Exclusivity: Out of Character for Obama Campaign

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Do you think that other races are better than the white ones when it comes to ruling america?

i don't think so? if obama told the headscarved- girls to leave the front, a pakistani or an indian might imprison them

you all drink from the same WATER!!!!!!!!

And the Reality Challenged and Obfuscating Jihadist still has not denied being an operative for the Saudi Sunnis. Hmmm, could it be that there is some truth it all this religious lampooooooooning????

CCNL: "I am a Crossanized Christian of Reality who believes in a Singularity!"

Jihadist : (Shrug).

CCNL : "I am lampooning Jihadist!"

Jihadist : (Shrug).

Proving that he is the candidate of "diversity," "change" and "sensitivity" Obama should not only have hijab-wearing women sitting prominently behind him during his speeches, Obama should go further and require separate and segregated sitting arrangements for all women at his speeches.

Anon, Anon, Anon Wherever You Are,

It is called lampooning. Consider yourself and The Jihadist "lampooned".

I don't know what all the fuss is about, I think senator Obama should be able to wear jihab if he wants! Obama and jihabs '08!

"...One day, we may see American Presidents, male and female, wearing turbans, yarmulkes, and hijabs..."

Don't bet on it, sister. This ain't Europe.

CCNL, IMHO you seem have a serious problem with obsession. The way you fantasize about Jihadist and post the same lists endlessly all point in that direction. Do yourself a favor and talk to someone who would know how to assess you professionally and offer you real help. Please do get help, you need it desperately!

testing

Lady,

What you do not understand, that is the picture of two Muslim women with headscarf come out in the papers, the next day Obama will be crucified by the Fundementalist Right " We told you " and if you like it or not, in the United States at least %50 of voters out out of touch with reality and they decide on what TV and radio, specillay those on the Right would tell them. That one picture would have cost Obama his election...... please study a little bit of psych-socialogy. I am here in Turkey and know more about what is going on in U.S. than you Madam.

B.K.
Istanbul Turkey
behrouzkia@gmail.com

Anon, Anon, Anon Wherever You Are,

Not only does the Reality Challenged and Obfuscating Jihadist work as an operative for the clandestine Sunni Saudis, he also doubles as a crossdresser as noted by his attendance at many events in a red wig, high heels, a short skirt and plunging neck line. If you look closely at the picture of the crowd behind Obama during his speech where the two "hijabeed" ladies were asked to move, you will see him. Try to control your passions when you do!!!!

Head covering in the pre-Islamic era need not have had a religious significance at all.

Women could have used it as protection against the desert heat and merciless sun in all of ME and it any other hot climate.

In colder climates it could have been used for the opposite reason to protect against cold and cold winds.

Head covering is seen in many parts of the world and it has no religious significance whatever.

Since Islam emphasizes the chastity of women, the purely social custom may have been endowed with religious meaning. So if the spirit of the religious meaning is followed namely modesty in dress, speech and behavior, the purpose of the hijab is fulfilled.

Headscarf is much more complex than it appears. Yes, the origin of headscarf can be traced to the Quranic ideals of modesty. But different societies utilized it differently. Yes, Muslim women wear headscarf but it was practiced even before the advent of Islam in Arabian societies. In Bangladesh, where about 80% population is Muslim 10% is Hindu the headscarf takes a special turn. Most of the Muslim women in urban areas do not wear headscarf. In rural areas many women would just put on cloth covering head and upper part of the body when they go outside. Another interesting point: In rural Bangladesh both the Hindu and Muslim women would put on modest clothing when they go out. Islam has a role definitely, but it is more of a tradition and culture there. Let me give you another example: You will see in rural Bangladesh the older women cover up while their younger daughters do not. Wearing a headscarf is comparable to growing a beard. Many Muslim in Bangladesh would grow a beard when they turn to their 40s and have grown up children. As I said, it is partly religion, and partly conforming to social roles. The reason I said wearing a headscarf and growing a beard is comparable because although both have a religious origin, they have become social norms. This is the reason you would see some Muslims would fiercely debate on the length of the beard, the same way they debate on how much women should cover.

According to Wafa Sultan Islam must be transformed by courageous clerics by first rescuing the religion from the politics of Islam.

Read what American Muslim Wafa Sultan has to say.

It's very sickening that something if this sort should ever happen. Good for Obama for apologizing. I think his volunteers need to follow a little more closely to his creed of change to get him elected.

And saying that throwing the girls out was good politics is just insane.

Let me tell you something about US politics, read any non-US, British or Israeli newspaper and you'll see how the whole of the world deplores the US for actions such as this, and not just in Muslim countries. Just the idea of Obama becoming president has caused a rise in the positive view of the US around the world.

Seriously, the reason the US has such a problems with muslim countries isn't because they're muslim countries... it's because we (both the government and people) keep publicly acting like morons and proving that regardless of religion, race or politics, we're still an intolerant group of people.

If you want the US to have better relations with the world, to stop attacks on US citizens and interests, then we gotta stop acting like we're incapable of accepting anyone and everyone.

Every Imam is like a one pastor Christian denomination pretty much free to interpret the Quran and Sharia Law in their own way. That makes for immense difficulties in the uniformity of reformation of Islam. Reformation can thus happen only one Imam at a time. Ever wider Imam councils who agree on the same interpretation of Islam is essential.

CCNL, Jihadist cannot be male because she addresses her flirtatious entertaining comments only to males. Maybe un-Muslim for a married Muslim woman living in Malaysia but not masculine by a long shot. You should know that best because of the way she teases you like her pet. No male could imitate her behavior because it has got woman written all over it.

Your posting list OCD disqualifies you for working for the Vatican.

Anon, Anon, Anon,

Be very wary of what you read on anonymous blogs. For example, the Reality Challenged and Obfuscating Jihadist is realy a male Saudi "Wannabee" operative working out of an office in Brooklyn. His major objective is to distract us from the flaws and errors of Islam.

I am ,on the other hand, a Vatican operative working out of Rochester, NY. My main objective is to test the beliefs of the many Catholic and global "pew sitters".

Janephil, read the Quran for yourself. Muslims are unwittingly trapped in a mindset not of their own making. If their Holy Book tells them Christians and Jews have got their own Scripture wrong and can't Christians and Jews to agree with them, what are they to do. Politics in an integral part of their religion. What are they to do.

I am not advocating that muslim women should not wear the hijab. That doesn't concern me. Just don't feed me the crap that it is about choice. And don't tell me that muslims want to assimilate into western society. Please explain why the Chinese, Indians, Filipinos and Hispanics have fully integrated in American culture while muslims, whatever their ethnicity or nationality have kept apart. This point is underscored in Great Britain where there are some muslim areas that white folks dare not enter.

The reason for my rants is that muslims are directed to kill infidels. As long at that is their avowed aim, then my hope is that John McCain will become President. As for Gaza, the Israelis left the place so that the Arabs could govern themselves. Did they try to make things better for themselves. No. They started firing rockets into Israel. If Gaza was inhabited by people other than muslims, it would be a thriving economic area by now. Arabs, however, only aspire to be suicide bombers. Tell me where the blame lies.

AMH wrote:

"Our system of government is worth fighting for"

Yeh, I can see that by what you are doing in Iraq and Afghanistan currently and soon to come Iran. Plus what you have been doing in Middle East (and Bahrain where I live) for the last 50 years.

Check out the ADL and AIPAC who have infested your governments like worms infest the wood. Americans in deep slumber like you allow the misery that your foreign polcy dictates upon us. You serve Israeli interests not America's interest unless you are one of those misled who believe your interest and that of Izrael is the same?

Why Israel has so much sway in what you do in Middle East but we have no say? After all it is our lives that are at stake.

Perhaps you should allow us to vote as well since we have become American slaves by default.

That my friend is how we see your form of government and remember there are two sides to a coin.

Cheers

ZZim:

Huh? Who cares?

I thought we were discussing Senator Obama?

June 24, 2008 8:53 PM

Who cares about what?

Asim, San Antonio - there you go again trying to fudge the issue. Anyone with access to the internet can see through your lies. The command for women to wear the veil is found in the man-made book of the Hadith. In any case, I suppose you have not been to or heard of countries like Afghanistan, Iran, Sudan and Saudi Arabia among others. Women in these countries are beaten up, yes, beaten up for not wearing the veil. In one extreme case in Saudi Arabia, in 2002,the morality police allowed a group of girls to die because they tried to escape their burning school without their heads properly covered. 15 girls died. In Sudan women are raped for not wearing the hijab. In Iran not only are muslim women coerced into wearing the hijab but any foreign women who visit there are compel to put on the headscarf. In Kelantan, a northern Malaysian state governed by an Islamic party, muslim women are forced to put on the hijab or they will not be given employment. (Kelantan, incidentally, has the highest rate of abortion, incest and rape. There goes the argument about the hijab being used for modesty.) The majority of muslim women are wearing the hijab against their free will and it is disingenuous to say otherwise.

Huh? Who cares?

I thought we were discussing Senator Obama?

ZZIM, there is absolutely no question Muslim women have the right to dress anyway they please. It is equally true that they cannot control the unconscious emotional reactions of others. Take as a comparison racism. At a conscious level nobody would admit to being racist. But there are racists, no matter how small or large the percentage may be. Most of them may not even be consciously aware of it. But their actions are motivated by racism.

The association of hijab with terrorism is irrational, but it is an unconscious emotional reaction due to a real trauma and the person has no direct control over it. It takes time for such associations to disappear.

Don't overreact. Try to look at it from the other person's point of view in order to develop empathy. Hijab wearing Muslim women need empathy too. It is not easy to be peace loving and be considered a symbol of violence because of something one didn't do and wouldn't do.

Where is Jihadist, the very active Sunni Muslim blogger from Malaysia? Since she is a married woman with three children living in an Asian Muslim country her opinions on the topic, hijab and modesty, would have been helpful.

Moderate Muslim, your analysis of acid throwing in Bangladesh is absolutely right. Just one point to add: The government enacted a law sanctioning death penalty for throwing acid and you rarely hear any story of that heinous crime now.

Again, what the hijab represents to the non-Muslim world:

1) Assassination of Benazir Bhutto

2) 9/11, 3000 mostly US citizens killed, 1000’s injured

3) The 24/7 Sunni-Shiite centuries-old blood feud currently being carried out in Iraq, 4100 US troops and 83,521 – 91,094 Iraqi civilians iraqbodycount.org/

4) Kenya- In Nairobi, about 212 people were killed and an estimated 4000 injured; in Dar es Salaam, the attack killed at least 11 and wounded 85.[

5) Bali-in 2002-killing 202 people, 164 of whom were foreign nationals, and 38 Indonesian citizens. A further 209 people were injured.

6) Bali in 2005- Twenty people were killed, and 129 people were injured by three bombers who killed themselves in the attacks.

7) Spain in 2004- killing 191 people and wounding 2,050.

8) UK in 2005- The bombings killed 52 commuters and the four radical Islamic suicide bombers, injured 700.

Jonathon, why do you assume that Obama's actions and the actions of his employees are not indicative of his "true values"? I mean, he SAYS he values Muslim-Americans, but then he snubs them at every turn.

So what shall we have faith in - his actions or his words? Ordinarily when a person's actions are contrary to their words we assume that the actions are more truthful. Ever heard of "actions speak louder than words"? Or perhaps "by their acts shall ye know them"?

By the way, Ms. Khan makes the same assumption.

So, what is it? Under what circumstances to people choose to ignore the evidence of their own eyes and instead believe something completely different? Why to you believe this politician means what he says when his actions show us the complete opposite? What's it called Jon?

With Sen. Obama's snubbing of US Rep. Keith Ellison rally for support in addition to his shameful treatment of the women wearing head coverings, it's hard now not to think that Sen. Obama is behaving out of character. I really think Obama needs to come out with an unequivocal statement making it clear that these snubs are indeed out of character and not reflective of his true values. Let's see him say something comparable to his speech on race in America. He's allowing his categorically anti-Muslim opponents (and perhaps supporters) to set the agenda for the public discussion, and he's got to break out of that. He's done it before, and he can do it again, if he really cares to!

janephil,

So Muslim women should either meet your dress code or u accuse them of rfeusing to assimilate!!! This appaling and going over the top:for u as a self-pointed dress code policeman to set benchmarks on assimilaition.

Just tell us who are u to set up dress codes in a most diverse society society on the face of the earth,America.
It will be very helpful if u keep your xenophopia for your self.

American Muslim women are both American and Muslim and they will dress the way they like-with or without hijab.

janephil,
Your claims are absolutely false, malacious and ignorant at once:
1) The Quran states clearly that Muslim women should wear hijab and no does it say that Muslim men should force them to do so:

Surah 33 AL Ahzab, verse 59:"O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters and the believing women, that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (bodies/bosoms, when outside their homes): that is most convenient, that they should be known as such and not molsted.And Allah is oft-forgiving, and most merciful."

The purpose is modesty and piety-that simple.

2) It is absolutely untrue that Muslim men force women to put hijab: this is presumptuous and condescending because u falsely and ignorantly assumes that Muslim women are pawns and things without brains and wells or independence which is baseless. Besides Muslim women emulate believing and pious women, not only the wives of the Prophet but Mary who is so revered in the Quran where a whole chapter is her name-Mary wore Hijab,no doubt about about it.

3)There is no specific criteria for Hijab:broadly speaking, a Muslim woman wears modestly including covring her head but not her eyes and face-this latter is called Niqab and this has nothing to do with Islam-it is cultural and personal.

U will see in Muslim societies women with and women without hijab: personal convections and choice are real and "men forcing women to wear hijab"falls under false smear campaigns against Islam and Muslim.

4)If western women have the right to uncover and wear bikinis, why then can not Muslim women on the other hand choose or not choose to wear hijab.

5)If u are so concerned about Muslim women why not speak about the millions of Iraqi widows and refugees and the Palestinian women living in jewish concentration camps-Gaza and the west bank- with collective punishment imposed and where Palestinian women labor and give birth at jewish military check points in the israeli apartheid system.

Yours are crocodile tears; just mind your own women and leave Muslim women alone-they know how to take care of themselves.

JanePhil, I wasn't trying to be offensive or confusing, but I evidently managed to be both. Let me try to say this better.

