Muslim call to prayer to be broadcast in Mich town

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

I figured Islam-Online.net doesn't get much representation here, so I pimped them.

 

Story.

 

DETROIT, April 23 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Muslims in the Michigan town of Hamtramck could hear the five daily calls to prayer over loudspeakers now that the City Council has unanimously given a preliminary approval.

 

The council will hold a final hearing on the matter next week, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

 

"There's nothing preventing (the mosque) from doing it now," Council president Karen Majewski said.

 

"What this does is allow us to regulate it in 30 days."

 

If it gets a final green light, the al-Ishah mosque will be authorized to broadcast the prayer calls between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. -- something many mosques in neighboring Detroit already do.

 

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, a once Polish enclave in the Midwestern state of Michigan, has recently welcomed waves of immigrants from Bosnia, Pakistan, Yemen and Bangladesh.

 

Muslims account for about one third of the city's population, while Polish-Americans make up about a quarter of the city's strength.

 

They have been a huge boost to the city's economy, opening businesses and driving up property prices by buying homes.

 

Opposition

 

But the decision drew opposition among some local residents and the social and cultural tensions of this multi-ethnic city of 23,000 began to show at the council meeting.

 

"A U.S. citizen should not be subjected to the tenets of someone else's religion," said Bob Golen, a Hamtramck native.

 

Abdul Alguzali, a Hamtramck businessman, countered that he and other Muslims "are citizens of this country, too."

 

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

 

However, Mary Urbanski, a lifelong resident, said the U.S. was founded on Judeo-Christian principles and that church "bells are music."

 

Council member Shahab Ahmed, a Bangladeshi, and the first Muslim elected to the body, said the council has strived to deal with it as a strictly civic matter.

 

"It's not a religious issue."

 

"The al-Islah mosque wasn't even required by law to approach us for permission. The mosque leaders were just trying to be good neighbors," he maintained.

 

A Muslim physician walked out of the hearing shaking his head and said, "I never knew they hated us so much."

 

Another Muslim, Gabriel Alaziz, said he was "blown away by the level of intolerance I see here."

 

‘Perception Problem’

 

"I think that a lot of people realise that the immigrants saved our community" Hamtramck Mayor Tom Jankowski, "but there's a perception problem."

 

He said the proposal has elicited a surprisingly visceral reaction from some in the community.

 

"It goes much deeper than I expected," Jankowski said. "Within one week this has ripped apart the community".

 

He explained that the "9/11 didn't do much good for the Muslims."

 

Nearly 57 percent of American Muslims polled  by an Islamic organization in the U.S., say they have experienced bias or discrimination since the deadly 9/11 attacks and 87 percent say they know of a fellow Muslim who experienced discrimination.

 

Jankowski suggested the hostility evinced by some of the city's older residents is part of an anti-Muslim sentiment.

 

The controversy came after a number of arson attacks on Muslim businesses in San Antonio, Texas , racist graffiti at a Lubbock, Texas, mosque and an assault on a Muslim woman in Florida.

 

And what in the blue hell has the last paragraph got to do with ANY of the story?

 

Um, Jankowski, I think the hostility your group is experiencing by the city's older residents is because they don't want to hear, in Arabic, "ALLAH IS DA BOMB" FIVE TIMES A DAY! Unless churches hide some sort of message in their bell-ringing that says "Jesus is the shiznit," this comparison is invalid.

 

And oddly enough, in my search of articles to post in this thread, not once did I see any mention of the ACLU or some other fascist "Separation of Church and State" hippie group fighting this plan. Guess they're too busy looking to fire school teachers that have the nerve to wear a necklace featuring a cross on it to class...

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

"A U.S. citizen should not be subjected to the tenets of someone else's religion," said Bob Golen, a Hamtramck native.

 

*guffaws*

 

if a Muslim in America says that he gets shat on.

 

I don't have a problem with though 6 am is a little early for me. 8-8 sounds better.

 

Church bells, summons to prayer...same diff to me. Everyone should just try and get along. I don't see the big deal in letting someone call their flock to prayer, especially since they didn't even need to ask for permission to do so.

 

It sounds like the Muslims are being rational and polite so far.

[Guest cosbywasmurdered]

But CWM...the Muslims are our enemies. First they want the right to broadcast religious messages over loudspeakers, next they'll be carrying bombs in their turbans so they can blow up the organ players at sporting events because they don't like having to stand for the American anthem.

 

The Muslims can't be trusted. Especially those middle class ones that have been the victims of hate crime...we all know they were asking for it, what with being of the same religon of those guys who caused 9/11...along with a billion other folks.

