Posted on 08/03/2004 1:53:41 PM PDT by BluegrassScholar
MEMPHIS (AP) -- Iraqis visiting on a civil rights tour were barred from city hall after the city council chairman said it was too dangerous to let them in.
The seven Iraqi civic and community leaders are in the midst of a three-week American tour, sponsored by the State Department to learn more about the process of government. The trip also includes stops in Washington, Los Angeles and Chicago.
The Iraqis were scheduled to meet with a city council member, but Joe Brown, the council chair, said he feared the group was dangerous.
"We don't know exactly what's going on. Who knows about the delegation, and has the FBI been informed?" Brown said. "We must secure and protect all the employees in that building."
Elisabeth Silverman, the group's host and head of the Memphis Council for International Visitors, said Brown told her he would "evacuate the building and bring in the bomb squads" if the group entered.
"They are in charge of setting up processes in their country. They have to educate themselves about how it works in this country," Silverman said.
Silverman did not immediately respond to a message Tuesday seeking comment, and it was not clear whether the group had run into trouble elsewhere on their tour.
But the delegates seemed in good spirits Monday, after they were able meet with Carol Chumney, the city council member, elsewhere. Shahla Waliy, a 31-year-old native of Baghdad, said she was intrigued by the city's civil rights history.
"I heard there was a kind of majority-minority conflict in Memphis, especially in history," she said. "We have these smaller provinces, and we have majority-minority conflicts in these places."
These people were obviously here through the US government sponsored exchange program - i'm sure President Bush will be quite pissed off.
Who were they? The mayor of Fallujah and the sheriff of Anbar?
If the trip is "sponsored by the State Department", you'd think someone would have called ahead and explained........ sheeeesh
Thats brilliant. Our state department brings them here to teach them about how our govt. works and some moron decides to play racist with them.
What a buncha maroons.
Hmmm. Maybe they should have traveled on Syrian passports, carried musical instruments and had expired visas. We sure don't profile people like that.
i bet that mr. brown, who was part of the Blacks for Clark group during the nominations for RAT contestant for prez, would be mighty upset if some cracker had made the same comment about some visitors from a farm, or the south side of chicago. /sarcasm for RATS is never off
the guy asked for credentials. whats wrong with that?
This is so weird, but typical for my hometown.
This is so weird, but typical for my hometown.
I normally would have thought the same thing ... but it's Memphis and knowing who controls the city government I was suspicious that it was not just a security issue.
Check out the guy's bio and you will see he is not worthy of backup or support for what he did.
http://www.cityofmemphis.org/navigateCC.asp?sec=citycouncil&opt=bio_jbrown
Here's a bio of Joe Brown:
Redneck alert!
Well, I still like Beale(sp) Street.
That would call for another "layer of government".
Wrong Joe Brown. The guy that supported Clark was a Judge. This guy isn't. He's a City Councilman.
To look at him, I doubt Mr. Brown's neck has ever been red.
I love Memphis! My old stomping ground & home town! :-)
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