wanting to shake things up.<br /><br />Fortunately, Johnson's mayoral campaign will fail, and we will be rid of her.<br />Ray Holt in District 11 and Jack Webb in District 6 hopefully will draw strong opposition.<br /><br />Holt's reasoning for voting against Ahmed showed he clearly doesn't understand the difference between analysis and advocacy.<br /><br />Webb complains he had "legitimate questions" about allegations Ahmed had ties to terrorist groups and he is being criticized for asking them.<br /><br />The problem is not Webb's questions, but the fact that he refused to listen to the answers.<br /><br />Considering Webb's well chronicled stumbles of late in the Trail Ridge Landfill debate, the dispute over the JTA allowing advertising on bus shelters and now this, his fellow council member should reconsider Webb's elevation to the council presidency this summer.<br /><br />The sixth vote against Ahmed by Daniel Davis was disappointing. I've always considered Davis a straight-shooter and fair.<br /><br />He told Times-Union reporter Tia Mitchell his vote was based on concerns he and his constituents had about Ahmed.<br /><br />Davis can't run for re-election because of term limits, but he is eyeing a legislative race.<br /><br />Coincidentally, Adam Hasner, the current Florida House majority leader, helped stir the opposition to Ahmed. Hasner is someone Davis would look to for support.<br /><br />If Hasner influenced Davis' vote, I would be even more disappointed.<br /><br />The best thing about Tuesday? The 13 council members who ignored the intolerance and voted to approve Ahmed's nomination, and offered apologies for what he had been put through.<br /><br />ron.littlepage@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4284Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-11437916243204427432010-04-28T11:59:00.005-04:002010-04-28T12:03:39.010-04:00Ahmed nomination sails rockily to Jacksonville council approval<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/S9hbiuOwIII/AAAAAAAACYA/7v6u3dg6e3E/s1600/parvez042810.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/S9hbiuOwIII/AAAAAAAACYA/7v6u3dg6e3E/s200/parvez042810.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465218799897682050" /></a><br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-27/story/council-approves-ahmed-nomination-human-rights-commission">Florida Times Union, April 28, 2010</a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Ahmed nomination sails rockily to Jacksonville council approval</span><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">By Tia Mitchell</span><br /><br />Ending three weeks of controversial back-and-forth, University of North Florida finance professor Parvez Ahmed was confirmed to the city’s Human Rights Commission Tuesday night.<br /><br />The City Council vote was 13-6, but it came after a half-hour of debate that included a line of questioning from Councilman Don Redman that produced gasps from the audience, concern from one of the city’s top attorneys and sharp rebukes from his fellow council members.<br /><br />After the vote, Ahmed said he was grateful Mayor John Peyton continued to support him through all the accusations and that a majority of council members voted to confirm him.<br /><br />“That bodes very well for the future of the city that the city could handle controversy and at the end the day, as messy as the process was, the outcome was exactly what the city needed,” he said.<br /><br />As discussion on the nomination began, Redman called Ahmed, who is Muslim, to the podium and asked him to “say a prayer to your God.”<br /><br />The comment elicited an audible, negative reaction from the audience and Ahmed refused to comply, saying it had no relevance to his nomination to the commission. At the same time, Chief Deputy General Counsel Cindy Laquidara rushed to the podium to reign in Redman, asking to speak with him privately before he continued.<br /><br />Instead, Redman changed his approach, asking Ahmed if he was offended by Redman’s opening prayer, in which he referenced Jesus. Ahmed again questioned the relevance of the question, but he said Christian prayers did not bother him.<br /><br />“People do have the right to pray according to their faith and according to their beliefs,” he said.<br />Redman wasn’t convinced. He insisted that Ahmed, despite his answer, would be offended by prayers to Jesus and that is why he shouldn’t serve on Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Later, he joined Daniel Davis, Ray Holt, Glorious Johnson, Jack Webb and Clay Yarborough in voting “no.”<br />Voting in the majority were council members Bill Bishop, Reggie Brown, Richard Clark, Michael Corrigan, John Crescimbeni, Ronnie Fussell, Johnny Gaffney, Art Graham, Kevin Hyde, Warren Jones, Stephen Joost, Denise Lee and Art Shad.<br /><br />Joost was among those who sharply rebuked Redman.<br /><br />“This is not the Muslim commission; this is not the Jewish commission, or the Christian commission. This is the Human Rights Commission,” Joost said. “I’m offended by this line of questioning.”<br />Member Glorious Johnson chastised her fellow council members — at first.<br /><br />“Look at us. Just look at us. We have separated ourselves from one another. This makes no sense,” she said.<br />Moments later, though, Johnson said that because Ahmed’s nomination was so controversial and would distract from the commission’s work, she couldn’t support it.<br /><br />“If he is on the commission it will polarize what we are trying to do on the commission,” she said. “For that reason I will be voting against Mr. Ahmed’s nomination to the commission.”<br /><br />But others spoke passionately about the need to confirm Ahmed, a Fulbright Scholar, saying the vocal opposition to his nomination was not reason enough to deny him.<br /><br />“That’s probably the worst excuse I’ve heard,” John Crescimbeni said in response to Johnson’s statement.<br />Several other council members spoke on behalf of the nomination, including Art Shad and Kevin Hyde, each of whom apologized to Ahmed and said they hoped the city wouldn’t be tainted by the vote of the vocal minority.<br /><br />Fussell said he was undecided on how he would vote until after he met one-on-one with Ahmed an hour before the meeting. Fussell said he asked the nominee about his background, personal views and the allegations that he had ties to terrorists.<br /><br />“I was comfortable that the man that I met wasn’t the man being portrayed,” Fussell said.<br /><br />Councilman Clay Yarborough, who at first voted in favor of Ahmed’s nomination in the Rules Committee but reversed himself when the committee voted again last week, read a long statement about why he changed his mind.<br /><br />He said he was given reason to pause because four U.S. representatives asked the attorney general to look into relationship between the Council on American-Islamic Relations, of which Ahmed was once a board member and national chairman, and terrorism.<br /><br />Reggie Brown wondered if the council in general, and presumably Redman’s questioning in particular, had gone too far.<br /><br />“Have we overstepped our boundaries legally?” he asked. “I really need someone to answer that question.”<br /><br />The campaign against Ahmed was led by the anti-radical Muslim group ACT! for America. Randy McDaniels, leader of the Jacksonville chapter, expressed his disappointment after the vote.<br /><br />“This is a bad move,” McDaniels said during the public comment period. “It’s an embarrassment to our community, and the country is watching.”<br /><br />Links:<br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/columnists/ron-littlepage/2010-04-23/story/despite-shrill-critics-ahmed-ideal-appointee">http://jacksonville.com/opinion/columnists/ron-littlepage/2010-04-23/story/despite-shrill-critics-ahmed-ideal-appointee</a><br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2010-04-22/story/florida-house-leader-weighed-jacksonville-muslim-professors-nomination">http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2010-04-22/story/florida-house-leader-weighed-jacksonville-muslim-professors-nomination</a><br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2010-04-22/story/florida-house-leader-weighed-jacksonville-muslim-professors-nomination">http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-26/story/mayor-backs-ahmed-holt-withdraws-support</a><br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-19/story/council-panel-again-backs-unf-professor-jacksonville-commission">http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-19/story/council-panel-again-backs-unf-professor-jacksonville-commission</a><br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-25/story/more-council-members-support-ahmed-nomination-oppose">http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-25/story/more-council-members-support-ahmed-nomination-oppose</a>Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-33937930271118930392010-04-27T11:01:00.003-04:002010-04-27T11:05:46.721-04:00More Letters of Support<a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2010-04-26/story/letters-readers">Florida Times Union, April 27, 2010</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Support from UNF</span><br /><br />Representing faculty and the senior administration of the University of North Florida, we want to go on record as supporting the nomination of Professor Parvez Ahmed to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Ironically, much of the controversy around Ahmed's nomination proves just how urgently we need to appoint men and women like him to this commission.<br />Regrettably, to be "different from" too often is regarded as being "less than" or "more dangerous or threatening than."<br /><br />When that is the case, an occasion for learning is supplanted by fear, prejudice and stagnation.<br /><br />Since first moving to Jacksonville and the University of North Florida, Ahmed has worked tirelessly to help open dialogue about such differences.<br /><br />He has met with numbers of community and church organizations, helping many of us understand the similarities between Christianity, Judaism and Islam, and the differences between Islam and Muslim extremists.<br /><br />When we have looked behind the quotes taken out of context that have been offered in opposition to Ahmed's nomination, we found a message of respect and a belief in honest dialogue among all parties.<br /><br />These are the characteristics that would make him an incredible and much needed asset to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />JOHN A. DELANEY,<br />president,<br />University of North Florida,<br />and<br />KATHERINE M. ROBINSON,<br />president,<br />UNF Faculty Association<br /><br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2010-04-23/story/letters-readers-0">Florida Times Union April 23, 2010</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">An excellent choice</span><br /><br />Having concluded eight years as a member of the Human Rights Commission, I speak with some experience in writing that Jacksonville needs commissioners like Parvez Ahmed to serve this city.<br /><br />The commission is concerned about the human rights of the entire community - blacks and whites, women and men, young and old, Asian and Latinos, Arabs and Jews, gays and straights, religious and non-religious.<br /><br />Ahmed is uniquely qualified. He is a man of Indian birth, Muslim faith and American citizenship.<br /><br />He will join with other commissioners of diverse backgrounds to support freedom and justice for all.<br /><br />Like many Jacksonville residents, I regret the narrow-minded views of a few council members who fail to appreciate the larger patriotism that Ahmed expresses.<br />As a student of Jacksonville history, I am hopeful that these views increasingly are outside the mainstream in this city.<br /><br />My 38 years here have seen a growth of tolerance, greater acceptance of diversity and a realization that there are no real alternatives.<br /><br />Our city remains an imperfect expression of human rights and social justice, but in Mayor John Peyton's appointment and City Council's confirmation of Ahmed, Jacksonville will have taken a small step toward becoming a world class city.<br /> <br />JAMES B. CROOKS<br />Jacksonville<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Intolerant statement</span><br /><br />The comments by Jacksonville City Council member Clay Yarborough in The Times-Union are not only troubling because they reflect an intolerance for individuals of a different religion, but because they reflect an increasing trend that endangers a core strength of our nation.<br /><br />Yarborough indicated that he would consider opposing an individual, not based on qualifications, experience and philosophy, but whether that individual was a member of a particular religion.<br /><br />Yarborough and other members of the City Council should set an example of the importance of the Constitution in every day American life.<br /><br />They should approve the appointment of Parvez Ahmed to the Human Rights Commission rather than give credence to groups that advocate intolerance.<br /><br />DAN DUNDON<br />Jacksonville<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Minister supports Ahmed</span><br /><br />I have been a resident of Jacksonville for the past 12 years, serving as both a minister and a community volunteer.<br /><br />I know many teachers, community volunteers, religious leaders, police officers, parents, students and individuals in our city who work hard to create an environment of peace, progress, and prosperity for Jacksonville.<br /><br />I am a fan of Jacksonville and have consciously chosen to raise my family in this fine town.