WASHINGTON, June 28 (IslamOnline) - The American Muslim Council (AMC) and the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) released press statements Thursday stating that Muslims representing leading national American Muslim organizations walked out of a White House briefing after members of the secret service escorted a delegation member out of the meeting and asked him to leave the premises.
White House security escorted Abdullah Al-Arian, 20, a Muslim student activist from Duke University who works in the office of Congressman David Bonior (D-MI), and son of Sami Al-Arian, who spearheads the legislative challenge to the use of secret evidence and leads the National Coalition to Protect Political Freedom (NCPPF), out of a meeting organized by MPAC.
Rev. Mark Scott replaced Dilulio, and as he was addressing the group, White House Security approached Abdullah Al-Arian asking him to exit the premises of the White House due to his father's political activities.
The meeting was setup exclusively between leaders of Muslim organizations and John Dilulio, head of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, to discuss the President George W. Bush's Faith-Based Initiative and its implications for the Muslim community.
MPAC and the Faith-based Office organized the meeting to deepen a dialogue between the Office and the American Muslim community.
Al-Arian obtained security clearance prior to the start of the event.
An angry Dilulio called Abdullah Al-Arian's exclusion "guilt by association".
Among those who walked out were Mahdi Bray, organizer of the meeting and President of the Coordinating Council of Muslim Organizations, Nedzib Sacirbey and Faisal Gill from the American Muslim Council, and Salam Al-Marayati and Hassan Ibrahim, from MPAC.
They issued a joint statement following the incident: "This incident is the latest in an unfortunate pattern of exclusion by the Bush administration.
"This sends a message to American Muslims that the White House will engage only if it is allowed to dictate the terms and decide who is allowed at the table. American Muslim organizations reject the notion that community members must pass a litmus test.
"A meaningful dialogue must be based on equity, accessibility and fairness and not exclusion, discrimination or exploitation by special interest groups."
MPAC Political Advisor Mahdi Bray said, "The Bush administration needs to issue an apology to the American Muslim community for this affront."
