More on Sharia in Britain

An ex-Muslim makes some good points in a post on the Weekly Standard blog about what it means to have Sharia courts in Britain. (We commented on Britain’s Sharia courts a few days ago, here.) Not any old ex-Muslim — the author is David Gartenstein-Ross, who was born Jewish, became Muslim, worked for a Muslim charity, found it was connected to radical activities, and left Islam for Christianity, all before 9/11.  So he knows whereof he speaks.

He points out that Britain hasn’t adopted Sharia law as its law, which we know, but some reports have sounded as if that’s what’s happened. The Sharia courts are, rather, a form of “alternative dispute resolution” which people use voluntarily. The courts are civil, not criminal, so they won’t be stoning adulterers or cutting off hands. Here are the problems that he sees:

First, there is a question about rights that are due to specific political communities. Are the rights provided to women under British marriage or inheritance law a baseline that they are due, or can they freely contract to be given fewer rights? We have in fact already seen this happen under the sharia tribunals. 

One Sharia court divided a man’s estate among his five children. The two sons got twice as much as the three daughters (apiece) — that’s the law under Sharia. Under British law, of course, sons and daughters get equal portions. This brings him to the second point:

This fact raises a question about how voluntary individuals’ accession to the sharia tribunals will actually be. Are women (for example) going to be forced by their families into marriages under sharia that provide them with fewer rights than they would have under British law? Will they be fully informed of the differences between the two systems when they enter into these contracts? This is a particular concern because Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali has warned of “no-go” areas in some Muslim communities in the UK, a concern that has been echoed by British police officials.

(Bishop Nazir-Ali is a Church of England bishop originally from Pakistan who understands the threat of radical Islam, unlike many, perhaps most, of his fellow clerics.) Gartenstein-Ross continues:

The third question is who will be on the courts interpreting sharia law? Will they be Salafis, Sufis, Shias? Will they have a conservative or liberal interpretation? Will this empower scholars who are contemptuous of British society, or those who encourage integration? The concerns commentators are expressing about a “parallel legal system” for some British Muslims are not baseless.

And we in the United States should be very concerned, because of the many judges here who look to other countries for guidance. At least two members of the U.S. Supreme Court have written about the influence non-U.S. law has on their decisions. And we know that many on the left look to Europe to learn what the right attitude is towards political and cultural matters.

But we’re in better shape than Europe. We have people like Tom Tancredo, who introduced an anti-Sharia bill in Congress. Even though it won’t pass, he has done a great service by bringing up the issue and educating people.  We have websites and blogs like Jihad Watch, FrontPage Magazine, and the countless others — many of which are listed on our Blogroll — reporting on the jihad in America every day.

Public school in Minnesota says ‘NO’ to Somali special accommodation

Well, well, it seems that in addition to Swifts & Co growing a backbone and saying, NO!, to demands by Somali workers in both Greeley, CO and Grand Island, NE, a public school district in Minnesota is also sticking to its guns on the issue of special prayer times.  Hat tip:  Michael.

WILLMAR, MINN. – Willmar public school officials are sticking with their original policy on when to allow Somali students to pray, and Somali families have agreed to follow it.

Some Somali parents in Willmar had complained that the public schools weren’t allowing their Muslim children to step out of class for daily prayer. Some didn’t send their children to school last week in protest.

School officials met with a Somali parent to listen to the concerns but said they’re not changing their policy.

Students can pray during lunchtime and between class periods.

What, did the word go out from on high somewhere that this was the year for Somalis to make Ramadan demands?

If anyone hears that CAIR arrives in Willmar, let us know.

From Greece to Italy, African immigrants stirring the pot in Europe

Update September 23rd:  Italy deploys 500 troops to Naples to insure that calm is restored to this tense region.

 

It’s a beautiful Saturday afternoon and Blulitespecial is keeping me at the computer and busy by sending interesting articles I can’t resist telling you about.

Here is news of a demonstration in Italy where African immigrants marched to protest an alleged mafia hit of six of their fellow immigrants.

ROME — Hundreds of African immigrants took their anger over the alleged mafia killing of six Africans to the streets on Friday, hurling rocks and smashing windows in a town north of Naples.

Several hundred people participated in the demonstration, which continued into the evening, police said.

What is it about?   Just like the rampage I reported in Greece yesterday, it’s apparently competition over the drug trade.

The demonstrators were protesting the shooting deaths of six immigrants from Ghana, Togo and Liberia late Thursday in what authorities say may have been a hit by the Camorra crime syndicate _ punishment for trying to compete in the drug trade.

Here is another Italian hot spot in the news this week.  Algerians held in advance of deportation rioted.

And, since I’m on the topic of Europe, lets head north to Ireland where more African refugees will be resettled soon, but interestingly officials are not announcing which town will be getting them.   In Finland, one town after another is declining refugee placement.    Where could this unwelcoming trend be coming from?    Let me guess!

Grand Island whiplash: now Cubans are coming

I feel like I’m getting whiplash trying to follow all the happenings in Grand Island, NE as the conflicts surrounding the Swift meatpacking plant firings, and now hirings, continue.   We learned yesterday that about 150 Somali workers had either quit or been fired over the issue of accommodating Muslim demands for break times that would disrupt other workers.

Now, according to the Grand Island Independent  Swift is bringing in the Cubans. 

Earlier this week, Dan Hoppes, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 22, said JBS Swift & Co. needed all its employees to keep the local plant working because of tight labor supplies.

But with some employees quitting because of this week’s protests and counterprotests over the issue of how — or whether — break times at JBS Swift should be altered, the company is bringing a new ethnic group to Grand Island.

Kris Burling, director of English language learners for the Grand Island public schools, said GIPS migrant recruiter Suyapa Gonzalez was told by her contact person at Swift that Cuban families would soon be arriving in Grand Island.  [Do you have a “migrant recruiter” working in your local school system?]

Burling said Gonzalez was told a few Cuban fathers have already arrived in Grand Island in advance of their families but have not started working at Swift. Gonzalez also was told that perhaps eight to 10 families would be arriving in town this week.

According to databases at the Office of Refugee Resettlement we brought 60,144 Cuban refugees to the US from 1983 to 2005.  In 2006 we resettled 3142.  In 2007 the figure was 2923 and for FY 2008 we had brought 3749 Cubans through the end of August.  That’s a total of just about 70,000 Cubans to the Somalis total so far of 83,000.

It appears that Swift was able to call up someone (in the federal government? in the volags?) and order up Cubans, just adds more evidence to my theory that the federal government is the employment service for big businesses.  

 How many of you knew we were still bringing Cubans to the US?

Congressman Tom Tancredo introduces anti-sharia bill

Update September 24th:  Here is another link, from Jim, with more details about this bill.

In light of what we are seeing these days in Rep. Tancredo’s own state of Colorado with the Somali demands for religious accommodation, a measure to at least alert the public to the growing menace of sharia-loving immigration couldn’t come at a better time.   Go to Jihad Watch here for the whole story and the good comments.

Judy told us the other day what is happening in Great Britain with sharia law here.