To mention one group in the same thought as another is not to say you think the two groups are identical in motives or values or essence. In fact, the more different the two groups are, the better an illustration works when there's a point of commonality. If you took much English in college, I'll ask you to think back to the Metaphysical Poets. It was actually the large fierce nuns who terrorized me in high school who gave me that first glimpse into the world of Metaphysical Wit. If the two elements are not heterogeneous, the comparison doesn't work to illustrate the commonality.

And I'll grant you that there are some pretty big differences between most veiled American nuns and most veiled American Muslim women in my experience. I will say again, though, that one commonality I have experienced with both groups is dedication to physical modesty. Considering the volumes of cloth required, even in extreme heat, I would say heroic dedication. And for the record, the Dominican order that taught me, based in Nashville, still keeps to the habit and has an unusually high recruitment rate of postulants, and has even branched out to staff high schools around the DC area.

I take serious exception to comparisons of nuns wearing the habit and muslim women wearing the hijab. Nuns are religious women who wear the habit to distinguish them from other women. Although it is not stated in the Koran, muslim men compel muslim women to wear the hijab. In fact, in some muslim countries women are only allowed to show their eyes. They don't have a choice about wearing the hijab. Many muslim women have been molested or raped in muslim countries for not wearing the hijab. In any case, the hijab has got nothing to do with modesty. Modesty is not only about wearing a piece of clothing but also about attitude. In Malaysia, a muslim majority country, muslim leaders and imams often blame acts of sexual violence on women for not covering up. It would seem that muslim men have little self control. In breaking news just out, a government official in a northern malay state forbids women from wearing lipstick and high-heel shoes because this would arouse muslim men.

Hey Anonymous, mea culpa, I zeroed in on the wrong sentence.

However, it seems to me that the issue here is not the appropriateness or inappropriateness of wearing distinctive ethnic or religious costume in public. The issue is that Senator Obama wants to have it both ways - he wants Muslims to consider him "their" candidate and for voters who are prejudiced against Muslims to NOT consider him the "Muslim candidate". There are more anti-Muslim voters than there are Muslim voters, so those are the ones he is going to cater to.

That's the core problem. He's running an old-style Democratic Party campaign based on appealing to specific ethnic and demographics with targeted messages. Whenever he's in a room with you he will pretend to be "one of you". In cases where different groups are in conflict, he openly supports the larger more influential group while secretly going to the smaller less influential groups and promising them that he supports them too. A good example is the way he publicly told the Isreali Lobby that he supports an undivided Jerusalem - not a winning issue with Muslim-American voters.

My question is this - If he's not willing to appear next to you before the election, what makes you think he's going to support your causes after the election? The answer is that he's not. Once he's gotten himself elected, he'll ignore you. Until the next election, when he will pretend to be your friend again. Secretly. Where other people can't see him doing it.

Bottom line - If he won't allow himself to be seen with you before the election, he won't support you after the election.

That's what this is about, not whether or not it's appropriate to wear religiously-identifiable clothing in public.

"Yes, that would be sweet - but nuns don't get acid thrown in their faces if they don't wear concealing robes and headgear, or get whipped or jailed - like women in quite a few Islam countries. "

Unfortunately this poster is confusing his colored folks. Acid-throwing is a practice that most notably occurs in Bangladesh, a Muslim country where most women do NOT cover their hair and where acid-throwing is usually a retaliation of male ego upon a girl who has rejected a boy. It is incredibly heinous and deplorable, but has nothing to do with hijab. If anything girls would be protected from these leering men if they wore the hijaab.

And the comparison of nuns to hijaabi's is valid because they are rooted in the same gesture of modesty. The idea is that your beauty is for you to hold dear. The difference is according to Islam, women, unlike nuns, are allowed to get married.

I'd like to end my comment with a rant against narrow-minded Muslims who have hijacked the religion to twist beautiful things such as modesty and womens rights into tools for oppression by weak men. Not all Muslims (certainly not Muslim Americans) ascribe to this distorted view of Islam.

Women who wear the hijab don't want to assimilate. The whole idea is to set them apart. If muslims wanted to integrate into society they won't highlight their differences. Look at other immigrants who have come to America. The Chinese, Indians, Filipinos, Hispanics have fully assimilated into American society and many are making outstanding contributions to America's economic growth. Now take a look at muslims, whatever their ethnicity. Muslims are demanding that Americans conform to their lifestyles. You read about muslim cab drivers not wanting to take passengers carrying alcoholic beverages, male muslim doctors refusing to treat female patients, a muslim student suing over a graduation ceremony in church.

Joan - I don't know what religion you profess, but no one is buying your crap. And pleeez stop your subtle attempts to link religious women like nuns with muslim women wearing the hijab.

Joan's comparison of nuns and PTSD, and fear born of 9/11 and other terrorism in the name of Islam, with threats of real terrorism -- some comparison.

Before election in Nov 08, a whole nation will have reshaped itself and healed all its fear based on trauma?

It's so hard to stick out when you'd rather blend in. I think the only way to extinguish people's fear responses to Middle Eastern dress is for people to see more of it and get used to it. American Muslim girls whose families make them wear it, who resent being made to stick out, will rebel by keeping Western clothes in their lockers or friends' homes, and dressing Western when they can. Girls and women who choose to wear coverings are doing the hard work of getting the mainstream used to seeing them. Nuns stick out just as much, but we're used to seeing them and it's a normal experience, even for those of us who still have PTSD from years of being tormented by them.

The conflicts driving the fears of all things Muslim will keep going as long as they will keep going. In the meantime (can't just wait it out because this might take lifetimes to resolve), the thing that will normalize hijabs and other covers is just repeated exposure to them, along with work/school/neighborhood chances to experience people as people. Those wearing the coverings, out of choice or family loyalty or whatever other reason, are exposing themselves to gawking and hostility. But they're chipping away at the perceived oddness of it and making it easier for those who come after them. Of course, those who come after them may opt for jeans and tee-shirts, but that's Americanization for you. The better people are tolerated, the faster they assimilate. Hostility from the mainstream just reinforces the bunker mentality that makes people feel safe only with others of their own background.

If Joan feels offended being overtly discriminated against, then she and her muslim buddies should stop killing infidels. Otherwise, we might as well hand them the sword to cut off our heads.

Crying foul was appropriate.

June 24, 2008 11:34 AM

---------------

ZZIM you did not read the above line which followed what you quoted.

One thing nobody has a power over is an other person's feelings, and feelings count a lot in elections.

According to Anonymous, "This incident is about volunteers doing what they thought was in the best interests of Senator Obama". So - this is all about the best interests of Obama. Everyone else can go hang. Gee, if that was my opinion, I might post it anonymously too.

Joan is right on this one. Being overtly discriminated against is very painful. That's why it's considered rude (and bad). People who suffer a painful and humiliating act of overt discrimination should make some noise about it. That lets the rest of us know something bad happened and allows us to mobilize the forces of public approbation against the wrong-doers. Speaking truth to power isn't old-fashioned, it's the right thing to do (except in Zimbabwe where it's more important to stay alive than be right). But we're not in Zimbabwe, we're Americans. And no American should have to be treated like that and then be told to shut up about it.

It's wrong.

PS - Joan, see you at the banquest. I hear there's a medal, too! =)

Joan:

All interpretations are not equally valid. There are obviously many interpretations that are based on ignorance and misinformation. And when someone is visibly making bad calls based on misinterpretations, Muslim women certainly do have the right to make some noise about it. Getting to make that noise is a huge part of becoming American, even if the Borg hasn't quite finished assimilating them yet.

June 24, 2008 11:10 AM

*****

Unfortunately a gut level emotional reaction based on real trauma does not respond to the perfect reasoning of the head. The state of hyper-vigilance people have gone into since 9/11 cannot be wished away. Such traumas take time to heal and healing requires that there is complete feeling of safety. No one can demand that such feelings should not exist. A whole nation needs to learn not to associate a symbol of Islam with terrorism.

This incident is about volunteers doing what they thought was in the best interests of Senator Obama - with all the accusation that he was a closet Muslim, etc, etc, and the real fact of a political opponent taking advantage of every slip up and whipping up emotions. Erring on the side of discretion is not an unforgivable crime. Crying foul was appropriate. But no one can regulate anybody's feelings and feelings have a say in elections. Nobody can demand that it should not.

Anonymous wrote: "Muslim women are free to wear whatever they like. It is their right. Others are free to give it any interpretation they like. It is their right. Muslim women do not have the right to claim others do not have the right to their interpretation."

All interpretations are not equally valid. There are obviously many interpretations that are based on ignorance and misinformation. And when someone is visibly making bad calls based on misinterpretations, Muslim women certainly do have the right to make some noise about it. Getting to make that noise is a huge part of becoming American, even if the Borg hasn't quite finished assimilating them yet.

Muslim women are free to wear whatever they like. It is their right. Others are free to give it any interpretation they like. It is their right. Muslim women do not have the right to claim others do not have the right to their interpretation.

9/11 and other terrorist attacks in the name of Islam traumatized the US. Periodic threats being issued even by a handful of Muslims keeps the nation in a state of alert. The hyper-vigilance and over reaction is a result of that trauma. It would do good on all sides if Muslims would understand the psychological impact of terrorism in the name of Islam on non-Muslims. Bridges can be built based on understanding and empathy.

Well Joan, hopefully they've swept up more than just guilty parties. Until you sweep someone up, you often cannot confirm whether they are in fact a guilty party. So there's always some error in the process. If the bar of proof necessary to bring someone in for questioning is set too high, then only guilty parties will be questioned. Which of course guarantees that many guilty parties will NOT be questioned. Since those guilty parties intend to kill random people, this is a bad thing. So I much prefer the current detention policy, which is "reason to believe" someone is guilty, not "absolutely certain" he's guilty before we try to arrest him.

On the other hand, if the net is cast too wide, we'll end up wasting resources on interrogating innocent people and of course cause them some inconvenience (and suffering).

Somewhere the CIA has to pick a middle ground between arresting only people caught red-handed and arresting random idiots. My preference is that they arrest anyone suspicious and then question them to figure out if they're terrorists or not. Most of them will not be. That's a good thing because it means they are casting the net wide enough.

The banquet is this Friday. Wear that nice Kimono of yours, I'll wear my Lederhosen.

Until the koran is deflawed, all mosques "febrezed" and all Shiites and Sunnis pacified, no one is safe!!!

ZZIM, thank you for the prize, and please let me know when the banquet will be. By saying which misery I would have preferred to suffer myself, I was not comparing the numbers of people who were caught up in each injustice. I was comparing the relative suffering of the individuals who experienced each. As I said, I'd rather have been a Japanese-American internee then than an Arab-American detainee now. If you believe only bombers and other terrorists have been swept up, detained and tormented under Extraordinary Rendition, I envy you your peace of mind and your confidence in the CIA.

Ms. Khan has said that hijab is worn as an expression of modesty and piety. Definitely they are virtues everyone should try to practice. But is it necessary to proclaim it to the world by wearing a particular dress. Is it not to be practiced rather than proclaimed?.

Oh yeah, I also wanted to say something to Bud, who asserts that everything is fine because: "The women were not asked to leave, just to move."

Right, Bud, no problem. And in 1955 Black people weren't asked to get off the bus, just move to the back so as not to offend undecided voters sitting up front. No problem at all.

Bud and Joan get the Historical Ignorance and Moral Equivalency Baloney prizes for the day.

Anonymous says:

"There is something grotesque about Muslim women who wear fancy hijabs and sexy clothes, wear heavy make-up and are flirtatious. Why bother with a hijab is the question non-Muslims ask and rightly so, unless the hijab is meant to be a fashion accessory."

Women are finding more and more uses for the Hijab. In Iraq some used it to hide bombs. In Egypt prostitutes use it to disguise their identities. In Turkey it is used to send a statement to the Secularists. In the West men force their women to wear it to kill two birds with one stone; remind women of their inferior status as well as send a message of rejection of the West’s values.
When Ataturk, the father of modern Turkey wished to ban the wearing of Hijab, he issued an executive order to this effect. Women simply ignored it. He then issued an addendum to his first order that said “only prostitutes are allowed to wear the Hijab.” Next day all women took it off including the prostitutes.

Oh yeah, I also wanted to say something to Bud, who asserts that everything is fine because: "The women were not asked to leave, just to move."

Right, Bud, no problem. And in 1955 Black people weren't asked to get off the bus, just move to the back so as not to offend undecided voters sitting up front. No problem at all.

Bud and Joan get the Historical Ignorance and Moral Equivalency Baloney prizes for the day.

People, this is really offensive how historically ignorant people are. This really bothers me. Joan asked if people were as "twitchy" about kimonos during WWII as we are about headscarves today. I replied that yes, in fact almost the entire Japanese-American population was arrested and carted off to concentration camps during WWII. I ended the post with this sentence: "So today's Muslim-Americans are getting off easy, relatively speaking, from a historical perspective."

And she said this:

> Time will tell, ZZIM. It's early yet to say
> and I hope it plays out that you're right.
> Given the choice of mistreatments, I might
> have preferred being a Japanese-American
> internee back then, to being a CIA black
> site detainee now.

So Joan would rather be an innocent civilian swept off the street with her entire family because of her race than be a terrorist imprisoned by the CIA for blowing up innocent civilian families on the street. Yeah, but I don't think that's what she's trying to say.

But what bothers me is that she is trying to say that the current US Government's behavior toward today's Muslim-American population is worse than the way it treated the Japanese-American population during WWII. That's just totally wrong. That sort of complete and utter lack of historical perspective really, really bothers me.

Joan, I'm very upset with you.

There is something grotesque about Muslim women who wear fancy hijabs and sexy clothes, wear heavy make-up and are flirtatious. Why bother with a hijab is the question non-Muslims ask and rightly so, unless the hijab is meant to be a fashion accessory.

"Now if McCain had asked these women to leave the stage, the blame for that would be given totally and only to him!"

Do you honestly think for a second that there would be any muslim women at a McCain convention?

1. No Muslim woman would by her own choice attend a McCain rally.

2. If a Muslim woman was present there, the staff would assume she was a Democratic operative and would not let her anywhere near McCain.

Everyone, this is a Presidential election, get real.

Joan:

I'm looking to see Obama to do something very classy and courtly and public by way of making it up to these two women, who had come to support him and who belong to a group he hopes will vote for him. If he could manage it, it might be sweet for him to mention that many Christian nuns still wear concealing robes and headgear, and that pretty much every depiction of Mary the Mother of God shows her with a head covering.

