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The book’s cover
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By
Ahmad Maher, IOL Staff
CAIRO, August 25 (IslamOnline.net) – Michelle Malkin is another American
Islamophobic ideologue, who calls for extensive discrimination and
racial profiling against Muslims and Arab-Americans in the
United States
.
A
staunch advocate of right-wing extremist agenda, the Philadelphia-born
American writer wrote a new book wondering why the
US
government cannot just imprison Arab Americans and Muslims as it did
with tens of thousands of Japanese Americans during World War II on
the supposition that their ethnicity made them a national security
threat.
In
her book entitled 'In Defense of Internment', Malkin argues that after
the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the
United States
, racial profiling is a welcome tactic and even justified.
"If
you want to read a book decrying the loss of personal freedom in
wartime
America
, this is the wrong book. If you want to read a book about the history
of institutional discrimination against minorities in
America
, you’re out of luck again. 'In Defense of Internment' provides a
radical departure from the predominant literature of civil liberties
absolutism," read the book’s prelude.
Oddly
enough, Malkin is the daughter of Filipino immigrants herself.
‘Strictest
Scrutiny’
Malkin
also says it is "unwise" from the
US
administration to continue allowing Muslims to serve in the
US
army, particularly in the
Middle East
hotspots.
She
calls for "the strictest scrutiny" and thorough backgrounds
checks for Muslim personnel not to mention army preacher on the basis
of "race, ethnicity, religion and nationality".
Urging
President George W. Bush to follow the footsteps of World War II
President Roosevelt, Malkin said she was compelled to write this book
after watching ethnic activists, historians, and politicians
repeatedly play the World War II internment card after the September
11 attacks.
Malkin
was not available for comment as she failed to reply to an
IslamOnline.net e-mail.
Nearly
57 percent of American Muslims polled by an Islamic organization in
2002, say they have experienced bias
or discrimination since the 9/11 attacks and 87 percent know
of a fellow Muslim who experienced discrimination.
Against
US Policy
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Malkin is known for her right-wing anti-minority viewpoints
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But
the
US
government is trying its best to improve its image in the eyes of the
Muslim world, especially after National Security Advisor Condoleezza
Rice admitted
the administration’s failure to win hearts and minds of the Muslims.
"The
US
government does not endorse racial profiling. It is not our
policy," John Berry, the Information Officer at the US Embassy in
Cairo, told IslamOnline.net over the Phone Wednesday, August 25.
However,
the US Constitution, he added, guarantees freedom of expression, does
not permit censorship or monitoring on books, and entitles people to
speak their minds out.
"But
the US government doesn’t agree with such views," Berry, who
has not read the book, said emphatically.
Rice
said on Thursday, August 19, that the US should do more to get close
to the Muslims worldwide.
"Our
interaction must be a conversation, not a monologue," she told
the US Institute of Peace, noting that the United States wanted to
dispel an image that Washington is a "crass" culture.
Rice
said in the speech the effort to reach out to Muslims was a crucial
part of the fight against terrorism.
The
Christian Science Monitor said on August 23 that Bush needs
votes of the Muslim community to secure a re-election.
Polls
in 2000 showed Muslims favored Bush over Al Gore by a wide margin -
some showed support in the 90 percent range - and some groups argued
that some 60,000 Muslim votes put Bush over the top in Florida.
The
Muslim community and Islam have frequently come under diatribe whether
from prominent American figures or officials.
The
Chicago-based syndicated radio commentator Paul Harvey, the most
listened-to radio personality in the United States, claimed in
December that Islam "encourages
killing".
But
after receiving hundreds of angry messages from Muslims, Harvey
backtracked on its defamatory comments, praising Islam as a "religion
of peace".
In
October, William Boykin, the then deputy undersecretary of Defense for
intelligence, had claimed that Muslims’ God "was
an idol".
Representative
John Conyers Jr. (D-MI) presented
a resolution urging President George W. Bush to "clearly censure
or reassign" Boykin.
Following
intense pressures from Muslim advocacy groups, the general apologized
for his provocative remarks, arguing his remarks "had been taken
out of context".