<br /><br />Yet, I am deeply saddened and disturbed by the overt, blatant, intentional and unapologetic religious discrimination by some on the Jacksonville City Council toward Parvez Ahmed and his appointment to the Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Councilman Clay Yarborough's "moral vetting" of Ahmed represents an attitude of discrimination, profiling, stereotyping and extreme narrow-mindedness.<br /><br />Although I do not know Ahmed well, I do know him to be a person who is deeply committed to both education and human rights.<br /><br />In my opinion, he is a much-needed asset to the Human Rights Commission, and would bring a great deal of experience, wisdom, and compassion to the commission.<br /><br />For our city to continue to be a place of peace, progress and prosperity, we've got to acknowledge, accept and appreciate religious and racial diversity and call out those who fight against it.<br /> <br />BRETT FOSTER,<br />Baptist minister,<br />JacksonvilleParvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-27360644463180091692010-04-25T11:55:00.006-04:002010-04-25T12:00:18.142-04:00Florida Times Union Editorial - Rhetoric tops reality<span style="font-weight:bold;">Human rights board: Rhetoric tops reality</span><br />Source: <a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/editorials/2010-04-23/story/human-rights-board-rhetoric-tops-reality">Florida Times Union, Editorial, April 25, 201</a>0.<br /><br />The biggest contract in city history awaits a City Council vote Tuesday. Hard choices on budget cuts and city fee hikes of all kinds loom because of next year's $58 million budget gap.<br /><br />But the hottest issue facing council right now is whether members should put University of North Florida finance professor Parvez Ahmed on an unpaid board that most city residents probably don't know exists: The Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Ahmed is many things: A Ph.D., a recent Fulbright Scholar and a Muslim from India who speaks to groups locally, nationally and overseas about resolving ethnic and religious conflicts through dialogue and mutual respect. He is a husband and father of two children.<br /><br />He's also a former national board chairman of the Council for American-Islamic Relations, a national Muslim civil rights group that's a lightning rod for controversy.<br /><br />He left that group in 2008 after a fallout over its direction and leadership. Nevertheless, his ties with CAIR have prompted detractors to depict Ahmed as an extremist and terrorist sympathizer.<br /><br />For those who know him as a soft-spoken, professorial type, the characterization as an extremist simply does not compute.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Same man, different views</span><br /><br />The state chapter of the Anti-Defamation League says Ahmed's views are divisive and he has defended anti-Israeli terrorist groups. ACT! for America, a group concerned about threats from radical Islamic terrorists, says Ahmed's past associations, views and positions make him an unacceptable choice for the commission.<br /><br />Even Adam Hasner, Florida House majority leader from Delray Beach, has called local Jacksonville officials regarding concerns about Ahmed's appointment.<br /><br />Meanwhile, an all-star cast of local supporters - including OneJax, the Community Foundation Inc., the NAACP and UNF President John Delaney - touts him as a highly respected voice of reason who promotes understanding, unity and tolerance among people of different religions, cultures and ethnic backgrounds.<br /><br />Ahmed denies he has supported terrorism or advocated violence in any way, either before, during or after his involvement with CAIR. He was its volunteer board chairman from 2005-2008 and the state CAIR's board chairman from 2002 to 2005.<br /><br />He said he condemns all violence, that his positions have been taken out of context and distorted.<br /><br />Talking about terrorism or seeking to understand its dynamics does not make Ahmed a bad guy, nor is that the same as endorsing or advocating it.<br /><br />In the same sense, the mere questioning of Ahmed's past associations and positions do not necessarily make critics into bigots or haters.<br /><br />This issue's spiraling emotional rhetoric overshadows reality.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Consider the position</span><br /><br />Ahmed isn't being pitched for secretary of state or ambassador to the United Nations.<br />Mayor John Peyton nominated him to be one of up to 20 volunteer board members of a commission that typically meets once a month.<br /><br />Its job isn't to tackle Middle East conflicts. Its main business is to promote fair treatment and equal opportunity for all local residents regardless of their race, religion, national origin, sex, age or disability.<br /><br />It investigates and helps settle discrimination complaints about jobs, housing and businesses.<br /><br />Actions of the board require a majority vote of board members.Its power is mostly advisory.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Background checks</span><br /><br />Anyone who serves on any public board should be of good character and, preferably, have relevant experience.<br /><br />We have seen no evidence that Ahmed has condoned violence or terrorism. There is plenty of evidence he has been involved in many positive community activities, from helping local charities to speaking at local places of worship about mutual understanding.<br /><br />Delaney said UNF has not received any subpoenas, requests for documents or other inquiries from any investigating authorities about Ahmed during his years there.<br /><br />Deputy Chief General Counsel Cindy Laquidara said she found no criminal complaints against Ahmed and just a few "garden variety" civil complaints involving national CAIR during Ahmed's leadership. Those involved services the group provided and were not directed at Ahmed.<br /><br />She said she did not do a complete background check on him, but that the city doesn't do one for any nominee to a city board.<br /><br />City Council member John Crescimbeni said he called a former veteran FBI agent who headed the Jacksonville office, who was "astounded" at some of the allegations against Ahmed and had seen no evidence to support them.<br /><br />Crescimbeni said a call to the U.S. Attorney's Office "provided comfort to me as well."<br /><br />It should be noted that the FBI has severed its ties with CAIR. But Ahmed did, as well. And he has worked with the FBI and law enforcement on diversity issues. <br /><br />The council has haggled over Ahmed's appointment for weeks, with Councilman Clay Yarborough going far as asking him whether he would support, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, if he were appointed.<br /><br />"Absolutely, yes," said Ahmed, a U.S. citizen.<br /><br />CAIR is a controversial group. Middle East conflicts are the world's thorniest. Ahmed's opinions about them won't appeal to everyone.<br /><br />But those aren't relevant in regard to serving on this commission.<br /><br />One appointment is not going to make or break this board and its mission.<br /><br />And the noise surrounding Ahmed's appointment should not keep City Council from confirming him.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-30594741515582859722010-04-25T11:51:00.003-04:002010-04-25T11:54:39.680-04:00City looks at stance on human rightsSource URL: <a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-25/story/city-looks-stance-human-rights">http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-25/story/city-looks-stance-human-rights</a><br /><br />The Jacksonville City Council Rules Committee recommended on Monday that UNF professor Parvez Ahmed be confirmed to the city Human Rights Commission despite opposition from the anti-Islamist group ACT! for America. The full council will take up the issue Tuesday. Ahmed participated in a live discussion on Jacksonville.com's Talk of the Town on Thursday, answering questions about the Human Rights Commission as well as his association with the American Muslim advocacy group the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Here are excerpts from that live online chat.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">[Comment From David West]: The JHRC serves the same purpose as the Florida Commission on Human Relations. Why do we need such commissions at both the state and the local levels? Does Jacksonville really need the JHRC?<br /></span><br />Ahmed: There are issues at the city level that are best resolved locally. It also allows us local mediation before either federal or state agencies can review any complaint.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Jeff Reece-moderator: Could you give us an example of an issue better resolved at the local level?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: Issues related to city employees for example. Or issues related to reasonable accommodation of religious practices can be best resolved locally because they will take into account local customs and practices.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">[Comment From Bill Graham]: Dr. Ahmed, I want to say first of all that I appreciate your willingness to serve. I feel, as you do, that the JHRC is necessary if only to serve issues that are of local importance to us. What do you feel are the most important issues to Jacksonville?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: Right now, I do not know all of the issues that are in front of the commission. Once I'm confirmed by the City Council, I intend to find out.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Jeff Reece-moderator: What do you think are some of the issues in Jacksonville that the commission should be dealing with?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: Some of the conversations surrounding my nomination suggests that there is an opportunity to do more dialogues and conversations on issues related to racial or religious stereotyping. I view my current situation as a teachable moment. I hope the commission will enhance its outreach efforts related to education and inter-group harmony.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">JeffReece-moderator: Much has been made of your association with CAIR. Some want to know what led you to join CAIR and what you hoped to accomplish through that organization. Can you speak to this?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: CAIR was at that time and is now perhaps the only Muslim civil rights organization in America. After the tragic events of 9/11 there was an unfortunate backlash against American Muslims. An organization that was dedicated to defending the rights of American Muslims was necessary, not only for the sake of American Muslims, but also for the greater good of America itself. It is in this spirit I joined CAIR.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">[Comment From S.P.]: Dr. Ahmed, Once nominated, how will you educate the Jax community on issues related to Human Rights?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: I have been speaking at churches, synagogues, temples, schools and civic organizations around the city. I will continue doing that. I will also try to find new partners who can enhance the cause of human rights for all.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">[Comment From Claire]: Currently, the only thing the commission does that is not a duplication of services is outreach. Why shouldn't we cut most of the commission, and only leave the outreach department? (Taking care of the city's employee's issues is currently under the JHRC umbrella, but sectioned off).</span><br /><br />Ahmed: It is difficult for me to comment on this without knowing the full scope and impact of the commission. But I do know from experience that the commission has been an effective mediator in many human rights-related conflict situations.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">[Comment From Claire]: Within the community, but that is outreach. Most of the taxpayer money goes toward paying the JHRC to do the same thing as the EEOC and Florida Commission</span><br /><br />Ahmed: The JHRC is a first line of defense before matters escalate to federal or state levels. So it does not duplicate resources, it actually streamlines the process.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Jeff Reece-moderator: There is great fear in the U.S. about the radicalization of Muslims. Is this a legitimate concern?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: It is a concern, but we should not be hysterical. There is a report that was put out by Duke University that expresses some concern, but also commends the American Muslim community for taking positive steps toward mitigating this problem. More can be done. It requires cooperation and understanding across all religious communities and also our civic and political leaders.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Jeff Reece-moderator: When T-U columnist Mark Woods asked Councilman Clay Yarborough, "Do you believe Muslims should be able to hold any public office in Florida?" his response was "I don't know." When asked "Do you think homosexuals should be able to hold a public office in Florida?" his response was "I would prefer they did not." What is your reaction to his answers?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: It is disappointing to see an elected official so fundamentally misinformed about our constitution and the Bill of Rights.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">[Comment From Bill Graham]: What would you like to leave as your legacy for Jacksonville?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: A bridge-builder and a peacemaker.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Jeff Reece-moderator: Some Americans believe that Islam teaches that women don't have as many rights as men. As a Muslim, do you see this as a human rights issue and what is your personal stance on the issue?