Hamtramck, Mich., Split Over Muslim Chant

1010 WINS New York ^ | April 19, 2004 | SARAH KARUSH, Associated Press Writer

[LurkedLongEnough]

HAMTRAMCK, Mich. (AP) -- Long known for pierogi and polka, this bustling city is now debating whether to add an amplified Arabic chant to the local sights and sounds.

In a sign of the deep changes in this once predominantly Polish town, City Council is expected Tuesday to pass a noise ordinance amendment that would permit mosques to issue the traditional Islamic call to prayer over loudspeakers.

But some longtime residents are resisting what they consider an affront to non-Muslims.

Hamtramck, a city of 23,000 completely surrounded by Detroit, has an old-fashioned, small-town feel, with mom-and-pop stores and American flags adorning many of the tightly packed houses. Polish groceries and restaurants abound, and if you stop someone to ask for directions, there is a good chance that person speaks only Polish.

But in recent years, the city has become much more diverse. Stores selling saris and halal meat have opened, and signs in Bengali, Arabic and Bosnian compete with signs in Polish and English. Only 23 percent of the city's residents specified Polish ancestry in the 2000 census. The town also has a sizable black population - 15 percent.

The relationship between old Hamtramck and new Hamtramck has not been without friction. On Election Day in 1999, members of a residents group questioned would-be voters of Middle Eastern or Asian appearance on their eligibility to vote. In response to complaints of discrimination, the Justice Department sent monitors during local elections in 2001.

Now the request by the Bangladeshi al-Islah mosque for permission to air the Arabic call to prayer via loudspeakers five times a day has again revealed tensions.

City Council president Karen Majewski said she expects the council to unanimously approve the amendment allowing the call to prayer - which was traditionally sung from a minaret but today is generally recorded - despite some protests at a hearing last week.

Joanne Golen, a lifelong Hamtramck resident, said she finds the content of the call to prayer offensive.

"It says Allah is the one and only God. I am Christian. My God is Jesus Christ. That is my only objection - that I have to listen to a God other than the one I believe in praised five times a day," said Golen, 68.

Caroline Zarski, 81, said allowing the call would put Islam above other religions.

But Masud Khan, secretary of the al-Islah mosque, said the purpose of the call, which lasts less than two minutes, is not to proselytize.

"We are not inviting" non-Muslims, he said. "We are calling our Muslim people, reminding them they are obligated to come to pray."

Hamtramck's Bosnian and Yemeni communities each have their own mosques, but neither has raised the issue of the call to prayer.

Many Hamtramck Muslims said the call to prayer is equivalent church bells. And Hamtramck has several churches that ring their bells.

Opponents take issue with that comparison, saying that church bells today are used to mark the time of day and have no religious significance. If the bells are the issue, then turn them off, they say.

The call to prayer can be heard elsewhere in metropolitan Detroit. The city of Dearborn, home to one of the largest communities of Arab Americans, has allowed the call under its general noise ordinance, without a specific amendment.

Hamtramck's amended ordinance would prohibit the call before 6 a.m. or after 10 p.m. That will not always fit in with the Islamic schedule, but it is a compromise the mosque says it is willing to make.

The Michigan chapter of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee urged tolerance over the issue, condemning the "resentment and negativity" expressed during the debate.

City Council member Shahab Ahmed, who is Bangladeshi and attends al-Islah, said he was surprised the call to prayer turned into a big issue. But he said he previously experienced anti-Muslim sentiment in Hamtramck - particularly during his 2001 council bid following the Sept. 11 attacks.

But Majewski, the City Council president, said: "I think the people of Hamtramck are extraordinarily tolerant, just as evidenced by the fact that they choose to live in Hamtramck with people from all over the world."

[Maria S]

"Sautee them with butter and onions and fresh ground pepper and salt. Lots of people like them with sour cream afterwards..."


Good grief! Just open a can of Crisco and slap directly on the thighs and butt...skip the middleman!!

P.S. A wonderful picture of a turbulent ocean on your personal page!!

[Gritty]

I suppose, as laid out in the Koran, this means Hamtramck is now an official part of the House Of Islam, and can never be allowed to be a part of the Infidel World (House Of War) again?

"Peace" now settles upon Hamtramck....

[Psycho_Bunny]

How the f$%# is this even an issue?

The answer is NO.

 

[LurkedLongEnough]

God, you're missing out. If they're fresh (the only way to eat them) you don't need to boil them. Sautee them with butter and onions...

I've never heard of this type of treatment for Muslims. It doesn't sound Constitutional to me.

[Diva Betsy Ross]

it is pronounced HAM-TRAM-ICK.... You are right in your assessment.. I have been there. ;]

[FourPeas]

I think you're on to something.

