WASHINGTON, May 25, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has called on American Muslims to garner support of their representatives in the US House of Senate to endorse a resolution condemning the desecration of the Noble Qur'an and all signs of bigotry and religious intolerance in the country.

The US Muslim civil liberties group said in a press release, a copy of which was e-mailed to IslamOnline.net Wednesday, May 25, that a strong support to the resolution would demonstrate America's intolerance of bigotry and disrespect toward any religious group.

"This resolution expresses America's respect for the holy texts of all faiths," said Corey Saylor, CAIR's government affairs director.

"If passed, it (the resolution) will also reiterate our nation's condemnation of bigoted behavior and religious intolerance," he added.

Representative John Conyers of Michigan introduced a resolution condemning "bigotry and intolerance against any religious group, including our friends, neighbors and citizens of the Islamic faith".

"We have made the job of our enemies all too easy by sanctioning torture and by whitewashing prisoner abuse investigations," Rep. Conyers had said in a recent press release issued by CAIR.

"We also need to embrace the Muslim people and tolerance if we are truly interested in supporting democracy around the world," he added.

The resolution, though it does not have the force of law, is the expression of the opinion of the US House of Representatives, the US Muslim civil liberties group said.

"It's a winner on every front," Saylor stressed.

In its May 9 edition, the mass-circulation Newsweek quoted “a knowledgeable US government source” as saying that investigators probing abuses at Guantanamo found that US interrogators “had placed Korans (sic) on toilets, and in at least one case flushed a holy book down the toilet.”

The report sparked angry and violent protests across the Muslim world from Afghanistan, where 16 were killed and more than 100 injured, to Gaza.

After protests from the Pentagon, the weekly cast some doubts on the story in its next edition, saying the source “couldn't be certain about reading of the alleged Qur'an incident in the report we cited, and said it might have been in other investigative documents or drafts”.

In response to the uproar generated by the desecration report, CAIR launched on May 17, an "Explore the Qur'an" campaign.

"In today's climate of heightened religious sensitivities and cultural clashes, now is the time for people of all faiths to better acquaint themselves with Islam's sacred text," said CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad.

He had said the campaign would allow the Qur'an to "speak for itself and educate those of other faith traditions about the beautiful religion of Islam."

CAIR is America’s largest Muslim civil liberties group, with 30 offices and
chapters nationwide and in Canada.

A recent report released by CAIR on May 11, showed that the anti-Muslim hate crimes, discrimination and harassment in the United States have increased by half over the past year.

On the third anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Amnesty International said in a report that Racial profiling by US law enforcement agencies has grown over the past three years to cover one in nine Americans, mostly targeting Muslims.