All Faiths Must Face Their Demons: Neocon Pundits Malign American Muslims

By Louay Safi

Three militant neocon pundits spoke vehemently against the Bush administration’s gesture to include American Muslim leaders in discussions on how to deal with the rising tide of anti-Americanism and restore the level of trust and support the United States enjoyed prior to the missteps the administration took at the neocons’ urging.

Frank Gaffney issued a warning to Karen Hughes, the newly appointed undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, demanding that she not attend the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) convention. Ignoring the false alarm he set in a recent op-ed piece in the Washington Times, Hughes did meet with Muslim leaders and discussed her ideas for bridging the deepening divide between the United States and Muslim countries (see p. 69of this issue).

Gaffney told Hughes point bank: “Don’t go there.” Joel Mowbray, another neocon who is apparently more aware of effective tactics of misinformation, gave Hughes the benefit of the doubt, allowing her to make one mistake one time: “Given that it is highly unlikely Hughes knew exactly what she was walking into,” Mowbray wrote, “she deserves the benefit of the doubt—this time.”

Gaffney belongs to a small but vocal group of militant pundits driven by deep-seated hate of Islam and Muslims, and bent on maligning Muslim leaders and organizations in a bid to marginalize and isolate mainstream American Muslims. He joined Mowbray and Daniel Pipes, two other well-known Muslim-bashers, in demonizing ISNA and the leaders of the national Muslim organizations who met with Hughes.

Utilizing several conservative publications, including the Washington Times, the trio leveled serious allegations against mainstream Muslim organizations, accusing them of supporting terrorism and promoting radicalism. The men have been active in feeding lies to the public and inciting government officials and law enforcement agencies to conduct investigations, then using these investigations as a basis for further maligning law-abiding and patriotic American Muslims.

Last year Pipes accused the Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy (CSID) of being “part of the militant Islamist lobby,” contending that it was “well-disguised, and has brought in all the Islamist trends, giving them a patent of respectability.”

“These allegations were investigated carefully…and found to be without merit.”

After conducting a thorough investigation of his accusations, the United States Institute of Peace (USIP)—of which Pipes is a former board member, thanks to a recess appointment by President George W. Bush—issued a statement that brought out the irresponsible nature of Pipes’ attacks. “The Institute was aware of and took seriously the accusations made against CSID and some of the speakers at the event,” Kay King, the director of Congressional and Public Affairs at USIP wrote. “These allegations were investigated carefully with credible private individuals and U.S. government agencies,” she went on, “and found to be without merit. The public criticism of CSID and the speakers was found to be based on quotes taken out of context, guilt by association, errors of fact, and innuendo.”

Gaffney, likewise, employed misinformation and factual error to justify his demands that the Bush administration isolate the most inclusive and mainstream Muslim convention. In a recent article he contended that the Senate Finance Committee “listed ISNA as one of 25 American Muslim organizations that ‘finance terrorism and perpetuate violence.’” He failed to disclose, however, that the Finance Committee never found ISNA guilty of such allegations, and that he is referring to a Dec. 22, 2003 letter sent by the committee chairman and ranking member asking the IRS to investigate Muslim charities for possible links to terrorist financing. Eighteen months have elapsed since the investigation’s Feb. 20, 2004 deadline, with no action, or even a Finance Committee hearing conducted on the matter.

Half-Truths and Omissions

Mowbray, also resorting to half-truths, quotes taken out of context, and innuendo, cited a Freedom House study that found Saudi publications in 12 mosques—of 3,500 throughout the country—that made bigoted references to followers of other religions. Mowbray omits the fact that Freedom House, responding to complaints by American Muslim leaders of the misleading nature of the report title, stressed that its study was intended to uncover the bigotry of the Saudi publications, and was never intended to implicate U.S. mosques. Freedom House even went a step further and invited two ISNA leaders to a meeting for consultation on its report and to explore the question of religious extremism.

These shameless attempts by Gaffney, Mowbray and Pipes to malign mainstream Muslim organizations and leaders are driven not by rational and objective considerations, but by paranoia, prejudice, and irrational fear of Islam and Muslims. Such irrational and emotional anti-Muslim posturing only serves—as it is intended—to confuse the public and identify the fight on terrorism with the fight on Islam. It thus plays into the hands of those anti-American pundits who thrive on the missteps, and counterproductive actions and postures, urged by Gaffney and his ilk.

Mainstream American Muslims already have taken a principled and firm position against the senseless killings of unarmed and defenseless civilians. But their ability to succeed in drying the swamp of extremism that feeds into terrorist attacks can only succeed if the Jewish and Christian communities confront their own bigots and extremists, and dry the ponds of bigotry in their midst.

It is heartening to realize that most Americans are able to see through the militant pundits’ paranoia and bigotry—as Karen Hughes has amply demonstrated by ignoring the false alarm set off on the eve of her meeting with Muslim leaders during the ISNA convention.

Dr. Louay M. Safi is the executive director of ISNA Leadership Development Center, an Indiana-based organization dedicated to enhancing leadership awareness and skills among American Muslim leaders, and a founding board member of the Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy. He writes and lectures on issues relating to Islam, American Muslims, democracy, human rights, leadership, and world peace. His commentaries are available at his Blog: <http://blog.lsinsight.org>.