Suns,” CAIR co-founder and executive director Nihad Awad, and CNN “GPS” host Fareed Zakaria. Two young sisters whose hijabs were torn off by New York Police Department members received a $97,500 settlement from the city, reported New York Post on Oct. 7, 2015. The officers approached the girls, aged 12 and 14, in Mott Haven Park, a Bronx playground, at around 8 p.m. on an August day in 2013. According to a Manhattan federal court lawsuit filed by their mother, they immediately left the park when the policemen informed them that it was closed. According to their mother’s lawsuit, the officers attacked the children as they were walking out of the park, “violently grabbing them around their necks and forcing them to the ground.” As they crashed to the ground, the police pulled off their hijabs, which “was not only profoundly humiliating, but a violation of their deeply held religious beliefs.” The police also arrested the girls’ 15-yearold brother when he asked them what they were doing to his sisters, the suit said.
The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIRMN) welcomed Columbia Heights school board member Grant Nichols’ decision to resign, effective Oct. 13, 2015. Following a meeting with CAIR-MN, Muslim community leaders and local elected officials, Nichols expressed his intention and apologized for a comment disparaging Muslims posted on his Facebook page. Basim Elkarra, executive director of the Sacramento Council on American-Islamic Relations, was among the 11 persons named to serve on the Sacramento’s new Community Police Commission, the City Council announced Oct. 20, 2015. There were 54 applicants.
“Our vision is to make Sacramento the safest big city in California and a national model of community policing in the 21st century,” said Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson in a statement. The new commission will utilize the experience and knowledge of Sacramento residents to ensure bias-free policing and monitor the Officer Next Door initiative, Johnson said. Based on a Department of Justice model, it will advise city leaders and seek to strengthen the trust between citizens and police officers. Seattle, Cleveland and other cities are also creating commissions. The commission, which will meet at least eight times a year, is part of Sacramento’s Officer Next Door initiative. Other parts include adding 15 new police officers each fiscal year, a body camera pilot program and a gang prevention task force. “We need to bridge the gaps between law enforcement and the community, and this commission will be an important forum,” said Elkarra. “Sacramento is a tight-knit, solution-oriented city that is ready to tackle our challenges through community engagement, transparency and confidence building measures.” Muna Sharif has joined the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California as program coordinator of the Muslim Speakers Network (MSN), which responds to the growing demand from schools and colleges for Muslim speakers. MSN trains and equips Muslims with the necessary skills to present the basics of Islam and Muslims in an objective fashion in an academic setting. Sharif, a graduate student at California State University Long Beach, also directs the MSA-West’s Jibreel Project, which scrutinizes Islamophobic programs by private and public enterprises, such as the DHS’s Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) program. A native Californian of Palestinian heritage, she is a devoted advocate for justice in Palestine. Mohdudul Huq, senior planner for the City of Houston Planning and Development Department, was recognized for his 30 years of service with a Civil Service Award from the City of Houston and a service appreciation letter from the mayor. He is the first Muslim to receive such an award. The award was presented by Mayor Annise D. Parker and Patrick Walsh, director of Planning and Development Department.
ISLAMIC HORIZONS JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2016
Ever since 9/11, some Muslim Americans have suspected the FBI of targeting, profiling, and spying upon them in their mosques. To counteract this apprehension, W. Jay Abbott, Special Agent in charge of the FBI’s Indianapolis Division, addressed the annual convention of the Muslim Alliance of Indiana on Nov. 14, 2015, in Indianapolis. During his “Build Trust via Communication, Understanding and Transparency” address, he explained the FBI’s various outreach and diversity programs and stated that the bureau has become a global security organization. (From: Endocrinologist Shahid Athar is founder and past president of the Interfaith Alliance of Indiana) CORRIGENDUM Islamic Horizons magazine sincerely regrets missing the names of Shireen Hakim, RDN, MS, MPH, and author of “Gluten Free,” and Husnaa Vhora, who were members of the Convention Volunteer Reporters Committee that authored the ISNA Convention 2015 report. Excerpts from their articles were published in the Nov/Dec 2015 issue.
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