June 23, 2008 2:02 PM

There is only one major difference between the headgear of nuns and Mother Mary - it is to symbolize lifelong virginity. Nuns are dressed in the gear that was common in Europe many centuries ago when all lay women covered themselves from head to toe; ditto Mother Mary in her dress of Israel two thousand years ago. Most nuns have abandoned such dressing and wear simply modest clothes.

A Muslim woman who wears a hijab is not a religious woman like a nun, nor does she depict Mother Mary. Celibacy is strictly prohibited in Islam. It is consciously taught that celibacy is unnatural.

There is nothing wrong in asking the question what religious purpose the hijab serves especially since there are millions of Muslims who do not wear it.

Images are extremely powerful. Even more so than words or actions in this somewhat illiterate society we live in. The image would be played over and over to produce the subliminal effect and thus the association between Obama and extremest Muslims. Get real, this is a Presidential campaign. Anyone who cannot see that such an image would be all over the conservative blogs and Fox news in a heart beat is seriously out of touch with reality. The two women who tried to sit where they did, as well as the author of this uneducated article, should have the common sense to understand this. The women were not asked to leave, just to move.

ayisha jeffries:

The Muslim community must take on the role of active paricipation in the defining moments of our country and take back our way of life from the small, fractionalized segment of radicals who claim to speak for the 2.5 billion Muslims around the world.

June 23, 2008 10:29 AM

Ayisha Jeffries, your post is good. The need to rescue moderate Islam from radicals prone to resort to violent means and cannot accept pluralism is urgent.

Just don't get over enthusiastic with the number of Muslims in the world. 2.5 billion is the figure for Christians. There are about 1.3 billion Muslims, a large enough population. No need to make it double simply to create a false impression that there are as many Muslims in the world as Christians.

A Muslim woman would be no less Muslim if she didn't cover her hair. You are a Muslim without covering your hair, right? When a Muslim woman is taught she has to cover her hair because Allah demands it of her without explaining that modesty and chastity is the goal, the hair covering becomes a useless piece of cloth a Muslim woman wears without knowing why. Preach modesty in dress and chastity in behavior. No need to proclaim one is Muslim with a piece of cloth covering the hair. Let them proclaim it with their modest behavior. It is completely useless if modesty and chastity does not come with the package of Hijab.

News Flash!!!

Malaysian city bans lipstick and high heels for Reality Challenged and Obfuscating Muslim women. Muslim men in the same city are still allowed to wear these sex attractants.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/24/malaysia.lipstick.ban/index.html

" Joan:

"I'm looking to see Obama to do something very classy and courtly and public by way of making it up to these two women, who had come to support him and who belong to a group he hopes will vote for him."

What, like publicly calling them both to apologize personally for the actions of teenage interns under pressure who for *some strange reason* thought that their headscarves might lead to some kind of slanderous media circus?

The problem is much deep than Daisy Khan explored. This goes back how the category “Muslim” is created and perpetuated in this country and also in many other Western countries. It is disturbing to note that the category “Muslim” is created by essentializing certain attributes, some visible markers of identify, headscarf being one of them. Then this essentialized Muslim is used for exclusion and inclusion, depending on the need of the mainstream society. For example, the headscarf-clad women can be asked to be in the stage to give a message of ritualized inclusion.

Time will tell, ZZIM. It's early yet to say and I hope it plays out that you're right. Given the choice of mistreatments, I might have preferred being a Japanese-American internee back then, to being a CIA black site detainee now.

Joan - Yes Americans were just as "twitchy" over Kimonos and Lederhosen during WWII. If you recall from your history lessons, we actually rounded up all the Japanese-Americans living on west coast states and stuck them in concentration camps.

Actually, that strikes me as more than a bit "twitchy".

As for German-American culture, I recall from high school my history teacher informed us that in 1900 Ohio and Pennsylvania had more German-language newspapers than English-language newspapers. After 2 wars with Germany, by 1946 there were 2 of those newspapers still being published.

So today's Muslim-Americans are getting off easy, relatively speaking, from a historical perspective.

Good point about lederhosen and kimonos - but if lederhosen had been the forced garment of nazis, everyone would probably have been itchy about them!

Anonymous (Joan?)

I don't care one bit about genes - we all belong to the same gene pool. And I have no idea whether those ladies are ultra-conservative, maybe, maybe not. What I meant about thinking twice was simply considering whether hijabs right now should be on camera behind Obama.

Men's fights always have a tendency of being fought on women's bodies, as someone said. Now Islam is in our eyes represented by the "modesty" dress of muslim women, whereas the violence is mostly done by men.

I must say I am extremely sick of religion of all sorts, of the rigidity, bigotry, the inhuman rules that seem to so easily follow in religion's footsteps... Would everyone please keep religion private, concentrate on ethics and how to save this poor planet and be civil to one another? Thank you!

Right, I had totally forgotten that all the hijackers and pilots were wearing hijabs.

Were Americans quite this twitchy about kimonos and lederhosen during WWII?

Again, what the hijab represents to the non-Muslim world:

1) Assassination of Benazir Bhutto

2) 9/11, 3000 mostly US citizens killed, 1000’s injured

3) The 24/7 Sunni-Shiite centuries-old blood feud currently being carried out in Iraq, 4056 US troops and 83,521 – 91,094 Iraqi civilians iraqbodycount.org/

4) Kenya- In Nairobi, about 212 people were killed and an estimated 4000 injured; in Dar es Salaam, the attack killed at least 11 and wounded 85.[

5) Bali-in 2002-killing 202 people, 164 of whom were foreign nationals, and 38 Indonesian citizens. A further 209 people were injured.

6) Bali in 2005- Twenty people were killed, and 129 people were injured by three bombers who killed themselves in the attacks.

7) Spain in 2004- killing 191 people and wounding 2,050.

8) UK in 2005- The bombings killed 52 commuters and the four radical Islamic suicide bombers, injured 700.

ASODERS 22, of course there's a lot of family pressure to slow the inevitable process of westernization. I alluded to family pressure, which families of all countries exert on their young in an attempt to keep the identity strong of the country of origin. The pressure is strong precisely because westernization is such an overwhelmingly powerful force. And assimilation takes far longer than a single generation, as true now as it was for the waves of Irish, Greeks, Italians, Chinese, and any number of other groups. Each generation takes it a step further than the previous one did. Family battles are fierce, much pressure is exerted, people get killed, and Americanization happens anyway. You think girls who wear hijabs to public events are ultra-traditionalist? Not if the family's big concession is that they get to go to school. In some families that's the big step forward that gets taken in that generation.

This stuff about "as public events go, it's time to think twice" sounds too much like saying relative newcomers are second-class citizens, that they won't be American until they've cast off every garment and custom that smacks of the homeland, and intermarried their genes into Generica. Like during World War II, when Roosevelt told Catholic and Jewish community leaders that "you people are here on sufferance and you need to take a back seat on this one." I thought we had come a long way since then, maybe we haven't.

To Joan, you wrote. "Once a religion takes root on American shores, each succeeding generation seems to relax more and more of its restrictions. "

I don't for a minute doubt your good intentions. But that above statement might not be entirely true, although we like to believe it. Many Middle East and other groups intensify they religions when moving to Western countries - even starting to use the hijab, when they did not at home. Also, families have other means of pressing girls except for throwing acid in their faces.

In my European country lot of effort is put into keeping Muslim girls apart from the new environment in order to stop them becoming Westernized. Including, in some cases, beating and honor killings. That, rather than modesty, is what the hijab signals to many people.

In private, I think of course people should wear what they choose and it's not for me to lecture anyone about her private choices (as long as they are truly voluntary). But as public events go, there is reason to think twice.

Hi! Blame the country, not Obama. Let's get him elected first and then expect him to "tear down the walls of unwarranted prejudice." The fact is that the under-educated masses of American people are victims of fearful stereotypes, and for them the hijab is just that. Thanks to the msss media's consistently vicious fearmongering, the head scarf means "Muslim terrorist" means "suicide bomber" means stoning of women, means oppression, means madrassahs and mullahs and evil eyes. All these stereotypes Obama is trying to escape while at the same time media are subtly and overtly linking his name with these same stereotypes. With a name like Kahn you surely know all about stereotyping by personal experience and can see the larger picture.

Unless the symbols of diversity are seen and heard, we don't have a chance to claim diversity. Until individuals feel comfortable to show their beliefs, such as a religion, team, heros, political belief, there can be no peace.

While some individuals keep their bigotry and prejudice to themselves, those who have civil belief should make those apparent.

We need to 'out' the individuals who are 'hiding' their prejudice. The Obama election will do just that. The reality of his blatant entrance into many of our lives will declare the real person.

I agree with Ms. Khan. Further, I've heard that John McCain has assured "Muslims for McCain" that hijab- and burqa-clad ladies are welcome at his rallies and events.

There's a difference between being asked to "retreat to the shadows" and not being seated directly behind a presidential candidate on camera. Does every group have a right to a symbolic place of status in the campaign on camera behind Obama? People dressed however they feel best represents the group to which they belong? That would be the end of the campaign. The point of a campaign is to win an election by reaching to voters where they are and asking them to move a step in your direction. In the long run, the interests of those who choose the veil will be better served by an Obama victory than by a symbolic showdown with the campaign. Is this absolutely righteous or perfect? Of course not.

ASODERS 22 Wrote: ...nuns don't get acid thrown in their faces if they don't wear concealing robes and headgear, or get whipped or jailed - like women in quite a few Islam countries.

I was pointing to a commonality between an American Christian group of women and an American Muslim group of women. Obama's continuing theme is that there is more that unites than divides us, and that areas of commonality exist among all groups. Modesty is traditionally considered to be a virtue in both religions. Some nuns and some Muslim women choose to express that modesty in a substantially similar way. And I say "choose" because there isn't a lot of acid being tossed in American Muslim faces. Once a religion takes root on American shores, each succeeding generation seems to relax more and more of its restrictions. Just as true of Catholicism as of Islam. It's never a lock-step and unanimous process, and it foments many bitter family rifts.

So, recap:

Obama supporters have exhibited a pattern of discrimination against certain a minority.

The Obama folks assert that Obama isn't prejudiced, but he treats people in a prejudiced manner in order to prevent prejudiced people from being prejudiced against him and saying prejudiced things about him that will make other prejudiced people not vote for him. So, if you oppose prejudice you should support Obama's prejudiced actions, which really weren't his actions because they were the actions of his supporters. And Obama supporters aren't really prejudiced, they just act prejudiced in order to protect Obama from the prejudice of his political opponents. So it really isn't prejudice causing the prejudiced actions of Obama's supporters - that would be very, very bad - but it's really Loyalty To Obama that causes Obama's unprejudiced supporters to act prejudicially. And since Loyalty to Obama is a good thing, prejudicial actions by Obama supporters is not something we should be condemning, but rather something we should be praising.

Got it. Can I sit behind Obama now?

To Joan -

you wrote: "If he (Obama) could manage it, it might be sweet for him to mention that many Christian nuns still wear concealing robes and headgear, and that pretty much every depiction of Mary the Mother of God shows her with a head covering."

Yes, that would be sweet - but nuns don't get acid thrown in their faces if they don't wear concealing robes and headgear, or get whipped or jailed - like women in quite a few Islam countries.

Btw - were those ladies actually Muslims? I don't want to be impolite to them if they are, but what if they were not? The efforts to connect Obama with Islam are strong on certain parts.

Dear "To Be Fair"

It is amazing that Obama's team removed the women and it is the Republican's fault that they were removed.

Dear "To Be Fair"

It is amazing that Obama's team removed the women and it is the Republican's fault that they were removed.

Yes, asking the women to remove headscarves, or not allow them to sit behind Obama - both not ideal nor fair. However, this is probably an attempt from the republican base to paint Obama as a muslim, who's name can already cause confusion.

Where have these folks with headscarves been during the last 8 years? Has BushCo allowed anyone that is not christian and white in the halls where George B speaks? Nevermind behind him on camera, but ANYWHERE in the building? BushCo wouldn't even allow anyone who wasn't 100% pro Bush, let alone looked a bit different.

Lets be fair to all, including Obama - he is trying to paint the best picture of himself, and there is ZERO chance of doing that to rural america if the people behind him look so 'foreign' to rural america.

The fact that some US women who wear Burkas, or other head gear have tried to have ID cards with only their eyes showing, would be dragged into the POTUS race - we have plenty to deal with already - Iraq, Afganistan, oil prices, economy, healthcare.

Let's try to leave religion out of this presidentail race for once. This includes abortion, gay rights, and scarves. This country was founded on religious freedom - that doesn't mean you get special treament because you are religious. (maybe we should tax religious institutions? )

sorry, meant to say

they wouldn't sit a majority of african americans behind him.....

Peace. It is distressing, this type of image control and the real life need for it. I think of that Bush background of soldiers that was digitally manipulated to repeat about every sixth soldier as the height of ridiculousness. I'd prefer a rainbow be behind every political candidate, especially the Democratic nominee, but I think it is necessary for Obama to control the narrative as far as his image in the context of 9/11 and modern sensitivities about the Middle East. At least for now. You have to know the 24/7 exploitation the ridiculous right with Rush Limbaugh and Fox Noise would make of such a photo. Like they are sincerely worried about your hurt feelings? No, they are gnashing their teeth that they were deprived of what they would promote as a negative. Personally, I would like for Muslims to be very visible in the tent. But, I would not like, and you shouldn't like it either, for the Democrats to lose this election over it. If you think Democrats disrespect the dignity of Muslim people, go visit the next McCain event wearing a hijab and see if you make it in the door, let alone the newspapers.

this had NOTHING to do with religion. those students weren't seated behind obama the same reason why they would sit a majority of african americans behind him or mostly middle aged white women behind hillar. this is politics

Being a volunteer at an Obama Event in South Florida, I sent a constructive critique email addressing the problems such as these young student staffers who are organizing these events are not prepared to train the volunteers correctly. The 3 major issues at the Broward event that could have been proactively taken care of where:

#1 It is 95 degrees in South Florida in the Summer...Vendors were selling water for $4 and the ONLY reason that the volunteers had water to drink to prevent them from dehydrating was because another volunteer brought water. 1000's of attendees who were outside waiting for hours were tying to get to our water...We wanted to share but resources were limited. It would have been very embarrassing to the campaign if a volunteer or an attendee became ill from the heat.

