Posted on 11/01/2006 7:32:03 PM PST by Nicholas Conradin
(Ottawa, Canada – Oct 31, 2006) The Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CAN) is asking all people of conscience to write to Maclean’s Magazine.
In the October 23rd issue of Maclean’s, a provocative and Islamophobic article by Mark Steyn was printed entitled, “The future belongs to Islam.” The article’s fear mongering tone focuses on the influx of Muslim immigrants into Europe and North America through an analysis that parallels Samuel Hungtion’s [sic] infamous book, “The Clash of Civilizations.”
An excerpt from the article reads:
“Age + Welfare = Disaster for you; Youth + Will = Disaster for whoever gets in your way… Islam has Youth and will, Europe has age and welfare.”
In criticising the Maclean’s article, Derrick O’Keefe writes, “Seen within the “War on Terror”... Steyn’s article must be understood as a deliberate, hateful and provocative act.”
ACTION REQUESTED
1. Write a 150 word letter to Maclean’s Magazine for print.
2. Or submit a two to three paragraph letter to the Maclean’s editorial board.
When writing it is critical to keep Maclean’s readership in mind and maintain a style that is calm and convincing, but firm.
TALKING POINTS
1. The article entitled “The Future belongs to Islam” is inflammatory and offensive. It does little to build bridges, it simply divides people.
2. It would be appreciated if such provocative articles are not given space and if Maclean’s maintains a balanced editorial policy.
3. Maclean’s in the past was an authoritative and respectable voice for Canadians; however, today’s Maclean’s is clearly breaking away from this tradition.
4. If Maclean’s Magazine continues to publish such articles, I will consider not renewing my subscription.
WRITE MACLEAN'S AT:
E-mail: letters@macleans.ca , adsales@macleans.ca c.c. canada@cair-net.org
Fax: 416.764.1332
Maclean's Letters One Mount Pleasant Road 11th floor Toronto, ON M4Y 2Y5
When submitting letters for publication Maclean’s requests that an author’s name, address and daytime phone number be supplied for verification purposes.
To read the Maclean’s article visit: www.macleans.ca/culture/books/article.jsp?content=20061023_134898_134898
To read Derrick O’Keefe’s critique please visit: www.sevenoaksmag.com/commentary/macleans.html
This is very helpful. It's certainly very considerate of CAIR to make McLean's contact information available. I believe that, just as CAIR suggests, I'm going to contact McLean's and offer them some comments. Only my comments may not precisely mirror CAIR's suggested talking points, if you know what I mean and I think you do.
CAIR-CAN bite me.
I know! I know! :)
When an invited speaker at a C.A.I.R. rally called Jews "descendants of the apes," was that a good example of bridge building?
2. It would be appreciated if such provocative articles are not given space and if Maclean’s maintains a balanced editorial policy.
Is the following statement by C.A.I.R.'s Chairman Omar Ahmad "provocative?"
"Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominatn. The Koran ... should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on earth."
3. Maclean’s in the past was an authoritative and respectable voice for Canadians; however, today’s Maclean’s is clearly breaking away from this tradition.
When five C.A.I.R. staffers and board members, including their communications specialist Ismail Royer, were arrested, convicted and deported for terrorist related activities, were they considered a "respectable voice for" American Islamists?
4. If Maclean’s Magazine continues to publish such articles, I will consider not renewing my subscription.
If C.A.I.R. continues to claim it is "America's largest civil rights group," I will consider filing suit on behalf of the NAACP.
Don't you hate when people just sell fish willy-nilly on the street, with fish heads and fish blood and fish eggs drizzling everywhere, and it gets stuck on your shoe and then the smell follows you around all d....
Oh, the topic was "Fear Mongering"?
NEVER MIND!
Macleans sounds like my kind of magazine. Wonder if they take subscriptions from their southern neighbors?
MacLeans was until very recently a left-leaning magazine in Canada, sort of like the Time magazine, only more so. And now things are a little different as Mark Steyn writes columns for it but other columnists would be to the left of Dennis Kununich.
http://www.islamonline.net/English/News/2006-11/01/02.shtml
"Mobilized US Muslims Decisive Voting Block"
By Sahar Kassaimah, IOL Correspondent
"The Muslim vote must be decided on from the issues and the candidates' subsequent position," Bray told IOL.
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "WASHINGTON — With over two million registered voters and growing political awareness, experts believe American Muslims could affect the outcome of the upcoming mid-term elections, especially in heavily Muslim-populated districts.
"There are several states in which, given the size of the Muslim population and closeness of the political race, that large Muslim voter turnouts could make a difference," Mahdi Bray, the Executive Director of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation (MAS), told IslamOnline.net.
"Some of those states are Virginia, New Jersey, Maryland, Texas, Florida, Arizona, California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Illinois, and Minnesota," he said.
"Additionally, if you factor in voter apathy among many non-Muslim Americans, large Muslim voter turnout becomes even more significant," asserted Bray.
Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) at Los Angeles, agrees.
"In certain portions of the country, where American Muslims are concentrated such as Dearborn, Michigan, they can make a difference and change the tide of politics in their favor," he told IOL.
American Muslims, estimated at between five and seven millions, have already set up voter registration booths in mosques across the country to encourage fellow Muslim voters to sign up for the mid-term elections.
They have also established a website to enable online registrations. There are over two million registered Muslim voters in the United States.
All 435 House seats, 34 of 100 Senate seats and 36 governorships are up for grasp in the November elections.
Politically Active
American Muslims have increased their effective participation in political and social activities since the 9/11 attacks."
ARTICLE SNIPPET: ""The latest poll commissioned by CAIR is a good example and goes to show that Muslim Americans and Muslim political parties are issue-oriented instead of being party-oriented," Ayloush said."
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