Another Big Step Forward for ACT! for America
by Brigitte Gabriel
Dear Ben Yehuda,
Tomorrow marks another exciting milestone in the growth, influence and effectiveness of ACT! for America. I’m delighted to announce that tomorrow, ACT! for America’s full-time lobbyist, Lisa Piraneo, begins work on Capitol Hill !!
Lisa’s official title is “Director of Government Relations.” Lisa has over 15 years of experience on Capitol Hill, including stints in four congressional offices and nearly seven years of experience as a lobbyist for a national organization. She has also worked for a Homeland Security consulting firm.
In her capacity as Director of Government Relations, Lisa will work with members of Congress and their staffs, educating them on issues we’re concerned about and seeking their support for bills we consider important. We already have a handful of bills Lisa will be working on, and we’ll give you information and updates on those at a later time.
She will also be working with our chapter leaders and members on such tasks as providing education on how to effectively persuade our elected representatives as well as coordinating grassroots contacts with members of Congress.
As events of the past several weeks demonstrate, our achieving a full-time presence on Capitol Hill hasn’t come a moment too soon.
Yesterday we reported to you that the UN Human Rights Council passed a resolution that calls on nations around the world to criminalize the “defamation” of Islam. The Fox News article below highlights the growing concern in America about the encroachment of Islamic shariah law.
Putting an experienced, qualified lobbyist to work on our behalf on Capitol Hill was our top priority for 2009. Hundreds of you responded to our request for financial support to make this a reality, and thanks to your help, it is a reality!
I dreamed of this day seven years ago when I launched American Congress for Truth, ACT! for America’s “sister” organization. I dreamed of the day that we would have tens of thousands of members, hundreds of chapters, and a full-time lobbyist in D.C.
That day has arrived.
Lisa will be one of our featured speakers at most of our “Citizens in Action” conferences this year. If you haven’t yet registered to attend or participate via live webcast, please log on to
www.actforamerica.org and register today.
Words simply can’t express my gratitude for each and every one of you. We have a big task ahead of us, but together we will succeed, because as each of us does a little, together we’ll accomplish a lot.
Always devoted,
Brigitte Gabriel
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Islamic Law's Influence in America a Growing Concern
Sunday , March 29, 2009
By David Lewkowict
As America's Muslim population grows, so too does the influence of Islamic law, or Shariah, in daily life in the U.S.
"Shariah Law is the totality of the Muslim's obligation," said Abdullahi An-Na'im, a professor of law at Emory University in Atlanta. According to An-Na'im, Shariah is similar to Jewish Talmudic Law or Catholic Canon Law in that it guides an adherent's moral conduct.
"As a citizen, I am a subject of the United States," An-Na'im said. "I owe allegiance to the United States, to the Constitution of the United States. That is not inconsistent with observing a religious code in terms of my own personal behavior."
While many view this as a testament to the "great American melting pot," others see Islamic law's growing influence as a threat. Shariah's critics point to cases such as the airport in Minneapolis, where some Shariah-adherent taxi drivers made headlines in 2006 for refusing to pick up passengers they suspected of carrying liquor. The drivers' aversion to alcohol stemmed from a verse in the Qur'an that describes "intoxicants and gambling" as "an abomination of Satan's handiwork."
Last year, a Tyson Foods plant in Shelbyville, Tenn. replaced its traditional Labor Day holiday with paid time off on Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim festival — marking the end of fasting during Ramadan. A labor union had requested the change on behalf of hundreds of Muslim employees— many of them were immigrants from Somalia.
But public outcry over the decision to dismiss Labor Day quickly prompted the company and union to negotiate a new contract that makes accommodations for both holidays.
In 2007, the University of Michigan installed ritual foot baths to accommodate Islamic tradition. "These things are beginning to percolate up as Shariah-adherent Muslims insist that their preferences and practices be accommodated by the rest of the population," said Frank Gaffney, founder and president of the Center for Security Policy — a Washington think tank.
Gaffney predicted the U.S. could soon face problems similar to some Western European countries, where the religious values of Muslim immigrants sometimes clash with their highly secular host cultures.
But Professor An-Na'im believes it will be different in America. "The variety of American secularism — which is much more receptive of public displays of religion and a public role for religion — is, in fact, more conducive for Muslims to be citizens and to be comfortable with their religious values and citizenship than European countries," An-Na'im said.
Topic: Great News from ACT and Brigette Gabriel (Read 423 times)