Muslims want seat at the political table
Nisa Islam Muhammad/Special to the NNPA from The Final Call
Issue date: 9/28/08 Section: Politics
DENVER (NNPA) - American Muslims from around the country met with Joshua Dubois, director of religious affairs for the Barack Obama presidential campaign, during the Democratic National Convention to address concerns that the Muslim community was being marginalized by the campaign.
"It's not a smear to be called a Muslim. We have Muslim staffers all over the country," said DuBois at a luncheon sponsored by the American Muslim Democratic Caucus. "You will have a seat at the table. The issues today are too critical for us not to work together."
Those remarks were a precursor to an Aug. 26 meeting with caucus representatives.
"We asked questions about the perception that the Obama campaign was marginalizing the Muslim voice in this campaign. We were assured that that was not the case," said Dr. Inayat Lalani, chief organizer of the American Muslim Democratic Caucus, which debuted at the convention with a press conference and luncheon.
Muslims have received a double dose of taint during the campaign since Sen. Obama has been accused of being a Muslim. He is a Christian.
Many at events felt Sen. Obama's stance on Islam and Muslims had been muddied by the media and the group planned a meeting with Patrick Gaspard, political director for the Obama campaign.
"If Barack said there's nothing wrong with being a Muslim, this needs to get out to the Muslim community. It alienates them to not have this information," said Abdul Akbar Muhammad, who writes the syndicated Africa and the World column and hosts a radio program. ''Muslims have been marginalized. It's partly our fault for not being active in politics.''
Muslim delegates came to Denver to make their voices heard and heed Sen. Obama's call for inclusion in his presidential campaign.
"We've been working very hard in the Democratic party to get the Muslim community involved. The Democrats know the issues we are really concerned with. We've had a good relationship with them for the last 10 years," Aftab Siddiqui, a caucus organizer, explained to The Final Call.
"It's not a smear to be called a Muslim. We have Muslim staffers all over the country," said DuBois at a luncheon sponsored by the American Muslim Democratic Caucus. "You will have a seat at the table. The issues today are too critical for us not to work together."
Those remarks were a precursor to an Aug. 26 meeting with caucus representatives.
"We asked questions about the perception that the Obama campaign was marginalizing the Muslim voice in this campaign. We were assured that that was not the case," said Dr. Inayat Lalani, chief organizer of the American Muslim Democratic Caucus, which debuted at the convention with a press conference and luncheon.
Muslims have received a double dose of taint during the campaign since Sen. Obama has been accused of being a Muslim. He is a Christian.
Many at events felt Sen. Obama's stance on Islam and Muslims had been muddied by the media and the group planned a meeting with Patrick Gaspard, political director for the Obama campaign.
"If Barack said there's nothing wrong with being a Muslim, this needs to get out to the Muslim community. It alienates them to not have this information," said Abdul Akbar Muhammad, who writes the syndicated Africa and the World column and hosts a radio program. ''Muslims have been marginalized. It's partly our fault for not being active in politics.''
Muslim delegates came to Denver to make their voices heard and heed Sen. Obama's call for inclusion in his presidential campaign.
"We've been working very hard in the Democratic party to get the Muslim community involved. The Democrats know the issues we are really concerned with. We've had a good relationship with them for the last 10 years," Aftab Siddiqui, a caucus organizer, explained to The Final Call.
Be the first to comment on this story