</span><br /><br />Ahmed: Women have the same rights in Islam as men. Some cultures do have institutional discrimination against women. This is more cultural than religious. The rights of all human beings is a human rights issue. I have advocated for greater expansion of women's rights within Muslim communities, both here and abroad.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-72246591194175111852010-04-25T11:48:00.002-04:002010-04-25T11:51:37.032-04:00Despite shrill critics, Ahmed an ideal appointeeSource: <a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/blog/400564/ron-littlepage/2010-04-24/despite-shrill-critics-ahmed-ideal-appointee">Florida Times Union, April 25, 201</a>0.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Despite shrill critics, Ahmed an ideal appointee </span><br />By <span style="font-style:italic;">Ron Littlepag</span>e. From the editorial page<br /><br />Some are upset that the terms "bigoted" and "intolerant" have been used in the debate over Parvez Ahmed's nomination to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission. <br /> <br />Here's just one example of why those descriptions are accurate. An e-mail I received read: <br /> <br />"It is not bigotry to protect our country. We are in a war against muslims (small m because these people do not deserve to be capitalized.)<br /> <br />"We do not need any more muslims in our government setting policy. We have one in <br />the white house and that's more than enough. <br /> <br />"Yes, he is a muslim. He attended their schools as a child and why do [you] think he and his family have not chosen to attend church? <br /> <br />"Thank God for Webb and Yarborough who are trying to protect this country."<br /><br />It would be one thing if such uninformed sentiments were rare, but they weren't rare in e-mails and telephone calls I received after writing about Ahmed's nomination.<br /><br />One motivation for the anti-Muslim rhetoric often mentioned was the despicable actions of Army psychiatrist Nidal Malik Hasan at Fort Hood in Texas.<br /><br />I'm guessing those detractors never read what Ahmed wrote after that tragedy.<br /><br />"Muslims in America do face the problems of discrimination and many feel dismayed about America's policy towards hot spots like Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran and Palestine," he wrote on Huffington Post. <br /> <br />"But those issues cannot be solved by acts of terror or random violence.<br /><br />"Terror in the name of Islam has only brought more misery to Muslims at home and abroad. Terrorism is morally bankrupt and strategically unsuccessful."<br /><br />Such condemnations of terrorism is a constant theme in Ahmed's writings and speeches.<br />Others are promoting peace and understanding, and bridging divides among different religions.<br /><br />The goals of the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission include promoting "mutual understanding and respect among members of all economic, social, racial, religious and ethnic groups" and eliminating "discrimination against and antagonism between religious, racial and ethnic groups."<br /><br />In a city with a population that's becoming more diverse, Ahmed's voice would be a welcome addition to the 20-member commission.<br /><br />As disturbing as some of the bigoted and intolerant comments have been, there have been the numerous e-mails and calls supporting Ahmed's nomination.<br /><br />Much of that support comes from people who actually know and work with Ahmed, unlike those who are railing against him.<br /><br />The Jacksonville City Council is set to take up Ahmed's nomination during its regular meeting on Tuesday night.<br /><br />Council members Clay Yarborough and Jack Webb, who wants to be the next council president, already have said they will vote against Ahmed's nomination.<br /><br />One voice that has not been heard in this debate - at least not as loudly as those of Webb and Yarborough - is that of Mayor John Peyton.<br /><br />Peyton would do well to go before the council and remind council members that the action they take will say a lot about our city.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-84618272250000976312010-04-22T00:34:00.000-04:002010-04-22T00:35:41.988-04:00Bigotry rears its ugly head in Jacksonville City Council committee<a href="http://jacksonville.com/opinion/blog/400904/ron-littlepage/2010-04-20/bigotry-rears-its-ugly-head-city-council-committee">Jacksonville.com</a><br /><br />Submitted by Ron Littlepage on April 20, 2010 - 1:30am<br /><br />Good people came to the City Council Rules Committee meeting Monday in support of Parvez Ahmed, Mayor John Peyton's nominee to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Their presence and words will help erase some of the stain placed on this community by the bigotry and intolerance that have surfaced in opposition to Ahmed, a Muslim.<br /><br />But the stain will remain, and it was reinforced by the actions of two committee members - Jack Webb and Clay Yarborough.<br /><br />One who spoke in favor of Ahmed was former Mayor John Delaney, now the president of the University of North Florida where Ahmed, a Fulbright scholar, is a professor.<br /><br />"This is a man of peace," Delaney said.<br /><br />Ahmed has worked to bridge divides, Delaney said, and he certainly isn't a supporter of terrorism, as some on the fringe have claimed.<br /><br />They, not Ahmed, were the ones who stomped out of the council chambers when their motives were questioned.<br /><br />It would have been better for Webb and Yarborough if they had stomped out as well.<br /><br />Webb, who had recommended at last week's council meeting that Ahmed's nomination go back to Rules, went into some hard-to-follow riff about the Irish Republican Army.<br /><br />Then after challenging Ahmed, he happened to be out of the room when a majority of the committee voted to recommend that the full council approve Ahmed's nomination.<br /><br />Afterward, Webb insisted that he wasn't "ducking" a vote and that he had gone to get a diet soda.<br /><br />I must admit that I chuckled. Webb shot back that he will vote against Ahmed at Tuesday's council meeting because of his concerns.<br /><br />Yarborough's position was predictable.<br /><br />He asked Ahmed a couple of questions:<br /><br />Would Ahmed uphold and support the U.S. Constitution?<br /><br />"Absolutely."<br /><br />Did Ahmed think the Constitution should be replaced with other laws?<br /><br />"No."<br /><br />Well, Yarborough said, he would still vote against Ahmed because of concerns that were raised during his "research."<br /><br />Councilman John Crescimbeni put Webb's and Yarborough's questions into the proper perspective. He had done some research as well.<br /><br />Crescimbeni said he had talked to a retired FBI agent with 31 years in the agency, including serving as the agent-in-charge in Jacksonville, who knows Ahmed.<br /><br />The retired agent, Crescimbeni said, was "astounded" by the allegations.<br /><br />The councilman said he also talked with a member of the U.S. Attorney's Office about Ahmed, and what he was told "provided comfort to me, as well."<br /><br />"I can't imagine a better candidate," Crescimbeni said. "Thank you for enduring this process."<br /><br />As for his part, Ahmed said those opposing him "have never met me. They have never spoken to me."<br /><br />While those supporting him, he said, have worked along side him as he condemned terrorism and violence, and pushed for peace and justice and diplomacy.<br /><br />Crescimbeni was right: Ahmed is the right kind of candidate needed for the Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />ron.littlepage@jacksonville.com,(904) 359-4284Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-76934260045298310322010-04-20T14:57:00.008-04:002010-04-22T07:43:49.154-04:00Letters of Support From OneJax, CAHR/FSU, NAACP, Community Foundation<span style="font-weight:bold;"> FROM ONEJAX</span><br /><br />April 15, 2010<br /><br />Dear Jacksonville Friends and Supporters,<br /><br />We at OneJax, an interfaith organization whose mission is to promote respect and understanding among people of different religions, races, cultures and beliefs, must go on record to express our dismay and disappointment at the actions of the City Council regarding the delay of a vote to approve the Mayor's nomination of Dr. Parvez Ahmed to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Dr. Ahmed, a UNF professor, Fulbright Scholar and longtime Board member of our organization, works tirelessly in this community to unify people across cultures, races, and religions. His human relations track record locally, nationally and internationally speaks volumes about his integrity, dedication, and competence. Dr. Ahmed embodies the guiding principles of our organization:<br /><br />Respect: We respect and value every person's human dignity.<br />Unity: We celebrate our common humanity and honor our differences.<br />Courage: We stand together and speak out when oppression hurts people.<br />Integrity: We live the principles we talk about in our everyday lives.<br />Accountability: We act accountably with those we serve and with those who support us.<br /><br />We ask that our City Council embrace these principles, refuse to give further credence to attempts at cultural stereotyping, and approve the nomination of Dr. Ahmed to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission. <br /> <br />If you agree, take action and contact the members of City Council today. Make your voice heard and support Parvez Ahmed. <br /> <br />We appreciate your commitment to helping us make Jacksonville an inclusive community. <br /> <br />Brenda B. Ezell<br />Board Chair <br />Celeste Krueger, Ed.S. <br />Executive Director <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">From Center for Advancement of Human Rights, Florida State University</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">*Open message to the Council regarding Mayor John Peyton’s nomination of Dr. Parvez Ahmed…<br /></span><br />April 15, 2010<br /><br />I write in support of Mayor John Peyton’s nomination of Dr. Parvez Ahmed, Fulbright Scholar and Associate Professor of Finance, Department of Accounting and Finance, Coggin College of Business, University of North Florida, to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />More specifically, I write given my understanding that the Council recently voted to refer his nomination back to the rules committee for further consideration in response to certain accusations that Dr. Ahmed has ties to extremist groups -- which presumably refer to his prior role as national chair of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR).<br /><br />From my perspective, that course of action is perplexing given that Dr. Ahmed is widely recognized as a highly regarded commentator on the American Muslim experience and consistently has been an eloquent voice of moderation. Moreover, I understand that Dr. Ahmed has garnered wide-ranging support for this appointment.<br /><br />For context, I serve as senior program director for The Florida State University Center for the Advancement of Human Rights (FSU/CAHR) in Tallahassee. I am a lawyer with almost two decades of policy experience and have served as senior staff in the Florida’s Governor’s Office, the White House and the U.S. State Department. Of particular note, I directed the Center's Liberty in the Balance Project -- a two-year initiative that FSU/CAHR launched several months after 9/11 with partial support from the Office of the Florida Attorney General in an effort to help facilitate an appropriate balance between law enforcement imperatives and civil liberties interests in a post-9/11 environment.<br /><br />My initial interaction with Dr. Ahmed dates back to the aforementioned project. Simply put, his contributions proved to be invaluable. We have worked together on various other issues over the course of the past several years.<br /><br />The irony in this instance is compelling… Several weeks ago, against the backdrop of Ft. Hood, Flight 253 and recent reporting relating to activities by certain Christian Militia groups in Michigan, Dr. Ahmed, Bob Cromwell (a former FBI Special Agent in Charge within the Bureau’s Jacksonville, FL, Division… who I am aware has developed a strong working relationship with Dr. Ahmed) and I concluded that there was ample cause to reengage on these issues in Florida. Accordingly, the three of us resolved to pilot a renewed version of the Liberty in the Balance Project, which FSU/CAHR plans to launch in the near term. Once again, Dr. Ahmed will play a key role.<br /><br />I am confident that Dr. Ahmed’s background, experience and insights will serve the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission and thereupon the people of Jacksonville well. I encourage Council members to take favorable action on his nomination without further delay.<br /><br />Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you would like clarification regarding any element of this message.<br /><br />Respectfully,<br /><br />Mark Schlakman<br /><br />Note1: Before I joined FSU’s faculty in early 2002, I had the privilege of serving in several senior government positions at the state and federal levels including, special counsel to Governor Lawton Chiles, special advisor to Governor Jeb Bush during his first several months in office, senior advisor to Governor "Buddy" MacKay amidst his tenure as White House Special Envoy for the Americas during the final two years of the Clinton administration, and as a special advisor to U.S. Senator Bob Graham toward the end of my tour in Washington, D.C.<br /><br />I also served as a Foreign Affairs Officer for the U.S. Department of State where I received its Superior Honor Award in recognition of my service within the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs while assigned to the White House. I subsequently served as Alternate Representative for the US Permanent Mission to the Organization of American States (OAS).