Iowa Muslim Day at Capitol to Combat Islamophobia
State Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, who is a Muslim imam or prayer leader, said the event is intended to combat Islamophobia.
Gov. Terry Branstad has had friendly relations with Muslims for many years and has annually signed an Iowa Muslim Day proclamation. But this is only the second year Muslims have held a public event at the Statehouse.
"To educate people about the Islamic religion we need to be visible. That is our job and our duty to do that," Abdul-Samad said. "It is our job even to talk about terrorism. We have to denounce it when we see it. We have to let people know that this is not something that we promote."
The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Capitol Rotunda with representatives from the Council on American-Islamic Relations of Iowa, other Islamic organizations and Muslim-owned businesses, desmoinesregister website reported.
Branstad's proclamation, which the governor signed last week, designates Wednesday as "Muslim Recognition Day" in Iowa. The document says Iowa recognizes the many individuals and families of Muslim faith who make this state their home and willingly share their rich tradition and culture with other Iowans.
In a related matter, Miriam Amer, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations of Iowa, said her organization welcomes the failure of House File 135 in the Iowa House. The bill, which was co-sponsored by 13 Republican legislators, would have protected Iowa residents from the application of foreign laws when it would have violated their constitutional rights.
The Iowa House bill was one of many so-called "foreign law" bills introduced in state legislatures nationwide in a campaign to demonize Islam and marginalize American Muslims, according to the council.
"We recognize and appreciate the hard work, partnership and leadership of those dedicated lawmakers who kept this unconstitutional and discriminatory bill from passing," Amer said. "Defenders of religious freedom fought a tough battle against attempts to deny Muslims and other minorities their constitutional rights."
She said House File 135 is was the third such bill or proposed amendment that would have either outlawed the practice of Islam in Iowa, or affected non-Christian foreign marriages, divorces, wills, inheritance and adoptions.
Amer said supporters of these laws fail to acknowledge that American courts are already required to adhere to U.S. law. Anti-foreign law legislation infringes on the constitutionally protected right to choose Islamic marriage contracts, implement Islamic wills or to be buried according to one's religious beliefs. she said. These laws could also negatively impact the validation of international adoptions and foreign marriages and may bar any state court from considering of Catholic Canon law and Jewish Halacha law, which are also considered by many courts to be a type of foreign law, she said.