[Guest MikeSC]

"A U.S. citizen should not be subjected to the tenets of someone else's religion," said Bob Golen, a Hamtramck native.

 

*guffaws*

 

if a Muslim in America says that he gets shat on.

 

I don't have a problem with though 6 am is a little early for me. 8-8 sounds better.

 

Church bells, summons to prayer...same diff to me. Everyone should just try and get along. I don't see the big deal in letting someone call their flock to prayer, especially since they didn't even need to ask for permission to do so.

 

It sounds like the Muslims are being rational and polite so far.

Yeah, because God knows Christians NEVER get shat on here. Never. Uh uh. Doesn't EVER happen.

 

Church bells have no religious undertone. Bells are rang for NUMEROUS reasons. The call for prayer isn't even remotely musical.

 

You're a Muslim --- if you don't know when to pray, it's YOUR OWN FAULT.

 

I sure as heck wouldn't want to hear a call for prayer 5 times a friggin' day. It would be more than mildly irritating.

 

BTW, nice of that article to throw away and attempts at objective reporting there.

-=Mike

...Why not NO friggin' noise? Somehow, here in the Bible Belt, we don't have church bells ringing on Sunday. Just silence everything

[Firestarter 0]

[Hamtramck Mayor Tom Jankowski] explained that the "9/11 didn't do much good for the Muslims."

Thanks for that revelation, Mayor. As I recall, it didn't do much good for approximately 3000 Americans, either.

[Guest Vitamin X]

It wasn't APPROXIMATELY 3000 Americans....

[NoCalMike 0]

To this muslim call to prayer thing: HELL NO.

[Guest HungryJack]

Why?

 

Are they not allowed to practice their religion freely, as Christians do??

 

 

I fail to see a problem with this. As the article states, many mosques in Detroit practice this already, and i've not heard complaints here nor anywhere else.

 

 

Can you elaborate as to why you wouldn't wanna see this happen, or are you just being a racist prick?

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Can you elaborate as to why you wouldn't wanna see this happen, or are you just being a racist prick?

Because the call to Muslim prayer pretty much says, in Arabic, "Allah is the one true God, etc." (If someone can find a Web site that post the saying, more power to you.)

 

I would have no problem with some sort of sound -- church bells perhaps? -- alerting Muslims that it is time to pray, but this is just too much.

 

Wow, never would have seen the day where NoCal would be called a RACIST. Join the club...

 

[Slayer 0]

Wow, never would have seen the day where NoCal would be called a RACIST. Join the club...

 

One of us, one of us

 

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

I think this is a more accurate image of our headgear...

 

[NoCalMike 0]

Why?

 

Are they not allowed to practice their religion freely, as Christians do??

 

 

I fail to see a problem with this. As the article states, many mosques in Detroit practice this already, and i've not heard complaints here nor anywhere else.

 

 

Can you elaborate as to why you wouldn't wanna see this happen, or are you just being a racist prick?

Well for one, I shouldn't have to hear it in a public place over loudspeakers. I am not a racist, I don't hate muslims or arab people. Religion however as a whole, well I would pretty much like to see it eradicated. That includes Christianity. I am not biased or unfair to SOME religions, I am not really a fan of any of them.

[NoCalMike 0]

Wow, never would have seen the day where NoCal would be called a RACIST. Join the club...

 

LOL, yeah. I guess that is what happens when people who don't frequent the CE folder, decide to chime in for a thread or two at some random time. Hilarious.

 

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

BTW: If you're a RACIST, isn't the "prick" already implied? I mean, I've never heard of a "racist nice guy..."

[Guest MikeSC]

BTW: If you're a RACIST, isn't the "prick" already implied? I mean, I've never heard of a "racist nice guy..."

"Yeah, he's a racist --- but he's a damned nice guy, to boot!"

-=Mike

...Redundancy up there with "totalitarian, fascist regime"

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

Can you elaborate as to why you wouldn't wanna see this happen, or are you just being a racist prick?

Because the call to Muslim prayer pretty much says, in Arabic, "Allah is the one true God, etc." (If someone can find a Web site that post the saying, more power to you.)

 

In Arabic. How many people that aren't Muslim are going to understand that? it's not like people will instantly be converted by hearing the message.

[Guest MikeSC]

Can you elaborate as to why you wouldn't wanna see this happen, or are you just being a racist prick?

Because the call to Muslim prayer pretty much says, in Arabic, "Allah is the one true God, etc." (If someone can find a Web site that post the saying, more power to you.)