#2 After driving for 2 hours, spending $60 in gas and working for 5 hours in the heat, torrential rain and dangerous lightening...There was NO reward of a good seat for the voluteers. We ended up sitting in the nosebleed section even after all that sacrifice.

#3 With very limited direction from the staffers who asked volunteers to help police the VIP line and NO signage denoting the line...I saw Volunteers YELLING at Broward county elected officials VIP's etc...

The bottom line is that Barack cannot be held accountable for the actions of his volunteers. However, his staffers need to do a better job of proactively addressing problems and handling things correctly...I chalk it up to their youth, but its more about common sense.

"One day, we may see American Presidents, male and female, wearing turbans, yarmulkes, and hijabs."
This is the kind of talk that would bury Barack Obama, if he were to be associated with this woman in any way. Pure idiocy.

I want people to wear whatever they want to wear, but let's please allow for some common sense right now. It's unfortunate, but the veil is problematic right now. The discussions about the veil are usually inflammatory. Looking forward to the day when women aren't the physical representation of how holy men are. And yeah, I know that some cultures require men to wear beards or turbans, but generally this stuff gets played out on women.

I have to agree with Anonymous:
"Strict adherence to a dress code, Hijab, emphasizing the modesty of a Muslim woman, and public attention seeking behavior at a political campaign seems completely contradictory."

The women who attempted to pose themselves behind Barack Obama, should use some common sense. Now is not the time. If Daisy Kahn can't see the damage that could be done to Obama's chances for election, if he were to be constantly photographed with women wearing Muslim head gear, she needs to wake up and face reality. In all honesty, it seems like a Republican ploy, to try to plant such people at Obama's speeches. It would be perfect.
This is reality people.
If Muslims want to sabotage Obama's election chances, just keep it up.

People actually should be ashamed and feel the need to hide that they accept the irrational ramblings of an illiterate nomad whose claims don't stand up to even the simpleset of questioning. There is a reason muslim men are insecure and pathetic, there belief system is ridiculous and all rational men igure out in the time it takes for a quick commercial break.

You claim that individuals of all religions deserve to be treated with the same respect and dignity. This is true and that level of respect that they deserves is equal to the sum of 0 as they are all equally ridiculous. What the woman shouldn't have to hide is her beauty and mind from the world behind the bar of oppression and slavery known as the hardscarf and the religion of Islam that imposes it. That would be treating her with actual dignity not instilling fake dignity into her mortal soul.

People actually should be ashamed and feel the need to hide that they accept the irrational ramblings of an illiterate nomad whose claims don't stand up to even the simpleset of questioning. There is a reason muslim men are insecure and pathetic, there belief system is ridiculous and all rational men igure out in the time it takes for a quick commercial break.

You claim that individuals of all religions deserve to be treated with the same respect and dignity. This is true and that level of respect that they deserves is equal to the sum of 0 as they are all equally ridiculous. What the woman shouldn't have to hide is her beauty and mind from the world behind the bar of oppression and slavery known as the hardscarf and the religion of Islam that imposes it. That would be treating her with actual dignity not instilling fake dignity into her mortal soul.

Those women are in America now. Someone should let them know that no one--not their fathers or brothers or uncles, not the cousins they might otherwise be forced to marry back in the middle east, nor any sort of religious police--can force them to wear a headscarf, hajib, or other symbol of patriarchal oppression. They are free at last.

I'm looking to see Obama to do something very classy and courtly and public by way of making it up to these two women, who had come to support him and who belong to a group he hopes will vote for him. If he could manage it, it might be sweet for him to mention that many Christian nuns still wear concealing robes and headgear, and that pretty much every depiction of Mary the Mother of God shows her with a head covering.

Things aren't quite this simple when one is up against Fox "News" and other attack venues -- TV changes the "reality" of things. I'm certain that the women asked to move were given other good seats -- but ones not directly in the camera view -- so as to avoid forcing the campaign to once again justify video clips played in a loop by the radical right "proving" that Obama is really a Muslim and doesn't share mainstream American values. He has made clear that he totally respects other's religious beliefs. You should be criticizing the radical right attack thugs -- they're the ones creating the issue by equating Muslim with "terrorist."

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STOP REPUBLICAN MCCAIN FROM SELLING OUR AMERICA.

OF COURSE these women "cannot" sit behind Obama in camera shot, this is America! I would have told them the same if I was part of his staff. Why does Daisy Khan choose to ignore the fact that this "would have been" used against Obama soon after it was recorded. I am sure the Muslim women that wanted to sit behind him knew this also. Please people, let's talk about something of importance.

Obama needs some better people around him. These bozos clearly don't get it.

Daisy Khan

You will not let us respect you. Had you criticized the Iranians for forcing a women's German soccer team recently to wear hijab, long skirts and gloves during a soccer match in Teheran, we would have begun to respect you. But your constant shrill refrain against the US of A makes you irrelevant.

Obama is the best politician I've seen in a long time. I think he's better than Bill Clinton! Does anyone believe he didn't know? Of course he doesn't want obviously Muslim people in his shots due to the non-issue that he is "secretly" a Muslim. I do hope Obama wins as McCain would be a nightmare but don't expect the sweeping changes from him that he espouses. He's pandering to every group he can without alienating his base. It's politics people, get over it.

Fortunately or unfortunately political campaigns are run with thousands of unpaid volunteers who make decisions which are not necessarily congruent with the candidates beliefs or wishes. This event has gotten way too much press to the delight of the GOP. Please, please, save your indignation for the REAL issues. A more important issue to discuss might be Obama's groveling in front of AIPAC on the issue of Iran and Jerusalem. This is where we need to pressure him to pay attention to the wishes of the people and not the lobbies (who no longer reflect the average persons beliefs but those of corporations and the extremely wealthy).

As regrettable as it is that those two women were not welcome, it is possible to understand it. The hijab is just a piece of cloth, but in some countries and some families and communities over the world wearing it is not a choice but a demand, and it can be connected to the supression of women in Islam.

Yes, I know that many muslims say this is not the "real" Islam, but alas, it is the grim reality for millions of women in the real world. The mere idea of wrapping up women so that men may not be tempted (and in many cases locking them up in the homes as well) instead of demanding of men that they behave, is utterly repulsive.

That said, I admire and appreciate the many modern muslims working for a more humanitarian Islam.

It's all just typical handling when it comes to politics, and ESPECIALLY when a large percentage of the voting public views your candidate with suspicion to begin with.

Think about it....you also never see a lot of normal looking black people positioned on the podium behind him either...they can't do that, or the voters that they are SO carefully trying to attract will be even more afraid that electing this candidate will be a mistake. White men are afraid of two things....(that Barak is somehow secretly an Islamic extremist, and that if elected, he will band with all the rappers and thugs in America, and represent their interests ahead of theirs....

You may not like it, but that is the way it is. He must be presented as a candidate that has the support of white collar Americans, or he will not be electable in the long run.

The refusal to include the young Muslim-American female proactive supporters of the Obama Presidential campaign in public forum is a clear indicator of the "ignorance" of our leaders,and our nation regarding Islam. We, the people, have allowed ourselves to be informed by pundits and politcally driven media agendas. Our leaders informed by "experts" who have themselves been misinformed and/or miseducated. The results are reflected in the ultimate decision of the campaign advisors to contradict the very light that is driving the success of this campaign: Unity, Inclusiveness, Change.

Over 48% of the Muslims in this country are descendents of those whose blood, sweat and tears over the last 300 years have contributed to the moments we witness today. If the Obama campaign is to to continue to maintain the integrity it has earned to date it must find the courage to reverse the current movement to charge our country with fear, ignorance and division. It must get informed and include the indigenous muslim community of scholars, activists,policy-makers and other leaders whose presence and voice is not currently at the table.

The Muslim community must take on the role of active paricipation in the defining moments of our country and take back our way of life from the small, fractionalized segment of radicals who claim to speak for the 2.5 billion Muslims around the world.

I believe that CHANGE is coming and I believe that the Obama moment is a catalyst for the positive change that is taking hold of our nation. The apparent faux pas has only revealed the more complex issues we will face and the courage we have yet to discover lying dormant inside this great Nation...to be continued.

Strict adherence to a dress code, Hijab, emphasizing the modesty of a Muslim woman, and public attention seeking behavior at a political campaign seems completely contradictory.

It should be stressed that the people who did not allow these two women to wear the hijab, were non-paid volunteers. Who are not truly part of his staff, these were people who thought in the short term they were doing a favor to their candidate. In that context they probably thought they were doing a good thing. Though the Senator would not have agreed. One reason I like Senator Obama is that when he does see a problem or a mistake is made in his name he will apologize for it. As Ben Smith noted below.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0608/Obama_apologizes_to_Muslim_women.html
www.memeorandum.com/080619/p136

Ahmad of Bahrain says:
“Amazing how supposedly free, secular and democratic America is so trapped in religious dogma which is not so dissimilar to Bin Laden. Still, they seem to be preaching about all that freedom stuff.”

Moi:
Freedom to swing your fist ends where my nose begins. No one can use our freedoms of speech and assembly to openly incite the overthrow of our system of government and replace it by a 7th Century ideology that had condemned its adherents to the litterbin of humanity. Religious dogma has nothing to do with it. Our system of government is worth fighting for. We fought Nazism and Communism and we shall also fight the fanatic and primitive Jihadists to preserve our way of life.

We need to restrict these muslims from taking over our country. I see Obama is leading by example. If this is a preview of how he plans on removing muslims out of this country (maybe remove them to Canada?) then he has earned my vote.

Amazing how supposedly free, secular and democratic America is so trapped in religious dogma which is not so dissimilar to Bin Laden. Still, they seem to be preaching about all that freedom stuff.

Personally my advice to American Muslims is to leave the political pundits alone. Just ignore them and get on with your life and be good to your neighbours whoever they are. The last thing Obama wants is your open support which will give great ammo to the evangelical bigots.

The barring of these women wearing head scarfs by the Obama people does not surprise me at all. I believe they did the same thing during the primary race. You never saw a black person in the audience behind Obama when he was speaking to a crowd. I guess the blacks didn't mind this. I am very glad that these women complained and I hope they do not let it go!

yawn.....tsk...tsk...

I find it amusing that nothing those around Obama do gets blamed on Obama.

Now if McCain had asked these women to leave the stage, the blame for that would be given totally and only to him!

Wouls Asim comment on the growing number of female suicide bombers who are taking advantage of the Islamic rule that forbids men from touching women, especially during a security search. Abayas (the head-to-toe in black robes) facilitate the concealment of a bomb. Such clothing make difficult impossible for police to search every woman on the streets.

"A female suicide bomber killed at least 15 people, including several police officers, and wounded scores Sunday in an attack in front of a government building in Diyala province, Iraqi and U.S. officials said.

It was the second time this year that a suicide bomber, apparently intent on killing police officers, attacked the busy downtown area of the provincial capital, Baqubah, about 35 miles northeast of Baghdad.

The explosion occurred about 12:30 p.m., according to Lt. Gen. Abdul Karim al-Robaei, the commander of the province's security operations center. At least eight policemen, including a captain, were killed, he said.

The U.S. military said more than 45 people were wounded in the attack.

More than 30 people were wounded Iraqi and U.S. officials said.

Jassim Mohammed al-Saedi, a policeman wounded in the attack, said officers were transporting prisoners to court when he heard the explosion.

"We only heard the sound of a big explosion and a number of stores were set on fire," he said in a telephone interview from Baqubah General Hospital. "Dead and injured policemen and civilians were lying in the street."

Saedi said the area is blocked off to non-official vehicles. He said the attacker stepped out of a car, walked toward a group of police officers and detonated explosives strapped to her waist. Capt. Karim Abid Ali al-Saedi was among those killed, he said.

The U.S. military says female bombers have carried out at least 21 suicide attacks this year in Iraq, up from eight last year.

The most recent before Sunday's occurred June 14, when a woman dressed in a black abaya walked into a café in Baqubah where soccer fans were celebrating Iraq's victory over China.

An Iraqi police officer became suspicious about the woman and dispersed the crowd, according to the U.S. military.

"He spotted the detonator and began screaming" for the crowd to leave the area, a U.S. military spokesman said in a statement.

On April 15, a suicide bomber killed nearly 50 people near the site of Sunday's bombing.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/22/AR2008062200571.html?hpid=topnews

Some of the posts,recyceled over and over again by the same floks, are appalling in their profound ignorance,bigtory,stright lies and apriorist attitudes: observer...cncnd the not so xtian...are examples...

Is this forum a catlyst for hate and wormongring??

Thanks Daisy and Victoria for your attempts to alleviate some of ignorance...

Obama will be Ok if he can break out of bondage of AIPAC..to which he declared complete submission....which translates his "Yes We Can" to "No We can Not" change the vulgar and blindly biased US foreign polict towards the apartheid racist jewish theocrcay occupying all of Arab historic Palestine for the past sixty years...

" Concerned the Christian Now Liberated:

I can see it now Daisy, Victoria, Mischka and the Obfuscating Jihadist marching in the St. Patrick's Day parade clothed in bright green thawbs and heads topped with blazing green hijabs and flawed korans in their arms shouting "Death to Infidels, Christians and Jews". Let us hope this never happens."

Well, I take a lot of comfort that 'what Concerned sees now' and reality don't often seem to intersect. Maybe you could, too. :)

it seems americans are perfectly comfortable with separating church(religion) and state with every other faith- but when it comes to the hijab(which is a total concept of modesty that extends beyond the headscarf) we confuse and politicize it-

as pointed out by ms. khan- it is a religious identification- (and i add) not an ethnic or national or political one-

the fact that it is portrayed interchangably with extremists by politicians and the media alike only lends to more confusion-

so the onus is on muslims to engage and inform- which is one of the things this forum is all about-

some do not want to understand and are so entrenched in their various biases and prejudices that they will never be reached-

but there are many intelligent and reasonable people out here in blogland that can make the distinction and base their perceptions upon what is presented to them from muslims and allow them to define themselves-
otherwise- who will define us?

i hope we cam move past these non-issues enough to discuss real and improtant issues like who will be our next leader

lib you're the poster child for the fox news brainwashed fearmongers
thanks for illustrating so completely what i couldnt even make up if i tried-

I can see it now Daisy, Victoria, Mischka and the Obfuscating Jihadist marching in the St. Patrick's Day parade clothed in bright green thawbs and heads topped with blazing green hijabs and flawed korans in their arms shouting "Death to Infidels, Christians and Jews". Let us hope this never happens but as followers of the flawed koran, they visualize it in their brainwashed minds out of necessity to fulfill their koranic dreams.

i refrain always from denigrating other faiths-
if you find some examples of such behavior on my part-please share it with us-

i am certainly not alone in worrying about the destruction of our constitutional rights-

the passage of the fisa bill this week has many intelligent people worried-

anonymous- you make an excellent point- hijab is not an outward show and makes no guarantee of the condition of the heart of the wearer-

it is a fallacy to assume a piece of cloth can affect what is inside one- hijab is an attitude of modesty that one covers oneself with-
the cloth is not a necessity.

