“The hat makes a joke of my religion and draws even more attention to me,” Boudlal said in a news article. “It’s unacceptable. They don’t want me to look Muslim,” she stated. “They just don’t want the head covering to look like a hijab.” Boudlal has filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Disney’s actions reflect the reality that many employers do not respect the religious freedoms of Muslims, as well as South Asians who practice other faiths. Sikhs and Hindus face discrimination and employers often fail to accommodate their requests to engage in religious practices or wear religious clothing.

In the context of rising xenophobic sentiment and rhetoric, employers, particularly high profile ones like Disney, need to stand up and practice tolerance. No doubt many of Disney’s customers and fans, whether they be adherents to Islam or other faiths, would be outraged by this behavior.

“The Constitution tells me I can be Muslim, and I can wear the head scarf,” Boudlal says. “Who is Disney to tell me I cannot?”

SAALT strongly supports the passage of the Workplace Religious Freedom Act, which would protect the religious rights of employees by requiring employers to recognize religious clothing and provide accommodations unless it would be significantly expensive or difficult to do so. Find out more information here.

In the last few weeks, we have seen some serious acts of hatred toward Muslims in America. Can we fairly draw a connection between these recent incidents and the controversy over the Muslim community center in lower Manhattan?

Beginning last week, individuals vandalized the Madera Islamic Center in California. A brick was thrown at the mosque’s window and signs were left on the property, which read, “No temple for the God of terrorism at Ground Zero” and ““Wake up America, the enemy is here.”

On August 24th, Ahmed Sharif, a Bangladeshi-American cab driver who has lived in the United States for 25 years, was brutally stabbed several times by a passenger who asked if he was Muslim. The suspect is being charged with attempted murder, as a hate crime. Watch Mr. Sharif explain what happened to him.

In light of these events, many Muslims are feeling the same sense of fear they experienced in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. Almost nine years after that tragic day and the acts of hate experienced by Muslims, Sikhs, and South Asians afterwards, it seems that we still have a long way to go in combating Islamophobia and racism.

Even if we cannot definitively say that these acts are a direct result of anti-Muslim rhetoric in the media, we do know that the use of racist and xenophobic speech by political figures and others does not help combat hate crimes. This type of speech has serious consequences. We hope these recent events will cause public figures to stop using speech that fuels hate and Islamophobic sentiment. Instead, we urge public figures to use their platforms and speak out against violence and hatred.

As members of the South Asian community, this issue affects us all. Perpetrators of hate crimes do not distinguish between different religions and nationalities within our community. To them, for the most part, we look the same and thus, their hatred is targeted at all of us.

Check out some information on the community impact of hate crimes as well as information and resources available to community members who are victims of hate crimes.

The following piece is by Sahar Aziz and originally appeared on the American Constitution Society’s blog.

Turning Our Back on Religious Freedom Hurts All Americans

The political backlash and opportunism surrounding President Obama’s defense of Muslims’ First Amendment rights jeopardizes religious freedom for all Americans.

On August 13, 2010, the White House sponsored the annual Iftar, a tradition started by President Clinton in 1996, commemorating the month of Ramadan. Diplomats, members of Congress, and community leaders from diverse backgrounds celebrated America’s venerable support for religious diversity and freedom.

At the dinner President Obama accurately summarized the Founders’ intent to preserve religious freedom in America, for native-born and immigrant alike. He commendably stated, “As a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country. And that includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in Lower Manhattan.”

Republicans were quick to criticize President Obama for “endorsing” of what has misleadingly come to be known as the “Ground Zero Mosque.” Facing a tough reelection, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid broke with Obama, joining those who call for the mosque to be built somewhere else. Leading critics claim that they aren’t opposed to building the community center and mosque per se, but rather its location. But their claim is belied by growing protests against mosques in cities across the country, not to mention escalating religious bigotry on the internet and a scheduled Koran burning on September 11. Statements from major figures like Newt Gingrich comparing supporters of the community center to Nazis make it clear that, in fact, all Muslims are being falsely tarred with the brush of extremism.

Some cite polls indicating that the majority of Americans oppose the project, but we should ask ourselves whether opinion polls should be our compass when it comes to the Bill of Rights and the exercise of religious freedom in America? Indeed, such rights were promulgated by the Founding Fathers precisely to shield minority faiths from persecution by those in the majority. In our history we have nevertheless seen the systematic persecution of Catholics, Jews, Mormons and Quakers. But in each case, the persecution was ultimately repudiated and support for the Constitution restored. That elected officials have forgotten this fundamental American principle is baffling given many of their constituents self-identify as staunch defenders of religious freedom.

This paradox illustrates two important lessons.

First, the fundamental right to religious freedom rings hollow for all if it is only applied selectively. There is nothing in the charter of the Cordoba Center that can be cited as an offense to the memory of the thousands of Americans, including Muslims, murdered on September 11, 2001. And if opinion polling is sufficient to stop an otherwise lawful plan to build a community center and house of worship for Muslims, we are setting a dangerous precedent. By the same logic, predominantly Christian communities might similarly be allowed to oppose the building of a synagogue or temple.

Second, the integrity of our Constitution depends on a meaningful enforcement of the Bill of Rights. When our founding principles are not put in practice, the rule of law is systemically undermined and our Constitution becomes nothing more than a dated piece of paper.

Critics like Gingrich like to suggest that only when Saudi Arabia allows a church or a synagogue to be built in Mecca should we allow the Community Center to be built. But do we really want to cede leadership on religious pluralism, a hallmark of American freedom, to Saudi Arabia or other Mideast states?