 

In Arabic. How many people that aren't Muslim are going to understand that? it's not like people will instantly be converted by hearing the message.

Irrelevant, to be honest. Something isn't legal because most people don't speak the language.

-=Mike

[Guest Anglesault]

Anyone notice that a lot of these screaming, yelling "SEPARATE CHURCH AND STATE~!" people only seem to get their panties in a bunch when said religion is some form of Christianity, or in some cases Judaism?

 

Islam seems to get more free passes than any other religion from these people.

[Guest MikeSC]

Anyone notice that a lot of these screaming, yelling "SEPARATE CHURCH AND STATE~!" people only seem to get their panties in a bunch when said religion is some form of Christianity, or in some cases Judaism?

 

Islam seems to get more free passes than any other religion from these people.

Well, they've had it so hard.

 

Heck, the Holocaust ain't NOTHING compared to the hell of indignation and suspicion that Muslims face in America today.

-=Mike

...And God knows their religious leaders don't do A THING to fan the flames

[Hogan Made Wrestling 0]

Anyone notice that a lot of these screaming, yelling "SEPARATE CHURCH AND STATE~!" people only seem to get their panties in a bunch when said religion is some form of Christianity, or in some cases Judaism?

 

Islam seems to get more free passes than any other religion from these people.

Of course, there are just many many people who take the converse approach: Christian stuff like the Ten Commandments momunent is A-OK, while stuff like this call to prayer is not.

 

Personally I disagree with it all, keep the religion inside the churches/synegogues/mosques. I don't want to hear a call to prayer on the airwaves any more than I want to have some guy telling me "Jesus loves you - go to church" while I am waiting for the bus, which happen just this week.

[NoCalMike 0]

I'll just put it like this, I was for the removal for the 10 commandments(even though personally, I wouldn't put any real energy into it cause quite frankly I almost didn't even care). And I am also against this public message announcement remind folks when to pray to Mecca.

[Markme123 0]

How about we ban the call to prayer and the church bells? To me they are both annoying. Hey I'm Catholic and religious but I don't need some unwanted noise coming from across the street early in the morning while I'm trying to sleep. Fuck that.

 

Legally they probably could do it can't they? The Church does it, why can't they? I'm sure someone is going to sue, though, maybe arguing noise polution or something else...

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Can you elaborate as to why you wouldn't wanna see this happen, or are you just being a racist prick?

Because the call to Muslim prayer pretty much says, in Arabic, "Allah is the one true God, etc." (If someone can find a Web site that post the saying, more power to you.)

 

In Arabic. How many people that aren't Muslim are going to understand that? it's not like people will instantly be converted by hearing the message.

So I guess it would be OK to put that goofy 10 Commandment statue up if the writing was in another language. After all, nobody would be able to understand it.

 

Oh, and as a kid, when my neighborhood's church bells did their thing at around 8 p.m., that was when I had to be home. Ah memories...

[PLAGIARISM! 0]

Yeah, and ban headscarves in schools, too. This is really depressing, guys. But then of course, 'bells are music'.

[Guest hunger4unger]

Religion causes more problems then I dont know what. It also shouldn't be pushed into other people's faces so this call to prayer should either a) not be allowed or b) be allowed and non muslims can just ignore it. The real problem I think some people have with this call to prayer is that they are ignorant towards muslims and their religion and think that they are all terrorists.

[Guest MikeSC]

Religion causes more problems then I dont know what. It also shouldn't be pushed into other people's faces so this call to prayer should either a) not be allowed or b) be allowed and non muslims can just ignore it. The real problem I think some people have with this call to prayer is that they are ignorant towards muslims and their religion and think that they are all terrorists.

Yeah, THAT is the problem.

-=Mike

[Skywarp! 0]

Hey, I agree that spoken promotion of the religion shouldn't be forced on the populace, but if it gets striken down for that reason, then there's really no argument left for "under God" in the Pledge.

[Guest MikeSC]

Hey, I agree that spoken promotion of the religion shouldn't be forced on the populace, but if it gets striken down for that reason, then there's really no argument left for "under God" in the Pledge.

One last time, we have seperation of church and state --- not a complete lack of religion officially.

-=Mike

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

"under God" could be Allah, or Budda, or the Great Popcorn Ball, as my 10th and 11th grade social studies teacher used to call God while in the classroom...

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

I've got no problem with this, but then again I don't live next door to the loudspeaker that plays shouting in arabic. I'd interrupt their services with satanic music though, so it'd all end fair.