Said Victoria ---

it takes alot of indoctrination and energy to create a rabid hatred and demonization of an enemy-

Coming from one who practiced Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Wiccan..., you can say that again when you express negative opinions about religions other than Islam.

Victoria says:
…“as long as we're busy being afraid, we won't think ……of the desecration of the constitution through the patriot act and the foreign intelligence surveillance act-”.

Suddenly Victoria is worried about the US constitution when her mosque congregation, if typical, is openly calling for the replacement of this US constitution by Allah’s law called Sharia. This Sharia law is derived from their scriptures by the Saudi Wahabis regressive cult. They are the ones who built her mosque as well as 99% of the West’s mosques and pay for the propagating of their ideology.

The Reality Challenged and Obfuscating Jihadist and her/his ilk again fail to realize what Muslim symbols mean to USA citizens:

e.g.

1) Assassination of Benazir Bhutto

2) 9/11, 3000 mostly US citizens killed, 1000’s injured

3) The 24/7 Sunni-Shiite centuries-old blood feud currently being carried out in Iraq, 4056 US troops and 83,521 – 91,094 Iraqi civilians iraqbodycount.org/

4) Kenya- In Nairobi, about 212 people were killed and an estimated 4000 injured; in Dar es Salaam, the attack killed at least 11 and wounded 85.[

5) Bali-in 2002-killing 202 people, 164 of whom were foreign nationals, and 38 Indonesian citizens. A further 209 people were injured.

6) Bali in 2005- Twenty people were killed, and 129 people were injured by three bombers who killed themselves in the attacks.

7) Spain in 2004- killing 191 people and wounding 2,050.

8) UK in 2005- The bombings killed 52 commuters and the four radical Islamic suicide bombers, injured 700.

getting elected and being president are two different issues jihadist-

sadly- the islamophobia in america is so thick that even the slightest perception that one isn't actively hating muslims is perceived as friendliness to and support of terrorists-

as dubya said, you're either with us or against us'

presumably 'us' is only judeo-christian america

so, to the simplistic minds that form such statements make sure we know who those against us are-
naturally, every living breathing muslim on the planet-

every day i watch c-span and the house(congress) in session-
the day before yesterday i watched two reps from new york (and one from new jersey)spew the most vile and vicious hate speech ive ever heard before on the floor-

it was so disgusting- but since they were talking about arabs- (it was, ostensibly, a bill that called for an end to anti-semitism in the arab world) it is acceptable now- to hate muslims-

it is even now synonymous with patriotism-
in the 50's hating russians (and the godless communists) was encouraged- and to NOT hate them proved you were unpatriotic-

now the evil godless enemy that is threatening every blue blooded americans way of life are muslim-

mccain has predicted we will be in iraq for a hundred years-
it takes alot of indoctrination and energy to create a rabid hatred and demonization of an enemy-

so i guess they figure this enemy is one they'll stick with and save the trouble in the future of having to create a new one-

(i just turned off c-span- i heard a congressman sputter al-qaeda 3 times before i did)

as long as we're busy being afraid, we won't think of the recession, the massive foreclosures on homes- the desecration of the constitution through the patriot act and the foreign intelligence surveillance act-

we have alot of things to not think about now-

Ms Khan, encourage Muslim women in the US to see as you do that modesty lies not in covering the hair with a scarf, but purity in intention of communication, modesty of dress and body language.

While I am somewhat justifiably annoyed by the staffers in Obama's campaign for their youthful indiscretions, I think that those Muslim women should have been more thoughtful about their presence in this Anti-Islamic environment and more sensitive to the political and religious challenges that have plagued his campaign as a distraction from his legitimacy from the START. John McCain allowed two pastors that endorsed him to say really negative things about the two largest segments of world religion: Islam (19% of World Religion) and Catholicism (17% of World Religion) without taking any real action to distance himself. The Media gave a free pass and let McCain do a slap on the wrist for the catholicism comment. I have yet to hear anything about the destroy Islam comments from one of the pastors to date. We as Muslims must choose between what is really important and what is not. And what is not is all the superficial stuff. Lets move on, their is just too much at stake to be fake.

Latifa Z
latifaz.com

Ms Khan, trump up every imagined and real slight against Muslims while rationalizing the serious grievances expressed by non-Muslims about wrongs done by Muslims and you do yourself the great favor of having non-Muslims be wary of Islam even more. If that is what you are aiming for, go right ahead.

If Obama is president, and he travels to a Muslim country, and some Muslim women in full hijab wants to be photographed with Obama, or to stand behind him, or are near enough to him to be photographed or videoed, what then would be the reactions of Americans? Or his handlers and staffers and volunteers and Secret Service men? And especially the American media feeding the frenzy?

How could any nation that prides itself on diversity, that projects itself as leader of the free world, tell women what to dress, how to dress, what is acceptable dress?

Would the outrage be less or more if Obama was photographed with scantily dressed pole dancers, strippers etc?

Perhaps there should be a "dress code" advisory issued by all Presidential candidates and American Presidents travelling domestically and overseas on what sort of dressing for women is acceptable for American sensibilities and sensitivities when meeting the presidential candidates or President.

Perhaps the next step is for presidential candidates not to be photographed or videoed with swarthy, bearded Middle Eastern looking men.

Cheers

"J"

Was that 'elitist' of me, by the way? I can just never tell if I'm sounding *stupid* enough to decide who gets the Oval Office, the face of our country to the world, control of the economy, and the nuclear launch keys, these days.

I assure you, that was working-class condescension, though, 'Mr Right-wing.'

" mr. right wingnut:

what a bunch of f****** b*******. who cares. I read comments from pagans, muslims, etc, etc, etc. Really is Obama a messenger of hope or is he just a very left leaning liberal oppurtunist???"

I dunno... Am I hopeful, or do I just think you ought to have a peek at Halliburton before you start saying 'Opportunist?'

what a bunch of f****** b*******. who cares. I read comments from pagans, muslims, etc, etc, etc. Really is Obama a messenger of hope or is he just a very left leaning liberal oppurtunist??????? Do you really want to trust someone whose voting record is the most liberal left leaning crud you can imagine?????? Does he really stand for anything at all........... after reading what his campaign did it is still all about polishing his image so he can be electable in the United States of America. Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha the joke is on you who think he is the chocolate messiah.

It was wise to remove these women. The Hijab became a symbol of Islam, and Islam, let's face it, became a symbol of anti-American resentment.
The Hijab will remind American voters that Hammas
and Hizbolah (possibly Ahmadenijad and Bin Laden)
would rejoice Obama's election, and these organizations are not stupid. The Hijab would also
remind astute American voters of a religion that
cohabitated (in tacit, if not active approval) for 1400 years with some of the ugliest practices known to mankind, honor killing, girl mutilation, apostasy and heresy laws are a few examples.
Americans who are suspicious of Islam have more
than prejudices to lean on.

Hey, Disappointed, it took the mass media a whole lot of effort asking 'Is There A Race issue?' before people worked one out. :)

You really don't understand we don't live in a perfect world? Right now he needs votes from people who might be a little put-off by the hajib. I know it's not fair. Alot of things in real life aren't fair. Things are getting better though. Obama is proof of that. One step at a time.
I think the better question would be "Why did you write this article?" It's something you should think about.

Ouch. There goes a lot of votes.

Plotinus:

"I'm glad that Obama or his campaign had them removed."

One or two *individuals* thinking like you are now, did it. Not Obama or his campaign.

In fact, it contradicts his campaign, and there's nothing to be glad over, even accepting the 'pragmatism' that may have motivated it, as you explain:

"There are still too many ignorant Americans out there who would latch on to seeing two women in a hijab behind Barack and use it to fan the flames of "he's a muslim!". Clearly, we shouldn't have to live in a country where people are so foolish, but clearly we do."

We're also trying to elect this guy so we don't *have* to.

Yes, the 'I think he's a Muslim! And that's bad! Oops, I mean, it's the 'lying' that'd be there if he or the world were like I say and I knew what happened in the first place!'

There's due prudence about who captions the photos, but there's also some ideals at stake, which Senator Obama stood well for, when he found a couple volunteers made a bad call.

I'm glad that Obama or his campaign had them removed. There are still too many ignorant Americans out there who would latch on to seeing two women in a hijab behind Barack and use it to fan the flames of "he's a muslim!". Clearly, we shouldn't have to live in a country where people are so foolish, but clearly we do. I'm happy that he or someone in the campaign is pragmatic enough not to let that happen. I *hope* that Barack, with his background, might bring more justice to the Palestinian people, and maybe be able to change the way the USA always gives Israel a pass, and maybe deal with the middleast better. First, we have to get him elected and get him past the silliness that happens in a campaign because of the silly electorate.

I wouldn't be upset if I were you. As a voter looking for a change of direction and A candidate that embraces the diverse nation we have come to be, I am not upset by what happened because I know to truly be historic and to effect a change of course the candidate that I support (Obama) has to be elected first.

Unfortunately many Americans views of the world,Cultures and religious beliefs come from 30 second sound bites on the evening news and those clips often show Muslims in, or equate them with terrorists.

Obama should reach out to and embrace all the diversity we are during his historic campaign but he has to be a pragmatist and not give those who would use it a photo-op that would or could be used to fan the flames of fear and prejudice to end prematurely what could be if and when he is elected.

I see that the muslim women is after all subjected to her man, ther is no evidence that the hijab is religious thing, but it a man,s rule to hide her face which God Had given her , this is shameful to all that we hide the woman's face ignoring God's creation.

if this were policy, that would be one thing. It was a low level campaign staffer and he apologized immediately AND called them personally. The Bushies have been doing this for years, As Policy!!! Only vetted Bush supporters allowed at any of his rallies. Subversives and anyone who didn't match their stage managed propaganda rallies were dragged out and arrested if they complained. Give me a break! This is a big nothing!

EGYPTIAN STUDENT PLEADS GUILTY TO TERRORIST AID:

An Egyptian college student pleaded guilty Wednesday to making a video demonstrating how to build a remote bom detonator to help terrorists kill enemies including American soldiers.

Ahmed Abdellatif Sherif Mohamed, 26, one of two University of South Florida students arrested after a South Carolina traffic stop in August, pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists. He faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced in September.

The arrests perpetuated the Tampa university's reputation as "Jih@d U," a nickname coined after an Egyptian professor, SAMI AL-ARIAN, was charged with raising money for terrorist attacks by the Palestinian Islamic Jih@d. He pleaded guilty to one count of providing support to terrorists and is in jail awaiting deportation.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iAtZCOCu6i-MQvVj4csX_VuLyY8QD91CNEG04

" Margarita L.:

Why is Obama going out of his way NOT to be perceived as having been a Muslim at one time? With a Muslim father and stepfather and part of his childhood spent in a predominantly Muslim country, wouldn't he naturally have a Muslim background?"

Might wanna check his biography for why that's totally factually-offbase.

While he may be familiar with the culture more than Americans, he really wasn't raised Muslim, as his father wasn't observant in the first place, and he mostly was raised by his mother. *Muslim theologians* have debunked the idea that even *they* think he's 'really a Muslim.'

Someone's trying to smear him as 'duplicitous' cause his life doesn't match their fearmongering and paranoia. Which makes a tidy 'excuse' to be bigoted-without admitting it in the first place.

Don't buy into it.

Ms. Kahn understands very well what see is doing. An it is very un-American.

Furthermore, she may not want change in America, becuase she sees herself as apart of the "privilegded cast", eventhough she claims to be Muslim. Her funding most likely comes from well healed physcians who like things just the way they are, thank-you.

It is a pleasure to see the negative responses to her and her brand of "wedge" politics.

Why is Obama going out of his way NOT to be perceived as having been a Muslim at one time? With a Muslim father and stepfather and part of his childhood spent in a predominantly Muslim country, wouldn't he naturally have a Muslim background? Why the attempt at covering it up? (Maybe, the reason is obvious.) Obama is just another dissembling, deceiving, hypocritical politician. Anyone who thinks otherwise is delusional. It's so easy to blame gaffes and missteps on low-level "volunteers" or "surrogates." The candidate himself sets policy for the campaign. But there will always be people who will defend him and continue to be blinded by his false pretenses. There will be enough time for the real Obama to unravel. He'll run out of time explaining past misstatements, lies, his poor choice of words, naivete and poor judgment. You cannot fool all the people all the time...

Readers: Daisy Khan did not write the "Obama's Headscarf Mistake" title found earlier today on the On Faith page and the wasingtonpost.com home page. I wrote it. My mistake. It has since been corrected to more accurately reflect Daisy's post.

David Waters
editor, On Faith

Well, Obama didn't 'make the mistake,' some campaign workers did... While it's certainly not in the spirit of the campaign, at the same time, there are persistent smears that Obama's a fake-Christian Muslim Manchurian candidate of some kind, and these volunteers were probably trying to avoid giving ammunition to fearmongers, not that that's any kind of way to go about it.

Wrongly so, but the hijab doesn't have great connotations for much of America: the kids probably just saw more fodder for the smear-and-fear crowd in the making and reacted that way. These campaigns get kind of, err, competetive.

I mean, I know Obama's strong on religious diversity, but I wouldn't get on stage behind him all in black and wearing a big whackin' pentacle so Fox news could say, leadingly, "*Does* Obama support *witchcraft?* Will America think this is Satanic? Would an Obama presidency be unduly influenced by Goths? What about the children?" And then of course spend hours and hours on 'both sides' of the 'question.'