<br /><br />Note2: I have copied Dr. Ahmed, The Honorable Mayor John Peyton, Talbot "Sandy" D'Alemberte (President Emeritus, The Florida State University and former president of the American Bar Association), Terry Coonan (Executive Director, FSU/CAHR), Derick Daniel (Executive Director, Florida Commission on Human Relations) and Bob Cromwell (former Special Agent in Charge, FBI -- Jacksonville, FL, Division) on this message. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"> FROM NAACP - Jacksonville Branch</span><br /><br />April 19, 2010<br /><br />The Honorable Richard Clark<br />President, Jacksonville City Council<br />11 7 W. Duval St., Ste 425<br />Jacksonville, FL 32202<br /><br />RE: Dr. Parvez Ahmed<br /><br />Dear President Clark:<br /><br />This letter is written in support of Mayor John Peyton's nomination of Dr. Parvez Ahmed, an associate professor of finance at the University of North Florida, to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission. As the President of the Jacksonville Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and speaking for the Branch, we support Dr. Ahmed's confirmation. The NAACP has a long standing history of fighting for human rights of all people and we consider these circumstances no different.<br /><br />Dr. Ahmed, a United States Fulbright Scholar, brings this community outstanding experiences with his nomination as the first Muslim representative to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission. His service on the Commission would truly expand its diverse representation. His long standing commitment and his valuable contributions to the Jacksonville community helps our essential development. Dr. Ahmed is not new to Jacksonville. He is an advocate for human rights. In order to embrace the diversity that is destined for this city, we must have a Human Rights Commission that is socially and racially inclusive. We have seen what happens over the years when Jacksonville excludes rather than includes.<br /><br />The cultural characteristics and the fabric of all races shape our nation. Jacksonville is merely a small microcosm of our country and this nomination is crucial to shaping the thoughts we must embrace in our diversity. We must begin to accept and understand all people. The Jacksonville City Council should not condemn Dr. Ahmed before all facts are presented. A person's religious affiliations, color of their skin, and ethnic background should not be a precursor for elimination.<br />We support Dr. Parvez Ahmed and the valuable and extensive knowledge and perspectives he brings to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Mr. President, if the Jacksonville City Council aspires to carry Jacksonville to loftier heights through its leadership; then you should not allow the denial of Dr. Ahmed's nomination, and the obvious appearance of racism and discrimination, further tarnish the image of Jacksonville.<br /><br />Sincerely,<br />Isaiah Rumlin<br />President, Jacksonville Branch NAACP<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"> From Community Foundation in Jacksonville</span><br /><br />Earned our respect<br /><br />As a nation, the United States is committed to the notion of equal opportunity, regardless of gender, race, creed or national origin.<br /><br />At The Community Foundation in Jacksonville, we share that commitment.<br /><br />Therefore, we are particularly offended and appalled by the decision of certain City Council members to obstruct the nomination of Parvez Ahmed to serve on the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />Ahmed has earned the respect of his peers locally and nationally. The University of North Florida professor is the recent recipient of a coveted Fulbright grant and has received the Outstanding Researcher Award three times from Coggin College of Business at UNF as well as the Outstanding Teacher Award.<br /><br />More importantly, he has been a steady voice for reason and understanding among people of different faiths in the community.<br /><br />In short, he is ideally suited for service on the Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />We urge the reasoned and responsible representatives on City Council not to be hijacked by hysteria and misinformation, hatred and intolerance.<br /><br />We urge them to support the nomination of Ahmed to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission.<br /><br />CINDY EDELMAN,<br />chairman, The Community Foundation in JacksonvilleParvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-45649981492433276372010-04-20T14:33:00.001-04:002010-04-20T14:35:58.018-04:00Jacksonville panel votes again to recommend Ahmed for commission<a href="http://media.coj.net/city_council/Rules%204-19-10.wmv">Video of Rules Committee Meeting, April 19, 2010</a><br /><br /><a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-04-19/story/council-panel-again-backs-unf-professor-jacksonville-commission">Florida Times Union, April 20, 2010</a><br />By Tia Mitchell<br />University of North Florida President John Delaney said he decided to speak up in public for Parvez Ahmed not just because he is an employee but because he felt an upstanding man was being vilified.<br /><br />"He's a person of peace," Delaney said after speaking at Monday's City Council Rules Committee meeting. "He's about love, and he's about mutuality and reconciliation.<br /><br />He's never been a militant or rabid in interpersonal dealings, and the faculty here will tell you that."<br /><br />The Rules Committee agreed with the former two-term mayor and voted 4-1 to uphold its previous decision to recommend Ahmed for confirmation to the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission. The full council will now take up the issue at its April 27 meeting.<br /><br />Voting in favor of recommending Ahmed were Art Shad, John Crescimbeni, Denise Lee and Bill Bishop.<br /><br />Councilman Clay Yarborough voted "no" - changing his stance from two weeks earlier. Yarborough said the recent allegations that Ahmed, a UNF professor and a Muslim, has ties to terrorism were enough to change his mind.<br /><br />"I have too much of a reasonable doubt based on the research I've done over the last week and a half," he said.<br /><br />Council Vice President Jack Webb left the room before the vote was taken. He told The Times-Union he stepped out to get a soft drink and then ran into Delaney, who wanted to talk about Ahmed's nomination.<br /><br />Webb said he was surprised that the vote came so soon and would have voted against Ahmed's nomination. Asked why he didn't ask the committee to reopen the ballot so he could cast his vote on the record, Webb said, "I probably should have in retrospect."<br /><br />At least two unidentified men walked out of the meeting, including one who had an angry outburst during Delaney's statements. As Delaney described the opposition campaign as fueled by hate, the man shouted his disagreement.<br /><br />"I am not a racist! I am not going to be called a racist! It's not going to happen!" the man yelled as security officers followed him out of the council chambers.<br /><br />After the vote, members of ACT! for America - the anti-Islamist group that has been most vocally opposed to Ahmed's nomination - and others expressed their disappointment. Randy McDaniels, leader of the organization's Jacksonville chapter, said he felt the council was ignoring troubling facts.<br /><br />"With this many allegations and this much controversy, should someone like this be nominated?" McDaniels asked.<br />Ahmed, a Fullbright Scholar, professor at UNF and a Muslim, said the committee's vote was vindication not only for him as an individual but for the city as a whole.<br /><br />"The city needed an outcome that demonstrated courage," he said, "that demonstrated moral clarity."<br /> <br />tia.mitchell@jacksonville.com,<br />(904) 359-4425Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-19499420135961544482010-04-16T22:10:00.006-04:002010-04-16T22:35:25.710-04:00My Ordeal with Jacksonville City CouncilI was nominated by Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton to serve on the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission. The nomination needed to voted by the Rules Committee of City Council. In advance of this meeting, one of the Council members named Clay Yarborough sent me a bunch of irrelevant questions asking me about my views on "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance and gay marriage. Although I was not required to answer such irrelevant questions, I went ahead and answered them in the spirit of respectful dialog and mutual understanding. <br /><br />The Rules Committee met and approved by nomination 4-0. The local newspaper (Times Union) found out about this and wrote a story.<br /><br /><a href="http://tinyurl.com/y4wl3rn">Yarborough quizzes Jacksonville commission nominees on gay marriage, God, Islamic ties</a><br /><br /><a href="http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/a-radical-islamophobe/">A hate group called ACT</a> got wind of this issue through the news report and started to bombard city hall with spurious allegations stemming from my time with the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), where I first served as its Florida Chairman from 2002-05 and then as the National Chairman from 2005-2008. <a href="http://tinyurl.com/y5y2hh4">I resigned from the organization after a public fallout over its direction and leadership</a>. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-rodda/maher-season-premiere-inc_b_168972.html">Click here</a> to learn more about ACT. <br /><br />Next day the newspaper ran yet another story.<br /><br /><a href="http://tinyurl.com/y6j7eww">Anti-Muslim group opposes professor's appointment to Jacksonville commission</a><br /><br />When the turn came for the full city council vote, instead of confirming the nomination as is the usual practice, they voted to refer the issue back to the Rules Committee for a re-vote. <br /><br /><a href="http://tinyurl.com/y2lurr3">Muslim's slot on Jacksonville human rights panel opposed</a> <br /><br />Following the city council's vote, I received a lot emails from a diverse group of people expressing outrage at the council's action and extending their support to me.<br /><br /><a href="http://tinyurl.com/y7wve4m">Times Union columnist Ron Littlepage wrote</a>, "<span style="font-weight:bold;">Any council member who has paid even the smallest amount of attention to what's going on in the world around them would know that charge is a crock. Ahmed has been a voice of reason and peace in these troubled times. But I guess paying attention isn't high on some council members' agendas</span>."<br /><br />On Thu, April 15, I was interviewed on Jacksonville's NPR station WJCT 89.9FM. To listen to the show <a href="http://stream.unf.edu:8080/ramgen/pahmed/fcc_4-14-10.mp3">click here</a>.<br /><br />When you listen to the interview, you will notice the overwhelming positive response that came from ordinary citizens of Jacksonville. I was gratified by this response.<br /><br />Americans do not know much about Islam and Muslims. <a href="http://www.gallup.com/poll/125312/Religious-Prejudice-Stronger-Against-Muslims.aspx">A recent Gallup Poll shows</a>, "More than 4 in 10 Americans (43%) admit to feeling at least "a little" prejudice toward Muslims -- more than twice the number who say the same about Christians (18%), Jews (15%) and Buddhists (14%)." Hate groups like ACT, exploit this fear. Sometimes unfortunately they succeed. In the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King let me remind ourselves that our finite disappointments should not make us give up on the infinite hope of equality for all people.<br /><br />One final note, during the public comment section of the city council meeting on Tuesday, April 13, a bunch of ACT folks stood up and railed against the Quran, Islam and me. Their free speech rights allow them to make those comments uninterrupted. However, it is also the moral duty of our leaders to stand up to such hate and bigotry. It is also a duty of ordinary citizens to condemn such rhetoric particularly when such hate speech is uttered in a citizen funded public building. What kind of message does such ranting send around the country and the world to people and businesses who want to relocate to Jacksonville? <br /><br />To view the city council meeting visit <a href="http://tinyurl.com/y793ole">click here</a>. Scroll down to city council meeting 4/13/2010. The public comment section begins around the 45 minute mark. <br /><br />I still hold out hope that the City Council members will do the right thing when the matter comes for re-voting. <br /> <br />In a letter to all members of the City Council I wrote, "ACT believes that Muslim-Americans shouldn't be allowed to hold public office and instructs people to contact the FBI if they see a mosque being built in their neighborhood. Their leader also said, "Every practicing Muslim is a radical Muslim." Educational materials available on ACT's website makes ridiculous claims such as "Islam does not coexist well with other religions," "[Islam] Co-opts the moon god Allah," "Islam was spread by the sword, not conversion."<br /><br />If the words Muslim in those quotes were replaced by the words African-American or Jewish or Buddhist will the Council treat information from such a source with credibility?" <br /><br />In addition, I said, "By now you have heard a lot about me, but from others. Some of the people you heard from have had years of associations with me. I am thankful that my work and views have made a positive impression on them. While others who wrote or spoke using snippets of disjointed information gathered from the internet painted a distorted picture of my record and views. The irony is not lost on anyone that those who never met me seemed loudest in their condemnation."Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-11064927796018610312009-10-24T01:26:00.006-04:002009-10-24T03:17:16.502-04:00India’s Invisible Minority<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/SuKnvpm_a0I/AAAAAAAABz8/oHduJuQYstI/s1600-h/pressclub2.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/SuKnvpm_a0I/AAAAAAAABz8/oHduJuQYstI/s200/pressclub2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396059740608359234" /></a><br /><em>This article is based on a lecture given at the Press Club in Kolkata (Calcutta), India on September 24, 2009. The lecture was sponsored by the American Center in Calcutta, India.</em><br /><br />First Published by <a href="http://www.altmuslim.com/a/a/a/3349/">AltMuslim</a>. October 23, 2009<br /><br />This year due to a coincidence of the lunar calendar, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eid_ul-Fitr">Eid-ul-Fitr</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durga_Puja">Durga Puja</a>, two major religious festivals of India, were celebrated within a week of each other in late September. After twenty-two years, I was able to witness both in my birth city of <a href="http://www.calcuttaweb.com/?r=66167">Kolkata (Calcutta, India)</a>. One common thread between the Pujas and Eids is the propensity amongst the faithful to shop for new clothes and gifts with the same fervor and joy as Christmas shoppers in my adopted homeland of United States. The area colloquially called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Market,_Calcutta">New Market </a>is the nexus of this buying spree in Kolkata. I had a few things to shop for my family and quite naturally gravitated towards where all Kolkata roads seemed to meet.<br /><br />Fighting the heat and humidity of a late September afternoon and amidst the crushing crowds, I could not help but notice that the overwhelming majority of the signs strewn across the myriad of shops were Puja greetings, well-wishing those celebrating Durgautsov. Conspicuous in their absence were well wishes to the Muslim community on the occasion of their Eid. Muslims who make up over twenty percent of the population in Kolkata, have become its invisible minority, increasingly squeezed out of the public square in Kolkata and beyond.<br /><br /><a href="http://english.emory.edu/Bahri/Part.html">In 1947, after India’s bloody and tragic partition</a>, many Muslims, particularly the elites, migrated to Pakistan leaving behind a political and social vacuum. Those who chose to remain Indian outnumbered those who opted for Pakistan. Yet Indian Muslims have been stigmatized as India’s fifth column. The subsequent rise of the Hindu political identity marked by the Hinduvta movement, the lack of creative ideas in the Muslim community towards self-empowerment, the post-independence educational curriculum depicting Muslims as outsiders, Islamophobia, and violence in the name of Islam; all have contributed to marginalize India’s Muslims.<br /><br />Writing a book review in <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/fline/fl2021/stories/20031024000707800.htm">The Hindu, A.G. Noorani</a> commented, “It (the Muslim problem) must be treated urgently and seriously as one of the national problems. Discrimination against Muslims has been a blot on India's record as a democracy. That blot must be erased with determination and speed by all Indians who cherish the Great Indian Ideal.” Thus, the idea behind empowering Muslims in India should not be viewed as either appeasement to a voting block or solely an altruistic program to uplift one of India’s most downtrodden socio-religious communities.<br /><br />Persistent religious discrimination and <a href="http://www.sacw.net/2002/EngineerJan03.html">recurring communal violence</a> have marred India’s ideals and values. It has diminished India’s narrative of a secular state where multi-ethnic and multi-religious communities can safely and freely reside. The erosion of the constitutionally protected fundamental rights has been especially disillusioning for India’s Muslim youth. The repeated failure of governments, both local and national, to take appropriate measures to protect the rights of minority citizens has prompted the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom to put <a href="http://ibnlive.in.com/news/us-body-on-religious-freedom-puts-india-on-watch-list/99133-2.html">India on its 2009 Watch List</a>.<br /><br />Despite the obvious need to correct the problem, religious fanatics and fundamentalists have espoused the notion that Muslim empowerment is a zero-sum game. In particular the <a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/JJ31Df02.html">Hinduvta movement</a> has cultivated a mistaken notion that any gain to the Muslim community is a loss for the Hindus. But in today’s globalized society, power resides not so much in unilateralism (shown to be glaringly ineffective by George W. Bush) but rather in effective mutuality and sharing between all who have a stake in a nation’s future. Thus, the issue of Muslim empowerment should be as much a Hindu concern as it is a Muslim aspiration.<br /><br />Empowering Muslims in India requires a three pronged effort with all of the parts working together in a holistic manner to convert today’s challenge into tomorrow’s opportunities. The first prong undoubtedly lies on the shoulders of India’s Muslim community. Instead of succumbing to the political rhetoric being espoused by self-appointed leaders, Muslims must leave aside their cynicism and engage in the Indian political, social and cultural life with vigor and positivity. The Civil Rights movement in America can serve as an inspirational model. Integration will be more effective if Indian Muslims harmonize their Islamic identity with their Indian one.<br /><br />Such integrative steps can happen only if India’s state, local and central governments come forward with bold new proposals to correct the glaring deficiencies pointed out by the Sachar Committee Report. Although much of the grievances in the report were well known to Muslims, the Sachar Report is an eye opener to those who assumed away the Muslim problem or blamed it on some foreign conspiracy. <a href="http://www.godgraces.org/files/Muslim%20Report.pdf">The Sachar Report</a> is poignant in its pathos that the disempowerment of India’s Muslims is an Indian problem created by decades of neglect and abuse, which hangs as an albatross on India’s otherwise vibrant democracy. Quite ironically, states like West Bengal and Kerala that boasted the most liberal governments were just as culpable in their lack of attention to Muslim empowerment as regions that hosted more religiocentric governments, like Gujarat. I was shocked to learn that in my birth state of West Bengal, Muslim representation in state public sector undertakings is exactly zero percent! <br /><br />Other statistics are equally grim - less than 4 percent Muslims graduate from school; 1 in 25 undergraduate students and 1 in 50 post graduate students in premier university and colleges are Muslims; although Muslims are nearly 14 percent of India’s population their share in government employment is 4.9 percent; in India’s security agencies, Muslim representation is 3.2 percent; only 2.1 percent of Muslim farmers own tractors; just 1 percent own hand pumps for irrigation; if Muslims do outnumber majority Hindus in anywhere, it is predictably as a proportion of the prison population (much like Blacks in America).<br /><br />It will be a mistake to leave the task of Muslim empowerment to the goodwill of governments alone. As India transforms itself into a market economy, it is the private sector that will play a bigger role in both the economic and social transformation of India. India’s big-business community can, if they choose to, play a positive role in empowering India’s Muslim minority. One mechanism for creating an Indian corporate workforce that is reflective of India’s socio-religious communities is through the voluntary adoption of the <a href="http://www.unglobalcompact.org/">UN Global Compact</a>. Launched in the year 2000 the Global Compact is an effort by the United Nations to usher-in a more sustainable, just and inclusive global economy.<br /><br />To achieve this goal, the Global Compact outlined ten principles broadly classified in the areas of human rights, labor, the environment and anti-corruption. If the business community takes the necessary steps to apply these principles, it will inevitably lead to not only preserving the profit margins for the businesses but to a general well being of the society. By ending all overt and covert discriminations in labor practices, businesses can assist in empowering India’s minorities. By adhering to higher environmental standards businesses can also help the poor (including but not limited to Muslims) who are usually the disproportionate victims of environmental degradation. <br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/SuKprty0GXI/AAAAAAAAB0M/7sOb_NZ3aAA/s1600-h/pressclub3.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/SuKprty0GXI/AAAAAAAAB0M/7sOb_NZ3aAA/s200/pressclub3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396061872035469682" /></a>The issue of Muslim empowerment is not so much about the Muslim community as it is about India’s future. A more educated Muslim community will constitute a more enlightened Indian work force leading to better business opportunity and a more sustainable growth for India’s economy. The next step in India’s economic evolution will likely not come on the backs of call centers and outsourcing. Rather it will come as result of higher paying service oriented jobs that require a large educated work force. An empowered Muslim community will also mean fewer security headaches and lesser social tension.<br /><br />The Sachar commission recommends that 15 percent of all government funds be allocated to Muslim welfare and development. While this may work in the short run, in the long run Muslims need equal opportunities not quotas or handouts. This can come about via the establishment of “Equal Opportunities Commission” much like the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in the United States. Such a commission, armed with judicial powers, can greatly aid in empowering India’s Muslim much like the EEOC continues to do for America’s minority communities. These suggestions, among the many made by the Sachar report, are not difficult to implement provided governments and citizens alike make a commitment to change their mindset that for too long has regarded the issue of Muslim empowerment as a zero-sum game relegating them to become India’s invisible minority.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-7036212995962920092009-10-08T00:03:00.002-04:002009-10-08T00:05:55.522-04:00Bangladesh's future rests on development of ethical financial markets<a href="http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2009/10/07/80869.html">The Financial Express</a>, October 7, 2009<br /><br />A recent Bangladesh Bank (BB) policy paper asserts that moving into the future, Bangladesh will have to rely heavily on capital markets to raise the necessary money to fund capital expansion projects. Capital expansion projects need a lot of money and relying solely on banks to raise that money is inefficient. In Bangladesh, financing via debt market is generally small and stock markets are in their infancy, albeit growing rapidly. Stock market capitalisation has grown at an average annual rate of 77 per cent from 2003 to 2008.<br /><br />Despite such positive signs, Bangladesh has an Achilles' heel as it has been consistently cited by Transparency International (TI) as one of the countries with the highest levels of corruption. Transparency International, a civil society organisation, cites the economic cost of corruption as, "Corruption leads to the depletion of national wealth. It is often responsible for the funneling of scarce public resources to uneconomic high-profile projects, such as dams, power plants, pipelines and refineries, at the expense of less spectacular but fundamental infrastructure projects such as schools, hospitals and roads, or the supply of power and water to rural areas. Furthermore, it hinders the development of fair market structures and distorts competition, thereby deterring investment." The benefits from the development of the financial markets can easily be undone by the general pervasiveness and permissiveness of corruption.