[henderson field]

A simple case of cultural pollution. If they want to come here and suck the money, the least they can do is convert to Protestantism. If not, they are only provisional Americans. But you knew that.

[henderson field]

Too bad the Polish have gone Politically Correct. If I were to go down the street playing "Amazing Grace" at 200 decibels, you can bet I would be shut down pronto. But since they're muslims and since diversity is so good so us, that's OK.

[sarasmom]

"Reinstitute the draft for EVERYONE living in our great country."

Not hardly!
It was hard enough during the Cold War, and who knows how much harder it was during Gulf War 1,and the little "problem" in the Balkins, to have to deal with liberal idiots who had no clue, and even when given the funds to do so, were unable to rent one.
No, the all volunteer force is the better way to go,and the standards must be slightly adjusted to route out the "I'm just here because I couldnt get a full scholarship" opportunists.
I will never advocate for a military draft, since I still remember quite clearly advising a few select people under my command (off the record of course) that if the balloon went up, and I caught them within five miles of any of my pilots...well, there are a few worse things than a couple of months in federal prison for going AWOL./... ;^)
It is a good thing for troop morale, that the enlistment standards have been raised, and fewer flaming brain-dead idiots have the chance to don a military uniform.
Ignorance can be easily corrected by factual knowledge, but stupidity is incurable.
Lots of people need to grow up and face reality, but I wouldnt want them anywhere near my pilots during a wartime mission, and I highly doubt any Army or Marine ground forces in Afghanistan or Iraq are very interested in "building personal character" in the middle of a war zone.
Just my humble opinion.

[Elsie]

And some folks think ChristiANity is weird!

As-salaam-u-alaikum. My question concerns the practices in Salaat. It consists of numerous subquestions, therefore please read the details below. Jazakallahu-khair.

1) Which is the correct way to count the Tasbeeh on your fingers?

2) When should you read Tasbeeh in Salaat (i.e. after the Fard or at the end)?

3) Do you have to say things in multiples of eleven (e.g. Alhamdullilah 33 times)?

4) I've noticed that people sometimes blow or kiss their fingers and rub their eyes 3 times when they complete the Tasbeeh. Is this bid'at? What should be done?

5) After the Fard salaat, the Imaam reads Fateha. Should he sit facing the Qiblah or turn towards the right when doing so? Should he read Tasbeeh before making fateha (Refer question 2)?

6) Finally, I've heard that it is Sunnah to rub the hands over the face when completing fateha. Should you also kiss your fingers when this action is completed?

Answer 4394

2001-12-15

Rasulullah (SAW) emphasised on reciting Tasbeeh-e-Fatima, Subhanallah,
Alhamdolillah and Allahu-Akbar after each farz salaah. According to one
narration each of the three zikrs should be recited 33times and be completed
by reciting the first kalima. That makes it 100. The zikr may be made
immediately after the farz salaah or after making dua.(Fateha). The numbers
may be counted in any way comfortable to an individual. There is no specific
way to do so. The zikrs may be counted on the fingers or by using tasbeeh
beads or a counter.
Fateha (dua) after farz salaah is encouraged by Rasulullah(SAW). The dua
may be made individulally or in congregation. It is not correct to insist on
any one way.
To wipe the face after making dua is proven in the hadith. To kiss the hands
and eyes is not proven in the hadith.

and Allah Ta'ala Knows Best

Mufti Ebrahim Desai
FATWA DEPT.

[dakine]

making me hungry....

[OXENinFLA]

1ST they just wanted to announce their prayer, next they'll want us RECITE it with them(or die).

[verity]

Mecca, Medina, and Michigan!

[Iron Matron]

If I were to go down the street playing "Amazing Grace" at 200 decibels, you can bet I would be shut down pronto. But since they're muslims and since diversity is so good so us, that's OK.

---

B. S.! WE ARE "THE PEOPLE". I, for one, WILL NOT stand by while special privileges are given to the socialists-dems new "oppressed group of voters".

I am going to stand up for whats RIGHT. We all should. If that takes giving them a bit of their "own medicine" SO BE IT!

[Iron Matron]

Matron: I'm with you!


Thanks. There are more of "us" than liberals understand right now. No matter WHO becomes president, or WHAT unconstitutional laws are passed, WE THE PEOPLE will take care of our FREEDOM and our country!

[bk1000]

If the local people allow this to happen they deserve what they get. Let this be a lesson to all of us.

[LurkedLongEnough]

Not sure about this, but the prayer times differ every day, by astromomical observation as verified by some authority figure, depending on latitude and longitude. Anyone know?

I believe that they also prefer to use compasses to orient toward Mecca for prayers. This even applies when they are on a long plane flight, I've heard they have to get out into the aisle and find Mecca somehow. Laser beam?