(Not that I dress so, well, ever, anyway, and not that that's really representative of my religion, either, but this is the sort of thing those campaign volunteers feel to be up against over the 'Muslim issue.' People trying to drown out the important stuff over paranoia.)

Not a great analogy, cause the hijab's rather different, but, see what I mean? Pressure and stuff.

Obviously, Obama's attitude or platform never changed, and he apologized when he found out and went right ahead and appeared with Muslim ladies to show he's not about that. But the other side's just been playing so dirty, maybe something like that was bound to happen, sooner or later.

As a Muslim-American, I have been largely supportive of Senator Obama, and his quest for social change. However, I too was disheartened to learn about the senator's campaign and their inadvertent attempt to cleanse Islam from the American landscape.

Among the changes that this country desperately needs, is accountability. Senator Obama's stance on various controversies, including Rev. Wright, Minister Farrakhan, Racism, and others reflect his moral strength and personal leadership to defend justice, while condemning bigotry and intolerance.

In the spirit of accountability, Senator Obama should accept responsibility for his campaign's actions, his inaction, and condemn the religious intolerance that alienates so many Americans. Perhaps then, the democratic nominee can speak with the authority that this country needs to bring about meaningful social change.

So, Daisy, do you ever read the comments here? Do you read the truth? Or do you go on just blithely thinking that your column was wonderful and perfect?

Hopeful:

One does not have to go far to find BO's motives in maintaining his elitist image. He does NOT have to worry about the black vote; it's his. BUT, the image must be maintained for the REST of the voters. For example, where are Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton? No doubt, Obama's handlers, volunteers, campaign management, or Obama himself have kept Jesse and Al closeted and under wraps. They FEAR any word, idea, thought, or image that will incite the white voter. HOPEFULLY, the BO campaign will not outwit itself.

-What racist garbage is this? Are you for real? ...incite the white voter *rolls eyes* Go re-enact the civil war you putz

No, wearing scarf is not modesty. It is demeaning and dehumanizing since it is imposed on women on almost all "tolerant" Muslim nations. That includes land of prophet- Arabia.

Wonder if the author-a Muslim- would write a column fighting for American women's right to wear shorts or sleeveless shirts in Saudi Arabia.

Btw, God save this country from ever having a turbaned president.

Are you just pissed off that Obama didn't give Faux news the ammunition for afternoon rantings and trumped up photos?

Don't feed the animals

i totally disagree with the appellation, "Obama's Headscarf Mistake." this is an erroneous label to be attributed to Obama the Candidate. to characterize the situation in this manner is unfair by any prudent measurement.
look, this was simply an error of judgment by Obama's zealous workers, who mistakenly evicted the two muslim women wearing the headscarf; it could very well have been two men wearing long beards.
the point is this: Obama issued an apology for this mistake; so, in my view, the matter is now closed! if the women in question asks for more, Obama should refuse. they should not be allowed to milk the situation for more than it's worth. i sense that is what may be happening! of course, that would most unfortunate, but which would reflect badly on the two women and the muslims at large.
the situation as it stands does not warrant any more action from Obama than what has already been conceded.
one needs to be reminded of the old adage: 'live and let live ...'! or, in the well-known words of an american layman "can we all get along."
yours,
mofi alkamudi

I'm curious as to why you go here. This man is running for President and has been trying to appease people and tell them he is a Christian not a Muslim. Don't you think the way he is so heavily scrutinzied, that any sampling of Muslim items around him will lead to more detrimental writings about him? We all believe in free religion, but as you have read and seen, it is a campaign killer when you have to subdue talk, writings and the media about your faith and trying to disprove that idea about being a Muslim. We are all proud of our faith, but there comes a time when you have to make a decision, bad or good, in order to succeed where you will be the under dog because of your race.

Daisy-

Give it a break. It is not an Obama "mistake". It was caused by VOLUNTEERS, not by Obama himself. His campaign staff apologized to the women. However, they really wanted their 15 minutes of fame and demanded that Obama himself apologize. Which he did this afternoon. So give it a rest already. Pick on somebody who truly deserves it - like the Republicans.

If you were a muslim, would you vote for a candidate who does not want to be seen with you in the background at a rally?

The Obama camp's treatment of the two muslim women was despicable.

OFFENSIVE MSM HEADLINE

Obama didn't do it, one of his staffers did it. Obama personally called the women and apologized. Your headline makes it seem as if Obama turned round, saw headscarves and ordered the women off the platform. Shame on you! You're just as bad!

A brief comment in response to 'Face Reality' who writes: "I do think it implies an insult that men must be soooooo primitive that we cannot control ourselves at the sight of a womans hair."

I don't wear pants because I imagine that the sight of my dick would make women jump me, I wear pants because what's under them is private. What's considered private varies from culture to culture. An example that leaps to mind: the various African cultures where going topless is the standard. Would you be comfortable with that?

Okay, I probably would be comfortable with that, but if I was a woman, I wouldn't be.

In other words, grow up.

http://ecarden.blogspot.com/

Wow, our country and/or world really is full of such ignorant, hateful, and scary people. I find it ironic that these "critics" of Islam actually demonstrate so many of the very qualities they claim to be fighting: intolerance, complete ignorance and backwardsness, imposing their values on others, hate, etc. Scary!

This will not be the last time you will see Barack HUSSEIN Obama disappoint some pressure group by abandoning a position that is perceived outrageous by the American mainstream.

Americans do justly believe that Islam is a threat to the American way of life. Those female Muslims flaunt their adherence to a retrograde cult by wearing the veil or a headscarf. They are passing a message to the American people that they want to force this primitive Bedouin custom from Muhammad's days onto the 21st century America.

I hope Barrack Hussein abandons his shameful groveling before Muslim tyrants.

I'm sorry your offended.

I'm offended at the ignorance of those wearing head scarves that wanted to sit behind Obama on camera!

Any muslim person who doesn't instinctively understand that such an image would be used as a sledge hammer by the hateful, fear mongering swift-boat marketing NEO-CONS to steal this election from us IS INTELECTUALLY DISHONEST.

The republican NEO-CONS want everyone to hate muslims, and they tried using the label of muslim to paint Obama as a traitor to the US. This is widely known, and understood by anyone with half a brain. Yet, these women feel their right to impose their personal custom on the rest of us is more important in this historic moment when the electorate is trying to rescue the nation from criminals and war.

Pretty selfish if you ask me. Fantasy-land quakity selfish, in fact.

I'm sorry - your right to wear a headscarf is not diminished by keeping you off of the TV shot that includes the candidate. In that place the headscarf is a distraction. An incindiary distraction.

YOU SHOULD KNOW BETTER AND EXIT YOUR FANTASY LAND OF EXPECTATIONS THAT YOUR FUNDAMENTALISM IS GOING TO BE IGNORED IN SUCH A MOMENT AND PLACE.

I don't care that you wear a head scarf. Really I couldn't care less if you swath yourself in 10th century ignorance wrapped by fundamentalists in (and disgracing) the Koran.

I do think it implies an insult that men must be soooooo primitive that we cannot control ourselves at the sight of a womans hair.

..But I'm not the one wearing it.

Maybe in the middle east men are this crude, but not in North America or Europe, or South America, or Australia, or China, or anywhere else civilized that I can think of.

I do believe the headscarf is a disgusting form of religious fundamentalists controlling women.

But I truly don't care if YOU wear it. Just please stop pretending that its going to be fine to wear a muslim identity flag on stage with a US Presidential candidate while we are at war with terrorists who are muslim.

Many people on this post have hit the nail on the head: Had those women showed up on TV behind Obama, the resulting slime could have filled all the swimming pools in California.

Obama's staffers made the decision for the same reason McCain's staffers would dissuade him from speaking at a Society of Atheists convention. They might be Americans, but not all Americans play well on TV. Politics is no place to practice open-mindedness.

While we give lip service to inclusion and tolerance, America is still a very closed and -- sorry, but it's true -- dumb place where a vast portion of the electorate cannot see past their own noses.

If I thought this country could handle such a picture maturely, I'd think different. But we're far from there yet. Don't blame Obama. Blame the electorate.

Well, if you're going to criticize Sen. Obama's campaign for moving those two young Muslim women, then you have to look at Sen. McCain's campaign as well. A few months ago, McCain threw a major Republican donor and leading Arab-American businessman Ali Jawad under the bus because of a an unsubstantiated allogation by a right-wing blogger that he was connected to Hizbollah. Of course, nobody hears anything about this. But when Obama's campaign makes faux pas, everyone's all over it.

Double standard much?

Muslims have to understand clothing is worn for comfort not to announce your charcter.Why the hell you want to announce to every one that you are modest and every one else is garbage.Muslims have to come out of their shell of false moral superiority and cosider themselves equall to every one else. It is also time to understand that every body is a human being first and religion is your secondry identitiy.While the interpretatiopn of what modesty and piety means to differnt people is debateable it is not acceptable to divide people on any basis while the world is becomoing a global village.

Daisy Khan wrote:

"It is regrettable – no, shameful – that any American would be asked to retreat to the shadows on account of her religious identity."

Perhaps Ms. Khan is an obfuscator. When Somali cabbies in St. Paul, Minnesota refused to take white Americans as passengers because they (Americans) were carrying pork and alcohol, what was the stand of Ms. Khan ? Protection of the religious identity of the Somali cabbies (Muslims) over violation of the Constitutional rights of Americans ? Isn't this hypocritical and dangerous ? A group of people would come to USA and then prioritize their right to overthrow the rights of others ?

Why not get an immigration bill to prevent Muslims coming to USA ?

Sadly enough this is what we live with today. Lets face the reality—a picture like that would be the biggest campaign poster in history if the Republican Rovian Assasination Team decided it would be effective to sink Obama. After all who is it that started and continues to breathe life into the Obama is a Muslim fallacy. The media would have an absolute field day—one need only see what they pull on a daily basis. We can be thankful we have John Stewart to bring up the absurdity of the punditry. It's a sad state of morality these days.

I respect your views, Ms Khan, but surely you realize what a picture that would make on all the right wing web sites. Barak Husain Obama with his Muslim wives, perhaps?I know we shouldn't be influenced by such things, but this is a political race. Let's urge our candidates to be as open and ethical as they can, but let's not demand the impossible. JFK said everyone wanted their son to grow up to be president, but nobody wanted him to be a politician. That's not only not possible, it's not desirable. Our best presidents, Lincoln, FDR, have been superb politicians.

This is moronic to actually be upset about. You realize Obama is already "accused" of being a Muslim right? ACCUSED! As if anybody should be accused of any belief they might have. He is trying to win an election and if these ladies want to help him they should stay out of sight when photogs are present. Yes, hopefully in the future people will not be "accused" of being Muslim, Christian, Hindu or Atheist.

Personally, I think that Muslim's put way too much emphasis on clothing and too little emphasis on evolving their religious dogma. The religion must come into the 21st Century if it wants to be viewed as anything other than hostile to those who believe differently.

Why is everyone accusing Ms. Khan's article of not reflecting the latest facts, that Obama personally apologized?

She says, "I thank him for directly addressing this unfortunate incident and personally apologizing to the young women."

Can we all read?

Though I agree that America should be a safe haven for religious expression, the unfortunate reality of the current political process is that politicians must carefully defend against attacks aimed at basest fears of the electorate. Our joint political fate is determined by a swath of white middle-class voters in PA, OH, and FL. In my conversations with these voters there is still an underlying inability separate the religion of Islam from the minority of extremists who have used a perverted form of this religion to justify terrorism. By repeatedly muddling the facts of Obama’s religious and ethic identity, the right has been able to play upon these swing voters’ fears to cast doubt on his patriotism and intentions as president. Though regrettable, I think it’s a political necessity to avoid images that, when taken out of context, provide more fodder for these baseless attacks on Obama. I think Obama’s election will do much more for the cause of inclusiveness. I regrettably agree with his staff who determined that diluting his inclusivity is a necessary price to pay for admission to the White House.

TIM wrote:
I am confused as to why you assume that Obama had nothing to do with this, and how you immediately draw the conclusion that it was his staffer's choice.

Tim, one reason it's easy to see this was a staffer's gaffe is that Obama was photographed with Muslim women in headscarves the very morning this incident occurred. And they weren't just seated passively behind him, they surrounded him in an enthusiastic group. Those pictures have been published.

As usual, Obama handled this one correctly and now if you see someone wearing head coverings at an Obama event, the right won't be able to make innuendos about it, since the issue has already been discussed in the news.
Point- Obama. And for a follow up point- I'd like to see someone try this at a McCain event.

I am sure that Senator Obama would be happy to have muslim women behind him wearing hijabs if he was able to be totally himself. Unfortunately, there are plenty of Americans who would immediately jump to the conclusion that he was supporting terrorists if he shows any connection to the muslim world. It's a shame that this is the case but it is reality.

Obama is a muslim and he want to show that he is not
so he want to show that he is hard on Muslims,
Just like someone choaching his child baseball team, he 'll be hard on his child.

"One day, we may see American Presidents, male and female, wearing turbans, yarmulkes, and hijabs."

That is the day we will cease to be a free country. Islam requires that everyone submit to shariah law. They've already attempted it in Great Britain; it's probably only a few years away from reality there. Maybe that's the kind of change Obama has in store for us.

I am confused as to why you assume that Obama had nothing to do with this, and how you immediately draw the conclusion that it was his staffer's choice. Since when have low level staffers ever made decisions without the knowledge of a superior. You live in a dream world to think that Obama himself was unaware that these measures were being taken.

"One day, we may see American Presidents, male and female, wearing turbans, yarmulkes, and hijabs"

Religious symbols? Wow! I hope not! I am a Nigerian American and a conservative Evangelical Christian, and I believe that America is God's own country consisting of different peoples, tribes and faith. As Evangelical Christians, we should have no political affiliations. We are not of this world, but, we should give thanks to GOD for all political parties and all peaceful earthly governments. We should obey and subject ourselves to all earthly governments and their instruments as the instruments of GOD for peace.
We should obedient and heed the words of Christ when He said to his disciples "Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and give unto God what is God's" Politics belongs to Caesar, and rightly so. Evangelical Christians who participate in political partisanship are problematic. Serious problem indeed!

God gave the USA founding fathers the wisdom of separating Church, Synagogue, Mosque from State. We will do well to keep it that way for ever. May God bless America and this wonderful world He has created for us.