<br /><br />The centrality of ethics in economic development is easily discerned from the fact that the three largest economies of the world US, Japan and Germany all rank among the top 20 (least corrupt) in the Corruption Perception Index. In developed countries like the US, business school curriculums and professional organisations are accelerating the integration of ethics. The hope is that effectively integrating ethics and social responsibility into pedagogy will allow the grooming of professionals who will avoid the ethical pitfalls that have become the hallmark of the many financial scandals in the recent past. Bangladesh should not wait to address the issue of ethics after some scandal rocks its markets. Rather a proactive strategy can avoid major scandals allowing Bangladesh to sustain its economic development. <br /><br />The solution lies in a pursuing a two-pronged strategy. First, ethics has to be integrated in the business curriculum so that tomorrow's business leaders graduate armed with the motivation and knowledge about why ethics matter. The second strategy requires major businesses to voluntarily adopt the principles of the UN Global Compact. <br /><br />Popular text books in finance and business state that the goal of the financial manger is, "to maximise the current value per share of the existing stock," fostering a notion that shareholder wealth maximisation is devoid of any moral concern. Such ambiguity leaves students unsure about the role of ethics in business. At worst, practitioners may treat ethics and shareholder wealth maximisation as a zero-sum game, more of one leading to less of the other. Effective integration of ethics will come about if students are convinced that shareholder wealth maximisation is indeed consistent with the pursuit of ethics and social responsibility. <br /><br />Ethics need not be exclusively policed using paternalistic mechanisms. Rather, the marketplace can moderate the urge to be self-centered. This is possible so long as media and civic society accept their responsibility of naming and shaming ethical violators. Take for example the well publicised controversy regarding American talk show host Don Imus. On the April 4, 2007, he said referred to the players in the women's basketball team at Rutgers University as "nappy-headed hoes," a description deemed offensive to the teams' Black players. This was not the first time Imus had used derogatory language to insult minorities. A few days later, facing a surge of protests, Imus' show was cancelled and later he was fired from his position by CBS, although Imus had not violated any law. <br /><br />Was CBS' action consistent with shareholder wealth maximisation? NGOs made appeals to advertisers withdraw their support of Imus' show. Customers threatened advertisers with economic sanctions. By firing Imus, CBS acted as a conduit for the ethical beliefs of the stakeholders. CBS did not need to become expert on the US. Constitution nor did it need to conduct a shareholder referendum to determine their moral beliefs. CBS made an ethical decision but within the framework of what is called the marketplace of morality. <br /><br />In Bangladesh, purveyors of Islamic finance are assuming prominence. Islamic universities are competing side-by-side with established secular institutions. Scholars dating back to Adam Smith and Max Weber have argued that religion plays a fundamental role in shaping economics. The development of a stronger ethical foundation for Bangladesh's financial markets can be aided by understanding the consistency between normative Islam and modern theories of virtue ethics. <br /><br />The comparable word for ethics in Islam is 'akhlaq' or 'khuluq'. The issue of "internal good" is best captured in the two Islamic concepts of 'taqwa' (piety) and 'ihsan' (excellence). Having 'taqwa' allows a person to be aware of God's omnipresence and attributes, serving to remind believers of their responsibility towards God. 'Ihsan' pertains to obtaining perfection or excellence in worship, morals, manners, attitudes and social interactions. <br /><br />The idea of "moral judgment" is best exemplified by two Islamic concepts of justice (adl) and trusteeship (khilafa). In pursuing wealth maximisation, people should not lie or cheat; they must uphold promises and fulfill contracts. Usurious dealings are prohibited. Excessive speculation is shunned. In the Islamic hermeneutics, the rich are not the real owners of their wealth; they are only the trustees. Thus, justice requires that the rich spend their wealth in accordance with the terms of the trust, one of the most important of which is fulfilling the needs of the poor. Islam views human beings as God's vicegerent or trustee (khalifa) on earth, implying that there is no conflict between the morality and the pursuit of economic success. Given the right motivation and means, all economic activity can assume the character of worship.<br /><br />The second leg in the effective integration of ethics in finance rests with businesses voluntarily adopting the UN Global Compact. On July 26, 2000 the United Nations launched an innovative public-private partnership (PPP), calling it the UN Global Compact. The idea was to foster "social responsibility," amongst corporations. It was a call to the business community that their goal in managing businesses should not be exclusively focused on profit margins but in addition take steps to realise a more sustainable, just and inclusive global economy. <br /><br />To achieve this goal, the Global Compact outlined ten principles broadly classified in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. The Global Compact requires participating businesses to annually report their progress on the ten principles. If the business community takes the necessary steps to apply these principles, it will inevitably lead to not only preserving their profit margins but to a general well-being of the society. In particular, principle 10 of the Global Compact asks businesses to strive against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery. Only 25 Bangladeshi companies have signed on to the UN Global Compact. Unfortunately, over half of them are classified as "non-communicating", having failed to comply with the reporting requirements. Eight Bangladeshi small and medium enterprises (SME) have signed on the UN Global Compact but only three have complied with all the reporting requirements. More businesses need to voluntarily adopt the UN Global Compact and this will come about only if civic society uses the marketplace of morality to demand business practices adhere to standards, which can ensure a more sustainable globalization.<br /><br />Adam Smith defines "internal good" as "the man who acts according to the rules of perfect prudence, of strict justice, and of proper benevolence." Attaining "internal good" is necessary not just for altruistic reasons but also for profit making purposes. Providing profit by harming society perverts the purpose of business. An effective marketplace of morality, Dobson asserts will make financial markets truly ethical. He goes on to say, "Dishonesty and deceit would be anathema, because honesty and integrity are themselves internal goods. A truly ethical individual, pursuing internal goods, would never sacrifice honesty for material gain, but only too readily sacrifice material gain for honesty."Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-65676269357219402852009-06-29T16:32:00.005-04:002009-07-03T01:40:19.206-04:00Fulbright scholar promotes equality<a href="http://www.jacksonville.com/news/metro/schools/2009-06-29/story/fulbright_scholar_promotes_equality">FLORIDA TIMES UNION</a>, June 29, 2009 <br /><br /><em><strong>UNF teacher will study Bangladesh culture for "common problems."</strong></em><br />By <a href="http://www.jacksonville.com/authors/josh_salman">Josh Salman</a> <br /> <br />Parvez Ahmed understands the importance of culture.<br /><br />The assistant (<strong>associate</strong>) finance professor at University of North Florida has worked hard to bridge the gap between the general population and Muslim community in Northeast Florida. He practices equality and preaches the same to his students.<br /> <br />So when Ahmed was awarded the coveted <a href="http://fulbright.state.gov/root/resources-for/scholars">Fulbright Grant</a>, he fulfilled a lifelong dream. He could take the same principles he strives to teach at UNF and apply them to students in South Asia.<br /><br />Ahmed will be leaving in August to spend the fall semester teaching finance and doing research at the Independent University of Bangladesh in Dhaka, the nation's capital.<br /> <br />"[Teaching] is our way of affecting the hearts and minds of people we are visiting," Ahmed said. "I'm hoping to apply what I learn there to the classroom here and create exchanges."<br /> <br />While in Bangladesh, Ahmed will study the region's economy and financial sector. He will explore the nation's villages and the study the people.<br /><br />He will venture into the bordering country of India, and see the effects an economic powerhouse can have on a smaller nation.<br /><br />And he will break down market development in the third-largest Muslim country in the world. <br /> <br />"Most people associate Bangladesh with natural disasters," Ahmed said. "But there's a lot more to it than that."<br /><br />Ahmed grew up in an Indian town near the university he will be visiting. He hopes this advantage will allow him to develop a deeper social relationship with the native residents.<br /> <br />"This allows us to better understand what's going on in these countries," Ahmed said. "The common problems requiring common solutions."<br /><br />Ahmed is one of 1,100 faculty nationally awarded the Fulbright grant. He has been at UNF since 2002 and has received the Outstanding Researcher Award three times from Coggin College as well as the Outstanding Teacher Award.<br /><br />Ahmed has also served on the OneJax board of directors for more than three years, where he's worked to suppress the public's post-Sept. 11 anxiety toward Muslims.<br /><br />"Being selfish, I can't believe he's going to be gone," said Bobbie O'Connor, executive director of OneJax. "But he's really deserving of the award and has such a strong commitment to the community."<br /> <br />Ahmed plans to use his experience as a motivational tool and generate interest from his students in foreign culture and economics.<br /><br />He is also planning a study-abroad trip to Egypt for finance students this March. And whether in America or across seas, Ahmed's students said there's no professor they would rather learn balance sheets and market indexes from.<br /> <br />"His lectures are so thought-provoking," UNF graduate student James Fugard said after one of Ahmed's classes. "His courses are definitely a challenge, but you come out learning a lot."<br /> <br />Amanda Mullins said she takes Ahmed's courses every opportunity she has. "He makes sure you know your stuff and can apply it in the real world," Mullins said. "His style definitely make concepts easy to understand."Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-3716292950093454902009-05-22T00:56:00.005-04:002009-05-22T01:01:44.538-04:00Professor Receives Fulbright Award to Lecture in Bangladesh<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/ShYxIQBT21I/AAAAAAAAAFc/w2x8tUD0FUA/s1600-h/UNF_logo.gif"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 93px; height: 81px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_JWshsJ5ESRw/ShYxIQBT21I/AAAAAAAAAFc/w2x8tUD0FUA/s200/UNF_logo.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338508426103479122" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.unf.edu/development/news/pressreleases/releaseview.php?id=778">Media Relations & Events</a> <br /><a href="http://www.unf.edu/development/news/pressreleases/releaseview.php?id=778">Press Release For: May 06, 2009</a><br /><br />Dr. Parvez Ahmed, associate professor of finance in the Coggin College of Business at the University of North Florida, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholar grant to lecture and conduct research at the Independent University of Bangladesh in Dhaka during the fall 2009 academic year.<br /><br />Ahmed, who speaks and writes fluent Bangla, is one of approximately 1,100 U.S. faculty and professionals who will travel abroad through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program, which is America’s flagship international educational exchange program. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. <br /><br />The Arlington resident will teach and conduct research in finance, with his research being focused in the areas of financial asset pricing and market efficiency in Bangladesh. Additionally, Ahmed wants to perform empirical studies on the stock market in Bangladesh as well as study the state of private investing. He may also study the private-public partnership in economic development that is being conducted by Non-Governmental Organizations.<br /><br />“The Coggin College is thrilled that Dr. Ahmed has earned the Fulbright Award,” said Dr. John McAllister, dean of the Coggin College of Business at UNF. “His achievement is an explicit acknowledgement of his insights and academic record and an implicit endorsement of the excellence of the Coggin College and UNF.”<br /><br />Ahmed has been at UNF since 2002 and has received the Outstanding Researcher award three times from Coggin College as well as the Outstanding Teacher award. He is the author of “Mutual Funds—Fifty Years of Research Findings” and has had his research on market efficiency and asset pricing published in numerous top finance journals. <br /><br />Prior to coming to the University, he was the assistant professor of finance at Pennsylvania State University and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He also served as a visiting professor of finance in the Executive MBA Program at Instituto Superior de Economia y Administracion de Empresas in El Salvador.<br /><br />Ahmed has developed study abroad programs both for UNF and Pennsylvania State and is in the process of developing a study abroad program to Egypt. He earned his doctorate in finance from the University of Texas and his master’s degree in business administration from Temple University. He received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Aligarh Muslim University in India.<br /><br />Since its establishment in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the Fulbright Program has provided approximately 286,000 people with the opportunity to observe each other’s political, economic, educational and cultural institutions, to exchange ideas and to embark on joint ventures of importance to the general welfare of the world’s inhabitants.