http://tabsir.net/?page_id=672

Not since the election of John Kennedy in 1960 has the religious faith of a
U.S. presidential candidate generated so much distortion as the false claims
generated by extremist critics that Senator Barack Obama, the candidate of
the Democratic Party, is a stealth Muslim. This is part of an Islamophobic
hate campaign that fuels prejudice against Americans who practice their

Islamic faith and Muslims worldwide. As scholars of Islam and Muslim
societies and concerned citizens for a fair and honest electoral process, we
unite here to set the record straight.

1. Senator Obama has spoken eloquently and widely of his Christian faith and
shared his personal beliefs in public forms during the campaign on religious
values in American life, including a Compassion Forum on April 13 and a
Saddleback Forum on August 16.

2. Senator Obama carries the same exact name as his father, Barack Hussein
Obama, who was considered to be an agnostic and not a practicing Muslim by
the time he met Senator Obama¹s mother. Senator Obama¹s mother did not
convert to Islam, nor was he raised as a practicing Muslim while growing up
in Indonesia and Hawaii.

3. The claim that Obama would be considered an ³apostate² by Muslims is
false. The vast majority of Muslims accept the Qur¹anic message there there
is no compulsion in Islam (Qur¹an, 2:256). Since Senator Obama was not
raised as a Muslim, he cannot be held accountable for the religious status
of his father.

4. The politically motivated attack on Senator Obama as a radical Muslim is
part of an Islamophobic prejudice in this campaign against American Muslims
as anti-American and unfit to hold public office. During the primary season
several candidates fueled resentment of all Muslims in politicizing the
terrorist attack of 9/11 and recently the anti-Muslim propaganda film
Obsession has been sent as an unsolicited DVD to voters in several states.
It does not matter if a political candidate is Muslim or Jewish or Catholic
or Mormon or Baptist. The President of the United States serves all its
citizens, regardless of their religious beliefs. As a state senator and
United States senator, as well as in his two books, Senator Obama expresses
his belief in the separation of church and state, while accepting the need
for greater dialogue between members of all faiths.

5. Regardless of your final choice for the voting booth on November 4, the
decision should be based on the crucial issues facing the nation and the
individual character of each candidate rather than spurious hate speech that
demonizes the faith of some eight million citizens of the United States and
more than a billion adherents worldwide.

If you would like to add your name in support of this statement either as a
scholar of Islam and religion or simply as a concerned citizen, please email
Daniel Varisco.

Ps. If you would like to sign the statement, please email to Dr. Daniel
Varisco:
Daniel.M.Varisco@HOFSTRA.EDU

Tugrul

The Sociology of Islam and Muslim Societies
http://www.sociologyofislam.org