I completely agree with your disappointment with the Obama camp. I hope that people realize that Islam is the 2nd largest religious organization in the world, and the vast majority of people who practice this faith are good people.

On a sad note though, I must say I have to agree with their decision. When a Dunkin doughnut commercial gets taken down, you know we are living in a country that is fearful of anything related to the muslim faith.

Obama has smeared numerous times about his faith and this would have only added fuel to the fire. While it is up to the Obama campaign to improve this discourse, it is us to all Americans to become educated about numerous faiths.

Dear Ms. Khan: As an Arab American I must take issue with your misleading title/article. Have you been living in a vacuum? Have you not been listening to the deplorable statements by Fox News or other ultra conservative media outlets regarding Senator Obama and his wife? What do you think they would have done to him had those pictures been aired? It would have made the Rev. Wright loops look tepid. You are certainly not helping the only hope we have of truly becoming a nation inclusive of all faiths and races. If you really want to see continued abuse of Muslims as well as other minorities then write these self serving pieces and live with McCain.

....Wednesday in Detroit, VOLUNTEERS for Senator Barack Obama’s presidential campaign refused...

This article's headline is 'Obama's Headscarf Mistake." It misrepresents to all readers who you, the writer seeks to 'grab' to read your article, as to the true circumstances around this unfortunate incident. More aptly would be this headline:

Volunteers' for Obama Campaign Headscarf Mistake'.

As your article conveys, singling out individuals because of their differences is tragic whenever it happens. What I find missing in your words and the entire coverage of this incident is investigating what prompted the volunteers to do find this necessary in the first place. Unfortunately, as agressively as the press is to give a voice to the individuals that were recipients of this poor judgement on behalf of the volunteers, why not speak directly to those volunteers and ask their motivations?

Conservatives and conservative media have gone to any length to frighten American citizens any way possible in order to influence their vote against Senator Obama. One of the fears they employ, ie. that Obama is Muslim, is based on the Conservative effort to create and maintain an admosphere of fear around that faith that started long before Barack Obama became a candidate for Presidency.

Indulge me for a moment the possibility those volunteers themselves acted out of fear. As the smears swirl around Senator Obama and his lovely wife, Michelle; smears tainted and dipped in the most base racist latent and overt fears still present in American society: Possibly their fear that these tactics will succeed in destroying their candidate. In fact, his former opponent even raised the sceptre of fear for his life! That is not to at all justify Obama's supporters actions, they were wrong. I would be anxious to hear their views on the Muslim faith and given an opportunity to express their regret in what they did.

All coverage I have watched regarding this incident provides the premise that the volunteers were carryng out the heightened sensitivity in the Obama campaign of the misconceptions regarding him being muslim. Yet this assumption that somehow the Obama campaign itself is responsible for thier actions is diametrically opposed to the statement the Obama campaign put out in response to the 'headscarf' experience.

Where is your outrage with the smear campaign being waged against Senator Obama, in that this is even considered an issue, (women wearing headscarves) and would create an image problem for a politician? My hope is that The Obama Campaign supporters one and all be filled with the spirit of hope that has driven this monumental historical candidacy forward, and serve with faith and never from fear. I have less hope that the media will report this incident fairly and in true context, covering all aspects.

Daisy says the Hijab is a sign of piety. According to our way of thinking piety comes from within and not from a head scarf. The West takes this mode of dress as a rejection of all that the West stands for. That is why The Muslim Brotherhood pay women to wear it. It is to make a statement. We therefore deal with it on that basis. Muslims should be aware of our interpretation of the Hijab and have respect for our sensibilities. Sitting behind a presidential candidate of the largest secular country in the world is an in your face insult to all secular people around the world.

What am I to do when, walking down the street in my town, a police officer pulls up and tells me I have to remove a red handkerchief I am using for a headband? I ask him why. He says it is recognized gang paraphernalia and that I can be arrested if I do not remove it.

Obviously, that this can happen is a sign of deteriorating mental health in my community, but is it rational to struggle against such insanity when it is so easy to conform? I believe this can only be answered on a personal basis. Obama may have too much to lose.

I think that there may very well have been an overstepping of propriety here with respect to this issue and the Obama campaign.

However, i think that it really deserves a bit of perspective and balance here.

Muslims as a whole in this country are being scapegoated and stereotyped for the extremists among them. That is not fair and is unjust.

We need to be judging people not on the color of their skin and the composition of their religious identity but on the content of their character and the substance of their actions.

Our society in the United States is NOT a Muslim society. It is secular. Immigrants to this country must be allowed to practice their religious customs as their religion dictates, but it is also their obligation to assimilate to some societal extent into the culture they are coming into.

There is a certain cultural pre-dispositon in this country and indeed throughout most of the world to need to connect with the eyes and faces of individuals to begin to establish a component of rapport and trust. When someone shields and prevents others from establishing that connection, they must be prepared for an element of distrust in the society as a result. Every action has opposing reaction.

In order to build trust in this society you must be willing to embrace the society to a modest extent. Indeed, "meet the society half way".

Otherwise you are trying to force feed your own culture onto the rest of society. That can only bring suspicion, resentment, and distrust.

Muslim immigrants need to be respected and honored.

But they also bare a burden of obligation to adapt and build their own bridges with our culture.

PS - I believe the following day Sen. Obama happily posed for a photo with a student at Wayne State University in downtown Detroit who was wearing a hijab.

I feel it. Four years ago, I was denied the front row seat at Howard Dean's live national TV interview because I am an Asian. This is American politics and we don't want our candidates on TV with some Muslims, Asians or any other weird people who is neither white or black? America only has whites and blacks, right? Oh, also hispanics, I am sorry, since recently. Sadly, this stuff is still in many people's heads.
I have nothing against Obama. Actually, I have been rooted for him since day one. It is the culture in this country that needs some change to embrace this new century. Not so long ago, this country labeled all kinds of discrimination and prejudice as traditions. It discriminated Irish, Jews, Italian, Catholics, women, coloreds and gays. Those who still holds discrimination and prejudice are weak and knowingly losing their game, therefore discrimination is their last trick. As long as they still vote, each politician needs to make them comfortable on this issue. So I don't blame Obama or his staffers. But the new American culture is taking place already. We have had Gary Locke, the former Governor of Washington State, who is a Chinese American, and Bobby Jindal, the Governor of Louisiana, who is an Indian American, and Congressman Keith Ellison who is a Muslim. See, it's coming, no mater you like it or not.

Suggestion - help elect Obama now, and then when he is in office vetoing the bills that, if passed, would renew the Patriot Act (including the parts that allow the FBI to break into your house for no other reason than the suspicion that you may be a Muslim), if you're still feeling like Obama is not exercising inclusiveness of Muslims in America better than the Republicans, THEN submit stuff like this article in the Washington Post.

If you'd prefer to take your chances with the Republicans again, by all means keep slamming Obama now.

Sen. Obama has called both of the women personally to apologize for this incident. At least one of the women then put out a statement praising Sen. Obama and offering her full support for his candidacy as a true change-agent. I think Ms. Khan's post should have been updated to reflect this fact.

Obama is a phony and a hypocrite.
A pied piper who will lead his naive followers over a cliff. And tragically drag down the rest of us with them.

Ms. Khan is right on principle, but WRONG to apply it here, where women had been sent to create a negative photo op for a website promoting misinformation on Sen. Obama. Whether naive or disingenuous, Ms. Khan's failure to question, let alone determine the facts, before condemning the Obama campaign is, itself, a violation of principle.

Obama aides had no obligation to walk into a trap set up to exploit an honorable tradition of Muslim women for a political stunt. To allow such a stunt would have dishonored the tradition.

On the day we see non-Muslims in Mecca, Jews praying on the Temple Mount/Al-Haram Al-Qudsi, freedom of conscious in Islam and Muslim countries, and freedom from fear for telling the truth; American Muslims aspirations should be within reach. Perhaps you and fellow Muslims should work on eliminating the obstacles Islam has created for Muslims, rather than assume the fault lies elsewhere, Then we may see an American society ready for a President, male or female, who wears a turban or hijab, and your lecture will be most welcomed.

regards, joseph

Corrected: I am an American Muslim, often given second class status as a Muslim, by immigrant Muslims who claim authenticity due to having a Muslim name, the ability to wear native clothing and speak Arabic. But we all know the traditions of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) regarding hikam (wisdom). It is stated that Allah (GOD) judges ones actions in proportion to ones intentions. Only these young sisters know what thier intentions where, but thier wisdom should have told them that thier presence would most likely hurt this (Good)candidate and give the opposition a weapon to spread more rumors. Obama did not make the hijab and Islam a symbol of terrorism, we did! This is the "simple minded" thinking that is often reflected by many defacto racist organizations, claiming to represent Islam and brotherhood. Please get a clue when it comes to nuance and pregmatism.

can you imagine what this blog would look like if obama's volunteers HAD allowed these young women to be in the photo op behind obama?

right now i'd be arguing that obama is not a muslim but a christian...

but the real problem is not what his volunteers did- or if he apologized or not-

the real problem is that the phobia driven media has made us a people who are afraid-

to quote the young woman who was not allowed in the backfround-
being a muslim is not a sin

the sin is the fear that we allow to rule our expression
the fear to dissent

I am an American Muslim, often given second class status as a Muslim, by immigrant Muslims who claim authenticity due to having a Muslim name, the ability to wear native clothing and speak Arabic. But we all know the traditions of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) regarding hikam (wisdom). It is stated the Allah (GOD) judges one's action in proportion to ones intentions. Only these young sisters know what thier intentions where, but thier wisdom should have told them that thier presence would most likely her this candidate and give the oppositions a weapon. Obama did not make the hijab and Islam a symbol of terrorism, we did! This is the "somple minded" thinking that is optin reflected by these defacto racist organizations claiming to represent Islam. Please get a clue when it comes to nuance and pregmatism.

Weekly. For a few months. Weekly.

I will bet the rent that at the next Obama rally, there will be several muslims in the background dressed in traditional garb. This is the pattern developed of the Obama campaign. First the gaff, then the apology.

There is not one ounce of sincerety in the Obama message. Its politics at its worst.

I think it would be great if a presidential candidate, if political candidates in general would do more public outreach to varied religions, minority religions (actually most religions, when broken down by denomination and sect - are minority religions).
If McCain and Barack, then later their VP nominees were to visit some new church, synagogue, temple or mosque, including Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu, even Unitarian and Bahai, etc. - if they were to do this freely and openly, accompanied by local politicians, we could build great new bridges, not only between American communities, but also with the related congregations around the world.
If we can get past the religious intolerances of the past, or at least lower the thresholds for understanding, we could bring much healing to this world.

Ms. Kahn -

I doesn't look like you did your research before posting this. And the title is misleading.

As several postings have mentioned, he personally called the women to apologize.
One of the women actually said:

"We commend him for displaying qualities befitting an effective president," she added.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080620/NEWS15/806200407

Muslims in general and Arab in particular mistake the American peoples simple heartedness as simple mindedness. They argue that if the Semite Jews can “dominate” the West why can’t they, especially that they are as intelligent if not more intelligent than the Jews.
Many gave up on their societies and emigrated to the West with the belief and desire not so much as to integrate in the new lands but to lord it over the citizens of those countries by replacing the secular governments by their Islamic Sharia. They could not take over the West by force, and God knows they have been trying for the past fourteen hundred years, and now they want to take it over by somehow imposing their belief system, which is also a manual for daily living. Never mind that system proved its abject failure wherever it was applied. That is why they brazenly call for the replacement of the US Constitution and of having “Presidents with turbans and Hijabs”. They actually believe in what the rest of us consider as unrealistic because they have long lost the ability to distinguish between reality and fancy. What do you expect of someone who believes in talking ants and talking trees and rivers of wine and honey.

This is no different from the arranged seating at his appearances during the primary campaign, where the majority of the attendees were African-Americans, but they made sure that people seated behind Mr. Obama in the view of television cameras where mostly white.

Obama is not going to commit political suicide over this.

It was not the "good" choice to move these fine people out from the background of the shot, or a choice I would have wanted to have to make, but it was the ONLY realistic choice to make.

In a swift-boat-free world, things would have been different.

It wasn't a mistake. The theofascists on the religious right would have used those pictures with glee.

This is pure hypocrisy on the part of the Obama campaign, no more, no less.

If Obama wants to be "inclusive" he needs to stand up to the courage of his convictions, no matter what the consequences. If he can't do that while campaigning, there's no way on earth he'll do that as President.

It also doesn't wash that this was a mistake on the part of his staffers. The truth of both incidents is that all candidates have staffers who look through the audience to invite people to sit behind he candidate to reinforce what ever message they are trying to give. Those staffers have very specific instructions given them by the campaign. In both cases the staffers approached the friends of these women and asked if they wanted to sit behind Obama and the offer was recinded once it was revealed the women in question were with those who had been originally asked. There is no way on earth his campaign managers issued those instructions without Obama's knowledge (if they did, it only proves he is totally inept because he doesn't even know what's happening in his own campaign).

The whole idea that "the right" would try to make some issue out of who is sitting behind him at a campaign event is ludicrous. Nobody cares. This is an elitist assumption based on fear and ignorance. Even if it were true, it again demonstrates Obama's lack of courage and integrity and shows him for the political hack he is.

Has it occurred to anyone that the furor caused by this incident is greater than any that wouuld have been caused by seating these two women where they wanted to sit? Barack Obama has shown himself to be an astute campaigner and wouls have recognized that fact; to insinuate that he had anything to do with this decision or would have supported it is ludicrous. Without even considering the message of inclusion that pervades his campaign, it simply made no political sense to deny these women their seats. Senator Obama has acted swiftly, compassionately, and most important, logicallly, to undo the damage caused by the actions of overzealous volunteers.

I agree with most of your article. However, the title you chose, "Obama's Headscarf Mistake" is not consistent with your expressed thoughts. Are his members of staff acting (as you suggested) on their own, or are they acting on behalf of Obama? Whose 'mistake' is this?

Please be clear on the above before choosing a title which sounds close to an accusation.

Thank you!

I've just read that Senator Obama personally called and apologized to the two women involved - case closed, tempest over, time to move on....

Actually, it's the actions of a couple of misguided campaign volunteers that has led to this tempest in a teapot.

The Obama campaign quickly moved to apologize to the Muslim community, state unequivocally that this is not the way Senator Obama operates and released several photos containing scarf-wearing Muslim women with Obama that had been taken in the past.