<br /><br />With more than 3,800 students, the Coggin College’s mission is to educate and develop business professionals through rigorous, relevant accredited degree programs offered by faculty devoted to student learning and engaged in scholarly activities. <br /><br />Since 1976, the Coggin College of Business has been accredited by AACSB—only one in five business schools are awarded the accreditation, which honors the best business schools in the world. The AACSB is the world leader in accreditation for business education. <br /><br />Contact: Joanna Norris, Assistant Director<br />Department of Media Relations and Events<br />(904) 620-2102<br /><br />-UNF-Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-49941709530329147632009-04-10T10:13:00.001-04:002009-04-10T10:14:32.260-04:00Passover Tells a Story Familiar to Both Muslims and Jews<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/parvez-ahmed/passover-tells-a-story-fa_b_185339.html">Huffington Post, April 9, 2009</a><br /><br />A week before Passover, a local interfaith group called the <a href="http://www.atccenter.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=74&Itemid=1">Table of Abraham </a>organized a Seder event at Congregation Ahavath Chesed, a Reform Jewish congregation in Jacksonville. The goal was to enact all of the rituals that are part of Seder as a way of informing and teaching people who are unfamiliar with this tradition. <br /><br />Turning the pages of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haggadah_of_Pesach">Haggadah</a>, I was specially struck by the similarity in both Judaism and Islam about this seminal Jewish event of Passover. At a time when so much of the contemporary narrative about Jews and Muslims is written in the context of differences and conflicts, it is useful to mark the solemn occasion of Passover as a mutual reminder about the commonalities between the faiths. <br /><br />No other story in the Quran is recounted as frequently as the bondage of the Children of Israel in Egypt and their subsequent deliverance from the tyranny of the Pharaoh. God says in the Quran:<br /><br /><blockquote>O children of Israel! Remember those blessings of Mine with which I graced you, and how I favored you above all other people; .... And [remember the time] when We saved you from Pharaoh's people, who afflicted you with cruel suffering, slaughtering your sons and sparing [only] your women - which was an awesome trial from your Sustainer; and when We cleft the sea before you, and thus saved you and caused Pharaoh's people to drown before your very eyes. (2:47-50)</blockquote><br /><br />The genesis of Muslim-Jewish relationship goes back to the founding of a political state in Madinah by Islam's Prophet Muhammad in 622 of the Common Era. Madinah of that time was a city inhabited by primarily polytheist Arab tribes, a few Jewish tribes and some Christians (although not as organized tribes). The Jewish tribes joined the rest of the city in welcoming Prophet Muhammad and upon entering the city the Prophet signed a treaty with all of the surrounding tribes. <br /><br />This treaty is called the <a href="http://www.constitution.org/cons/medina/con_medina.htm">Charter of Madinah</a>. It is perhaps the earliest known constitution in the world, predating the Magna Carta by 600 years. It is also the first known legal document that confers rights and responsibilities upon distinct religious minorities. It particularly recognizes Jews as a distinct nation (or ummah) entitling them to the same rights and responsibilities as any other signatories to the document. The treaty required each to assist the other another against any violation of the covenant. When placed in the context of the socio-economic-political conditions of the seventh century this document was indeed revolutionary. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.pennjcl.com/main/?tag=volume-1">Azizah al-Hibri, a legal scholar wrote</a>:<br /><blockquote>The Charter .... declared all Muslim and Jewish tribes of Madinah to be one community. At the same time, each tribe retained its identity, customs and internal relations. The "federal" system of Madinah was responsible, however, for such matters as common defense and peacemaking, purposes similar to those in the Preamble to the American Constitution.... The Charter also contained its own partial bill of rights, ... among the rights that it protected were the right to freedom of religion, and the right not to be found guilty because of the deeds of an ally, a form of guilt by association which was widely practiced at the time.....The Charter of Madinah repeatedly emphasized the principles of fairness and equity for Jews and Muslims....It is readily apparent that there are significant parallels between the concepts expressed in the Charter of Madinah, executed in the seventh century, and those of the American Constitution, drafted in the eighteenth century.</blockquote><br />Despite such early documentary evidence of reciprocal respect, relationship between the two communities was clouded by mutual mistrust leading to several bloody conflicts. <br /><br />And yet there are also many inspiring examples of coexistence and cooperation. It was during the <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/heritage/timeline4.html">Muslim rule in Spain that Jewish art, philosophy and literature </a>reached one of its golden ages. <a href="http://www.pbs.org/citiesoflight/">A recent documentary on PBS </a>characterized that era as, "The fascinating story of a central bureaucracy staffed by elites from all three faiths, with Jews in all but the highest post and Christian scholars outperforming "native" Arabic speakers in their own language and culture, is a fascinating and powerful antidote to our modern stereotypes concerning Christians, Jews, and Muslims." <br /><br />Which part of our shared history do we want to use as our guide to the future? The part that steers us to presume the worst stereotypes about each other or the part that shows how much we can benefit humanity through our mutual cooperation. How we reminisce the past will dictate how effective we are in building a new future. <br /><br />By the end of my Seder meal at the synagogue, it was quite apparent that beneath the headlines that scream conflict are Jewish, Muslim and Christian hearts yearning to build a more hopeful future based on mutual understanding. The eternal message of hope was my take-home lesson from the Seder.Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-50925665855279520922009-04-05T23:07:00.005-04:002009-04-06T13:00:53.396-04:00Waiting to exhale: Obama visits TurkeyPublished in <a href="http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=171497&bolum=109">Today's Zaman</a>, April 5, 2009<br />(Turkey's largest circulating English daily)<br /><br />Long before Barack Hussein Obama was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States of America, people in Turkey had expressed a sentiment of hope about his presidency. Reporting for <a href="http://www.observer.com/2008/turkey-ponders-obama-cure-anti-americanism">The New York Observer</a> in January 2008, Suzy Hansen quoted Omer Taspınar, director of the Turkey program at the Brookings Institution, as saying: "Turks know that Obama represents something quite different -- they've seen 'Roots.' They know the history. So an African-American with an African name and a name like Hussein -- the fact that people are willing to give him a chance, despite that he attended a madrasa, and had a Muslim father, would represent a huge change in the US, compared to the Bush-Clinton dynasties." As Turkey prepares to welcome Obama this week, what can they expect from him? And what can Obama expect in return?<br /><br />A recent poll by the BBC World Service shows a majority of Turkish people believing that Obama will improve America's relations with the rest of the world. However, <a href="http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=164677&bolum=101">the number of people in Turkey who believe this (51 percent) is far below the average (68 percent) in the 17-nation BBC survey</a>. Thus, amidst the general optimism there lies a nagging concern: Can Obama deliver on his promise?<br /><br />Despite being saddled by a once-in-a generation economic crisis, the young American president has shown an uncanny ability to, in his own words, "<a href="http://mediamatters.org/items/200903120022">walk and chew gum at the same time</a>." <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/26/obama-al-arabiya-intervie_n_161127.html">Giving his first interview as president to the Arab TV station Al Arabiya</a>, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/20/AR2009032000398.html">sending video greetings to the Islamic Republic of Iran on the Persian new year</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWLCNrfXolY">quoting a saying (hadith) of the Prophet in one of his speeches</a>, <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28788175/">ordering the closing down of the abomination that is Guantanamo</a>, <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKTRE52T7N920090330">retiring the use of ill-defined terms such as the "war on terror"</a> and refraining from even rhetorically linking Islam to terrorism are all trends that evoke hope. Although these moves are mostly symbolic, they are nonetheless important, as part of leadership is setting the right tone.<br /><br />How President Obama translates this emergent goodwill into tangible actions will ultimately determine his success. <a href="http://www.gallup.com/press/104209/Who-Speaks-Islam-What-Billion-Muslims-Really-Think.aspx">A recent survey by Gallup </a>shows that nearly nine in 10 Muslims, spread across many Muslim-majority nations, support freedom of speech, defined as allowing all citizens to express their opinions freely on all major issues of the day. Overwhelming majorities support women having the same legal rights as men. Similar numbers hold beliefs that their faith ought to inform and guide them in their politics. Yet most do not want sacred religious texts to be the exclusive source of law in their societies. The most common aspiration, all across the Muslim world, is to see America help in reducing unemployment, improving economic infrastructure, respecting political rights and promoting freedom. <br /><br />To get the Muslim world right, President Obama will first have to get Turkey right. During the Bush years, <a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/july-dec06/turkey_11-27.html">Turkish sentiments saw some of the most dramatic swings from overwhelmingly pro-American to stridently anti-American</a>. Turkey sits at the nexus of several hot spots, such as Iraq, Syria and Iran. Turkey is eager to play a role in mediating an amicable solution. Turkey is not just a Muslim-majority nation; it is also a secular democracy. Turkey is also trying to grapple with its own version of separation of church (mosque) and state. The ban on students donning symbols of their faith while attending university classes strikes many in the West and across the Muslim world as excessive. But the fact that the Turkish people are continuing to debate this issue is a sign of religious, intellectual and social vitality. President Obama could use his enormous appeal across the Muslim world to prod other Muslim societies to borrow a page from Turkey and enhance their own internal dialogues about the appropriate role of religion and faith in state governance. <br /><br />Back at home, a poll conducted by the non-partisan group <a href="http://www.publicagenda.org/citizen/issueguides/americas-global-role">Public Agenda </a>shows that a clear majority of American's express support for using diplomatic and economic means to resolve conflicts, even with Iran. Most Americans want America's top foreign policy priority to be humanitarian, such as helping poor countries move out of poverty, providing more access to education and controlling the spread of deadly diseases. <br /><br />All around the world there is an emerging consensus of aspiration. People are less interested in ideologies and care more about how governments can better their lives. This creates new opportunities for cooperation through sustained intellectual and diplomatic engagement. Instead of looking at Turkey as just an important geostrategic military ally, President Obama needs to prod European allies to welcome Turkey into the European Union, giving Turkey a more effective platform to act as a bridge between America, Europe and the Muslim world. <br /><br /><br /><div><iframe height="339" width="425" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/30057569#30057569" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><p style="font-size:11px; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #999; margin-top: 5px; background: transparent; text-align: center; width: 425px;">Visit msnbc.com for <a style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;" href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com">Breaking News</a>, <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032507" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">World News</a>, and <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032072" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">News about the Economy</a></p></div><br /><br /><a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30065504/">Obama tells Turkey: U.S. ‘not at war with Islam’ </a>(AP April 6, 2009)<br /><br />ANKARA, Turkey - Barack Obama, making his first visit to a Muslim nation as president, declared Monday the United States "is not and will never be at war with Islam." <br /><br />Urging a greater partnership with the Islamic world in an address to the Turkish parliament, Obama called the country an important U.S. ally in many areas, including the fight against terrorism. He devoted much of his speech to urging a greater bond between Americans and Muslims, portraying terrorist groups such as al Qaida as extremists who do not represent the vast majority of Muslims. <br /><br />"Let me say this as clearly as I can," Obama said. "The United States is not and never will be at war with Islam. In fact, our partnership with the Muslim world is critical ... in rolling back a fringe ideology that people of all faiths reject."Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-77693834635400968332008-09-11T09:44:00.002-04:002008-09-11T09:47:57.235-04:00Peace is an element of Islam<a href="http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/091108/opl_330665084.shtml"><span style="font-family:verdana;">http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/091108/opl_330665084.shtml</span></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">By Special to the Times-Union<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">On Sept. 11, 2001, the worst terrorist attack ever to take place on American soil unfolded on live television.<br /><br />That these attacks were committed by Muslim men is one factor behind the popular misperception linking Islam, the faith of over a billion people, to terrorism.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">But is Islam a primary factor behind terrorism? The simple answer is no. In fact, Islam condemns terrorism. Indeed, peace and justice are the foundational elements of Islam.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The Quran states: "If anyone slays a human being - unless it be [in punishment] for murder or for spreading corruption on Earth - it shall be as though he had slain all mankind; whereas, if anyone saves a life, it shall be as though he had saved the lives of all mankind."<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Taken together, Islamic jurisprudence advocates the preservation of life, honor and the dignity of all human life as a supreme endeavor.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Even when fighting is permitted, it is not without rules of engagement. The 10 rules of war in Islam state, "Do not commit treachery or deviate from the right path. You must not mutilate dead bodies.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">"Neither kill a child, nor a woman, nor an aged man. Bring no harm to the trees, nor burn them with fire, especially those which are fruitful. Slay not any of the enemy's flock, save for your food. You are likely to pass by people who have devoted their lives to monastic services; leave them alone."<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">It should not surprise anyone that Muslims, like people of other faiths, do not always live up to the normative teachings of their faith.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Al-Qaida is one such group whose actions are contrary to the teachings of Islam, yet they are often mislabeled as "Islamic."<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Military action is sometimes necessary to combat terrorism, but often it is not the best option. After all, terrorism is not an ideology. It is a tactic. How does one wage a war against a tactic?<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The way forward is to engage in common-sense methods of intelligence gathering without criminalizing entire groups of people, military strategies without resorting to large-scale bombings, ending foreign occupations and investing in an agenda that gives impoverished societies economic hope that can then lead to political freedoms.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">In combating terrorism, democracies should be mindful of Ben Franklin's admonition, "They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security deserve neither liberty nor security."<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">PARVEZ AHMED, PH.D.<br />Jacksonville</span>Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-18671826489742779602008-09-11T09:42:00.001-04:002008-09-11T09:43:43.634-04:00Use common-sense method in war on terror<a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/letters/story/681517.html"><span style="font-family:verdana;">http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/letters/story/681517.html</span></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Posted on Thu, Sep. 11, 2008<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">On Sept. 11, 2001, the worst terrorist attack ever to take place on American soil unfolded on live television. The United States was not alone in its grief. People across the world held prayer vigils and stood in solidarity with America. No one questioned America's declaration of war on ``terrorism.''<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">However, terrorism is not an ideology; it is a tactic. How does one wage a war against a tactic? That the 9/11 attacks were committed by Muslim men is one factor behind the popular perception of a causal link between Islam and terrorism. But is Islam a primary factor behind terrorism?<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Osama bin Laden has a history of conflating political rhetoric with religious imagery. He has said, ``There is no more important duty than pushing the American enemy from the Holy Land.''<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">However, linking Islam to terrorism because of bin Laden's rhetoric is an oversimplification of a complex problem. Islam condemns terrorism. It provides a theology for peace and guidelines for living peacefully in a world with diverse people and nations. Indeed peace and justice are the foundational elements of Islam. The Koran emphasizes the sanctity of life.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">It should not surprise anyone that Muslims, like people of other faiths, do not always live up to the teachings of their faith. Al Qaeda is one such group whose actions are contrary to the teachings of Islam, yet it is labeled Islamic. In the same vein, the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda cannot be considered Christian despite claims that it is fighting for the establishment of a government based on the Ten Commandments.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Terrorism is obviously a threat, but does not necessitate a declaration of war. Military action is sometimes necessary to combat terrorism, but often it is not the best option. Addressing the grievances of the terrorists cannot automatically be dismissed as appeasement. In fact, the conversion of terrorist groups into peaceful political movements has occurred often because the group's rationale for violence has ceased to exist.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Terrorism is likely to persist. Democracies and free societies are usually vulnerable to terrorism but can protect themselves. The way forward is to engage in common-sense methods of intelligence gathering without criminalizing entire groups of people. It is to use military strategies without resorting to large-scale bombings, to end foreign occupations and to invest in an agenda that gives impoverished societies economic hope that can then lead to political freedoms.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">PARVEZ AHMED, Jacksonville</span>Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19754521.post-17998221111729398872008-09-04T11:08:00.001-04:002008-09-04T11:11:19.245-04:00Memo to American Muslims – Shed the Cynicism and Get Engaged<span style="font-family:verdana;">I was there. </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">One of the 84,000 at Invesco Field witnessing history. The day and the moment were as inspiring as it was profound. As the chants of "yes we can" reverberated through the stadium, they re-ignited feelings of optimism about America's future, which in the last eight years had been jaded by the politics of fear and divisiveness. Perhaps no group has been more vilified and continues to bear the brunt of this politics of fear than Muslims and Arabs. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Seated next to me at Invesco was Mazen Asbahi, the Chicago attorney who was appointed as national coordinator for American Muslim and Arab outreach by the Obama campaign. Mazen lasted only a few weeks. His resignation came in the wake of discredited websites spuriously alleging his links to an imam (Muslim spiritual leader) and that imam's links to the Muslim Brotherhood, a socio-political, albeit often controversial, movement that originated in Egypt. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Mazen resigned not because he did anything wrong but simply because he put his country first. He understood the importance of this election and did not want smears to distract the American public from failing to heed Obama's message of change. He firmly believes that Obama will restore America's respect abroad while addressing many of the pressing issues of our time from the economy to global warming. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">In Mazen's story is a lesson for all Americans. The first lesson is for those who fail to stand up to the merchants of fear. The American public and the mainstream media need to realize that there is a well coordinated effort to discredit promising American Muslims and thus marginalize the American Muslim community. These thugs of bigotry feed on ignorance and fear of the unknown. Not standing up to these bigots is not only un-American, but also leads to bad policy. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Although the Obama campaign never asked Mazen to resign, the perception remains that the campaign did not stand-up and challenge the underlying bigotry that led to his unfortunate departure. Obama was correct in denying that he was a Muslim, but in addition he should have added a Seinfeld moment by simply asserting, "Not that there's anything wrong with it (being a Muslim)." </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The second lesson is for American Muslims. Community organizers are reporting a lack of enthusiasm in the Muslim community's support for Obama. Standing at the crossroads where history is being shaped, the American Muslim community must not backslide into the familiar comforts of cynicism. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Despite the hurt that the Muslim community feels and the scorns they bear they need to look beyond their immediate discomfort to what serves America and the world best. Instead of the all too familiar horse-trading that special interest group's engage-in, the American Muslim community needs to transcend their disappointments and look to the future and take into account the seriousness of the issues at stake in this election: the rule of law, war and peace, economic justice, education and health care. They must understand that an Obama presidency will not be perfect (no presidency ever is), but a John McCain presidency will only be worse. McCain's selection of Sarah Palin reinforces the perception that McCain lacks both judgment and temperament. We had enough with one decider who makes decisions from the gut. We can ill-afford another. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Beyond the emotions, objectively is there any doubt that from economic policy to environmental stewardship, Obama offers superior solutions? Is it not plainly obvious that Obama prefers diplomacy over war? In Denver he clearly stated that the decision to commit our nation to war can only be made in the face of a clear and present danger and not in the pursuit of some ideological utopia. Is it not refreshing to hear Obama's view that hearts and minds in the Muslim world can be won over by sustained American engagement in improving the lives of those affected by years of war and neglect? Yes not all is palatable in Obama's position, especially his appeasement of the pro-Israeli lobby. But if Muslims define an Obama presidency by the one issue of Israel then they are as guilty of being parochial as AIPAC and ADL (major pro-Israeli organizations), which often ignore all other realities in their blind and obsessive defense of Israel. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Undoubtedly American Muslim participation this election cycle is at record highs. However, given the closeness of the race and the enormity of its consequences, the community will have to provide all hands on deck to make sure that the right candidate gets elected. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Muslims cannot repeat the mistakes of the past when major American Muslim organizations hastily endorsed George Bush over the objections of African American Muslims, the largest sub-group in the community. Nor can they tread the path of 2004 when they gave a "qualified endorsement" to John Kerry, which understandably dampened Muslim enthusiasm at the polls. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Back to Mazen. He has every reason to sulk because he was unfairly "swift-boated." Yet he remains optimistic and enthusiastically chugs along (although not officially part of the campaign). Throughout the evening in Denver while remaining fully cognizant of the historicity of the moment, Mazen did not waste any time and kept furiously working his Blackberry making phone calls and texting friends urging them to support Obama and in the process hoping to contribute to the transformation of American politics. Just as Mazen looks beyond the dirty politics he fell victim to, so should American Muslims look beyond the flaws of the Obama campaign and take into consideration the bigger picture. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The time has come for American Muslims to demonstrably show that they can make the necessary contributions to return American politics to be once again get rooted in the universal values of peace, liberty and justice for all. It is time for the Muslim community to join the growing legions of fellow Americans who are inspired by hope and powered by a sense of optimism that things can and do change. Change does not come from just wishing for it. The way forward is clearly indicated in the Quran, "God does not change the condition of a people unless they change that which is within themselves."</span>Parvez Ahmedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10810399862861856230noreply@blogger.com0