Take for instance the issue of religious freedom in Egypt. Article 40 of the Egyptian Constitution states, “All citizens are equal before the law. They have equal public rights and duties without discrimination between them due to race, ethnic origin, language, religion, or creed.” Yet the 2009 U.S. State Department human rights report highlights the difficulties Christians face in building new churches and renovating existing ones, due in large part to political opposition by a segment of the Muslim majority population. And in Saudi Arabia the state dictates the practice of religion.

The vitriol and specious arguments being made against building the Cordoba Center should serve as a wake-up call. Once we start down the slippery slope of compromising religious liberty to accommodate majority opinion or the winds of political opportunism, we proceed at our own peril. Pressuring minority faiths to opt out of their rights under the U.S. Constitution can render those rights meaningless for all.

The freedom to practice one’s religion is a founding principle of our nation and is embedded in the First Amendment. “And that has been upheld ever since,” noted President Obama. Let this not be the day when we focus more on its inscription than its enforcement.

By Sahar Aziz. Ms. Aziz is the author of Sticks and Stones, Words That Hurt: Entrenched Stereotypes Eight Years After 9/11 published in the New York City Law Review. She is a Legal Fellow at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding and serves as counsel to the Bill of Rights Defense Committee.

The media frenzy around the so-called “Ground Zero Mosque” is inescapable. Although Muslims have long gathered to worship in other areas of lower Manhattan and the local zoning board in New York City has approved the construction, a debate about the community center, called Park51, has dominated public discourse for the past several weeks.

This debate has proven that Islamophobia is alive and well almost nine years after September 11th. Today, SAALT issued a statement denouncing this rise in xenophobic and racist sentiment.

Those opposing Park51 claim that they do not deny the legal right of the developers to build the center, but rather question their intentions and allege they lack sensitivity to those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. In effect, such suspicions do refute the legal right of Muslims to freely practice their faith. The clear message behind the negative statements is that Islam and its adherents are equated with violence and terror.

Contrary to the allegations of many opposers, the intention of those who will gather at Park51 is to create community, celebrate culture, and peacefully practice their faith. Park51 will be a tribute to tolerance, an ideal that we as a nation seem to have forgotten is our foundation.

Are you sick of hearing political candidates and elected officials trying to score cheap political points by making inflammatory and xenophobic remarks about the so-called “Ground Zero Mosque”? Take action by sending a message to these officials that intolerance is not what this country stands for. Also, contact major media outlets and urge them to engage in responsible and accurate reporting on this topic.

The national debate has reaffirmed the importance of SAALT’s work addressing xenophobia, Islamophobia, and racism in the wake of 9/11.  Join us by making your voice heard and sending a strong message that the freedom to practice religion freely is not up for debate.

Gomes considers himself American, as he has never been back to visit India since coming to this country. Gomes excelled in school and planned to attend college this fall. However, his deportation, which had been set for August 13 of this year, prevented Gomes from accepting any of his many offers of acceptance to college.

ICE has been deporting a record number of undocumented immigrants under the Obama administration. According to a Washington Post article, this fiscal year, 400,000 people will be deported, a 25 percent increase from 2007. Although 51 percent of these deportees are reported by ICE to have been convicted of crimes aside from immigration violations, many, like Gomes, are otherwise law-abiding citizens.

Contrary to popular perception, there is a sizeable number of undocumented South Asians in the United States. In fact, like Gomes, many are children who know no other place as home. The fact that ICE’s decision to defer Gomes’ deportation was extremely unusual highlights the importance of immigration reform as it pertains to these youth. ICE deferred deportations for only 408 pending cases in 2009, whereas there were a total of 387,790 deportations.

To address this issue, a bipartisan bill called the DREAM Act has been introduced in Congress. If this bill were to become law, about 825,000 people who were brought to the U.S. as children and completed high school here would be eligible to obtain legal status through a 6-year long conditional path to citizenship requiring completion of college and two years of military service.

Gomes’ success story is an outlier among cases of youth in the same position. He has decided to try and enroll in college this fall and will no doubt be successful in his efforts. However, his case with the Department of Homeland Security will be reviewed again in two years. If the DREAM Act does not pass, Gomes and others like him will be subject to deportation, regardless of the fact that their only home is in the United States. Gomes’ story is like that of so many South Asians in America, underscoring the need for South Asian community members to call for just and humane immigration reform that includes legalization and the DREAM Act.

Support the passage of the DREAM Act by visiting this website and take action by sending messages to your Senators and President Obama urging them to support just and humane immigration reform.

During the interview, Verma went over some of the requirements, including:

· establish continuous physical presence in the United States for the requisite period,

· maintain legal permanent resident status for either 3 or 5 years,

· show good moral character.

For more information about the requirements and the process for naturalization, see SAALT’s citizenship guide. In addition to English, the guide is available in Bangla, Hindi, and Urdu.

2) Help the flood victims of Pakistan

3) Chicago gets its own South Asian Film Festival

4) Pushing to pass the DREAM Act

5) “Next Food Network Star” Aarti Sequeira discusses career plans

2) Indian American Raj Goyle wins primary for the November Congressional elections in Kansas.

3) South Asians more visible in American politics.

4) Ranji Nagaswami, an Indian American finance expert, has become New York’s first ever chief investment adviser.

5) Desi multinationals broaden horizons and extend their reach beyond the boundaries of South Asia.

Bangladeshi American candidate inspires community

Pakistani American youth learn activism

South Asian cooking competition in the UK

Gay marriage ban struck down in California!

2) Pakistan to think about refraining from increasing main interest rate

3) Arusha Ismailis reunite for the first time after 50 years

4) Zee TV signs historical agreement with The Nielsen Company to monitor its television ratings and trends in top U.S. markets.

5) Maruti-Suzuki to advance expansion plans