I'm not sure what else can reasonably be expected from the Obama campaign, though a personal call or meeting with Senator Obama would be a nice, but not required, added touch.

One does not have to go far to find BO's motives in maintaining his elitist image. He does NOT have to worry about the black vote; it's his. BUT, the image must be maintained for the REST of the voters. For example, where are Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton? No doubt, Obama's handlers, volunteers, campaign management, or Obama himself have kept Jesse and Al closeted and under wraps. They FEAR any word, idea, thought, or image that will incite the white voter. HOPEFULLY, the BO campaign will not outwit itself.

I can see it now - a shiftBoat add with two Muslim women wearing a head covering to sit directly behind Senator Obama . There probably Republicans>
This is Nothing more then Politics as usual!

It was unfortunate, but the fact that he has "directly address[ed] this unfortunate incident and personally apologiz[ed] to the young women" when he learned about the incident, indicates that he hasn't strayed away from inclusion. It was an unfortunate lapse by a staff member, over-anxious about the image, not the message. That he 'directly addressed' and "apologized" tend to make ost of your initial criticism a bit out of place.

We are learning things, and not all of us are learning equally well (not just among Obama staff but the country in general), but clearly we're inching our way out of racial, religious and other borders.

i absolutely and whole heartedly approve of those women being asked to move. where is the respect for senator obama? those women were "insensitive" to the larger picture of this election, and frankly i think its brazen of you to suggest the senator should be even remotely responsible for these women. if they were as "modest" as their head garb represents they are, what was their motive is wanting to be front stage and center directly behind obama so as to get photographed and seen in their headscarves.

just because the headdress represents modesty, doesn't mean the women wearing it were acting that way!

signed, just my 33 year old fundamental and democratic opinion.

As an old Jew, subject to many hidden and overt acts of prejudice as a young man in America, I am dismayed when any person is insulted due to race,gender, or religious or non-religious preference. I was happy to see that Senator Obama himself as well as his campaign apologized to the individuals involved. But I am really starting to get angry about the double standard going on in this election. The republicans have used the"southern strategy" for forty years and are continuing to use it by demanding picture I.D. to prevent "voter fraud" in states where they control the legislature making it difficult for poorer people to vote. They are spreading false rumors about Obama, emphasizing his supposed Muslim heritage as though he is planning to invite Al Quaeda to his nomination ball. Yet noone in the mainstream media is dwelling on this or on various tricks that John McCain has used to secure funding. Instead we get a constant instant drumbeat of Obama campaign malfeasance before either explainations or apologies come out, usually the next day. Keep pointing up Obama's mistakes, but how about more headlines and discussions about the Republican abomination of the last seven years and McCain's blatant attempt to cozy up to Bush supporters by assuming all the bad government ideas in the conservative war manual. He is no longer straight talk McCain

"I feel those involved should see where such an image would end up and how the right would use it to demonize both Obama and Muslims."

Where's the courage of conviction that Obama claims as the Hope/Change candidate who's going to WA to clean things up? He looks like just another empty suit politician who panders as a rule.

While I agree that the picture obviously would have been used by the media to exacerbate already growing "fears" of Obama as having connections with Muslims and extremists, I disagree with 1 particular piece in this article.

The writer accuses the staffers of this action, and says that they should (paraphrase) reflect why they are in the Obama camp.....However, do yu really believe that Obama didn't have any say in this matter, or any other matters of this kind? He obviously wants to create an image for himself that does not link him to Muslims. The blame does not rest squarely on the shoulders of the staffers, but on the entire Obama political machine, including Obama himself.

Again, any photos of this nature would be wrongly used by the media....but don't portray Obama as some naive do-gooder that would never give favor to one religion over another. Remember:

HE WANTS TO MAKE AN IMAGE TO THE MAJORITY OF AMERICANS SO HE CAN GE ELECTED.

To think we'll have a president wearing a hijab anytime soon considering the current middle-east relations that we (as a country) have is absurd. I can understand the problem of even remotely aligning himself (Obama) photographically to the Islamic religion.

A quote from Islamica Magazine:

“Muslims have found the perfect candidate, but cannot vocally support him for fear that if they do, they may be the reason he loses.”

The most comprehensive playlist you will find on the internet with more than 100 of the best songs supporting Barack Obama: http://tinyurl.com/2t4mjf

You Fools! I can't believe what I am reading in the comments here. You think that Fox would have a 'field day' with the Pics of 2 woman in Hijabs behind Sen Barry Obama?? Get a clue!! His staffers have 'whitened and lightend' every photo op background mosaic I have ever seen of this guy. Based on the news coverage that I see of his 'preacher-esque' sound bites...you'd think this guy doesn't have any black support at all. You are all shameful fools worrying about some Fox Noise constructed back lash. Rest assured this exclusion was decided on long ago by senior staffers of the campaign. Obama fails! Worst person in the wooorld!
Ron Paul for individual freedom and liberty!
You Obama supporters want change? ask Obama if he is a Member of the CFR and then ask what the CFR has planned for Africa after Obama's Coronation. More of the same CFR Crap. Vote Ron Paul 2008---write it in

This is just a sign of the dishonesty and corruption that will come with the Obama presidency.

Were Obama honest and forthright, he wouldn't have to manipulate the scene around him to win votes.

You wrote, "Our nation's foundation rests on a legacy of diversity..." That is simply untrue. John Jay in The Federalist wrote, "Providence has been pleased to give us this one connected country to one united people -- a people descended from the same ancestors, speaking the same language, professing the same religion, attached to the same principles of government, very similar in manner and customs." Alexander Hamilton wrote, "The influx of foreigners must, therefore, tend to produce a heterogenous compound; to change and corrupt the national spirit; to complicate and confound public opinion; to introduce foreign propensities. In the composition of society, the harmony of the ingredients is all-important, and whatever tends to to a discordant intermixture must have an injurious tendency." You seem to completely misunderstand America's origins entirely.

Guy:
If they sat behind Obama, Fox news would show the clip over and over again to associate Obama with the Middle East. It's a shame that many Americans are still that racist and closed-minded, but for all we know, the two women could be operatives for the Republican party.

-- So what? Would does Obama have to fear? Isn't he running on tolerance? It looks like he threw these two muslim women under the bus along with Rev. Wright and Grandma. Anything for a vote.

You wrote, "Our nation's foundation rests on a legacy of diversity..." That is simply untrue. John Jay in The Federalist wrote, "Providence has been pleased to give us this one connected country to one united people -- a people descended from the same ancestors, speaking the same language, professing the same religion, attached to the same principles of government, very similar in manner and customs." Alexander Hamilton wrote, "The influx of foreigners must, therefore, tend to produce a heterogenous compound; to change and corrupt the national spirit; to complicate and confound public opinion; to introduce foreign propensities. In the composition of society, the harmony of the ingredients is all-important, and whatever tends to to a discordant intermixture must have an injurious tendency." You seem to completely misunderstand America's origins entirely.

Agree with the above poster who said "for all we know, the two women could be operatives for the Republican party." This is called "bad-jacketing."

The choice is as follows: Jump into the foreground and let racists use these pictures to divide the electorate. Or, wait in the background, just a few more months and when Obama gets elected bring up issues to be resolved. I think it is short sighted to tradeoff real substantial gain for a whole community for the opportunity of two young women to be on TV.

no mistake you be dammed if you do or be dammed by the media no matter what you do .

Obama camp is very afraid to have himself linked in anyway with Islam. He has been afraid all his life. Obama in Kenyian language means no balls.

If they sat behind Obama, Fox news would show the clip over and over again to associate Obama with the Middle East. It's a shame that many Americans are still that racist and closed-minded, but for all we know, the two women could be operatives for the Republican party.

Hi,

I tend to agree with Luke. It's the racist, muslim-haters who would have had a field day with this photograph. These two young muslim ladies should have more common sense and avoid sitting behind the senator in the first place. Do you honestly think these two young women didn't know the consequences of this photograph?

I say this is a muzlim alright.

While I agree that it is wrong to discriminate, I feel those involved should see where such an image would end up and how the right would use it to demonize both Obama and Muslims. The key is to get Obama elected and THEN we can address the issues of discrimination in American society.

Another argument that neglects the actual facts in order to get to the arguing. If Obama had personally ordered them away, that would be different. This was staffers for whom he has apologized. He does not avoid being seen or photographed with Muslims. Much ado about nothing.

I'm with Obama on this one. His motives are easily understood. Also, since you brought up modesty, I'm surprised the women in question agreed to be on full display in the first place.

And shame on you Daisy, for using this opportunity to quibble about something so insignificant. You've completely lost sight of the big picture.

Daisy Khan uses a kind language, speaks well, but
please don't forget 9/11 and - even if it may be politically incorrect - it remains a fact, that the U.S. is waging a worldwide war against extremist
Islamism. It may be false and unjustified, but the hijab and burqah are seen as some kind of symbols of the enemy. Sorry, but Obamas helper knew very well what they are doing.

Daisy wrote:

"One day, we may see American Presidents, male and female, wearing turbans, yarmulkes, and hijabs."

Daisy, you're deluded to think an American President could wear a hijab or turban.

"Our country was founded as a safe haven for those fleeing religious persecution"
-Uh, no. Or perhaps, but not really. If you read history carefully, you'll find that the first people in America were those who, yes, were indeed fleeing persecution, but very quickly used America to impose their OWN persecution on everyone else. And now people still try and claim that the 'founding fathers' are all Jesus-loving Christians so as to make sure they can make laws that are based on the bible.

"One day, we may see American Presidents, male and female, wearing turbans, yarmulkes, and hijabs."
-I doubt it very, very strongly. If you take a look at the vicious rumors spiraling around Obama, you will realize why. This is not an open country.

Sorry but I believe that it was a good move to keep Obama's backdrop Muslim free. Not because I have a problem with Muslims but because it would have given the GOP smear soldiers a great whipping post. It's not hard to imagine what people like Limbaugh will do with a photo showing Muslim women seated behind Obama. Sad but true...

Obama continues to avoid taking difficult and principled stands that would demonstrate his righteousness. Instead he takes the expedient, politically beneficial route.

This trend doesn't say much about his leadership skills or his sincerity.

From one concerned citizen of U.S.A,

Dear American Voters, reporters, media. professionals, political parties, and presidential Nominees,

Hon. Senator McCain and Obama, besides each having many attributes and characteristics.

The critical differences between the two of these presidential presumptive nominees in my opinion are as under:

1. Presidential "Temperament and Caliber".
2. Little Washington "insider Versus outsider" experience.
3. "Vision and mission" for our nation future rather than past.
4. American policies, " first U.S.A Centric" than any other country [ ies ] centric.

In my professional opinion Senator Obama leads in all above qualities and attributes.

Senator Obama and his administration along with congress will address all the critical current and future domestic and foreign issues, challenges, and opportunities in coming the years.

Our citizens have and follow attributes as under:

" Family, Friends, Fellows, Faith, Funds, Foundation [s], Fun, with Freedom & Fairness and without Fear, Favor, & Failure" .

Please stay involved, stay engaged, and stay informed. Please do not allow any seduction, deception, and or confusion by some partisan media and leaders effect your vote [ What I label as Psychological Terrorism of deception, seduction and Brain washing perpetuated by some media outlets for decades. These Meedia outlet and so called pundits claim to care about our Nation].

Dear Americans, please do not allow yourself be duped, seduced, and brain washed this time ].

Yours truly,

COL. [retd] A.M.Khajawall
Disabled American Veteran
Forensic psychiatrist, Las Vegas

PS: Please talk about the " Presidential Temperament And Caliber " of our presumptive presidential Nominees. We do talk about the "Judicial Temperament" of our Supreme Court Justices nominees and so far we have failed to talk about the " Presidential Temperament " of our presumptive presidential nominees. The " Presidential Temperament " is the ultimate and in my opinion only requirement of our president as that effects every living soul here and around the world.

Thanks again.

Are you that naive to believe his apology? What did you expect him to do - not apologize? He is playing politics with everything lady. He gets done what he needs to get done at the moment even if it is a total screw-up, then he says oh I'm sorry that happened - it will not happen until the next time!!!!! Wake up people - this is part of the snakey Chicago politics that we are going to get for at least 4 years if somebody does not stop this madness and call him for what he is!!!!

Not a big deal and read as under

From one concerned citizen of U.S.A,

Dear American Voters, reporters, media. professionals, political parties, and presidential Nominees,

Hon. Senator McCain and Obama, besides each having many attributes and characteristics.

The critical differences between the two of these presidential presumptive nominees in my opinion are as under:

1. Presidential "Temperament and Caliber".
2. Little Washington "insider Versus outsider" experience.
3. "Vision and mission" for our nation future rather than past.
4. American policies, " first U.S.A Centric" than any other country [ ies ] centric.

In my professional opinion Senator Obama leads in all above qualities and attributes.

Senator Obama and his administration along with congress will address all the critical current and future domestic and foreign issues, challenges, and opportunities in coming the years.

Our citizens have and follow attributes as under:

" Family, Friends, Fellows, Faith, Funds, Foundation [s], Fun, with Freedom & Fairness and without Fear, Favor, & Failure" .

Please stay involved, stay engaged, and stay informed. Please do not allow any seduction, deception, and or confusion by some partisan media and leaders effect your vote [ What I label as Psychological Terrorism of deception, seduction and Brain washing perpetuated by some media outlets for decades. These Meedia outlet and so called pundits claim to care about our Nation].

Dear Americans, please do not allow yourself be duped, seduced, and brain washed this time ].

Yours truly,

COL. [retd] A.M.Khajawall
Disabled American Veteran
Forensic psychiatrist, Las Vegas

PS: Please talk about the " Presidential Temperament And Caliber " of our presumptive presidential Nominees. We do talk about the "Judicial Temperament" of our Supreme Court Justices nominees and so far we have failed to talk about the " Presidential Temperament " of our presumptive presidential nominees. The " Presidential Temperament " is the ultimate and in my opinion only requirement of our president as that effects every living soul here and around the world.

Thanks again.

Hell,

I believe act of asking two muslem women not to sit behind was an exercise of insensitivity.

It is indeed very disturbing that these women were asked to move or take off their head coverings, but the blame rests not with Obama or his staffers, but with the racists and ideologues who would use a picture of these women against Obama.