An Islamic organization proclaiming that Muslims “continue … to be victimized by being made the villains” for the events of 9/11 are planning a Million Muslim March in Washington, D.C., on the 12th anniversary of the tragic day in American history.
In a statement on its website, the American Muslim Political Action Committee (AMPAC) says it is demanding that its “civil rights be protected by our government” and is “demanding that laws be enacted protecting [their] 1st amendment [rights].”
The group is also lobbying President Barack Obama to “fulfill his promise from his first campaign for Presidency of a transparent government” and is “asking for the release of the 9/11 commission report to the American people.”
AMPAC says it will make the Million Muslim March an annual event on Sept. 11 and will hold a conference in conjunction with it.
“We American Muslims reject violence and terrorism, and defend the constitutional rights of all Americans,” MD Alam, chairman of AMPAC, says. “Every year on September 11, beginning in 2013, we will be marching in Washington, D.C., as we build toward our goal of bringing 1 million American Muslims to march in our nation’s capital.”
Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, president of the Islamic Forum for Democracy, rebutted AMPAC’s statements, saying, “They’re a bunch of ‘truthers’ who think America’s to blame for everything.”
“These guys are problematic, and they’re trying to exploit 9/11,” Jasser told Fox News. “If they were truly patriotic Americans and moderates, they’d be marching on the courthouse steps of the Fort Hood trial that’s happening this week to tell Americans that we want the death penalty for Nidal Hasan rather than this circus that they’re doing in exploiting the murders and horrific acts of 9/11.
“America has gone on to liberate Muslims. They gave our families freedom that we could not have in any so-called Muslim countries.”
AMPAC claims the media outlets and anti-Islamic organizations have “committed slanderous and libel statements against us as Muslims and our religion of Islam.” The organization also says that the entire country, including Muslims, was “victimized by the acts done on that day.”
Alam also claims that the war on terror created by 9/11 is “phony” and that the “main victims” from that war are Muslims and the Constitution of the United States. Alam says he hopes Muslims will become a strong force in American politics in the future so as to “reject violence and extremism and help America return to constitutional rule.”
“It is time for Muslim and non-Muslim Americans to join together to defend our Constitution,” he says.
Isa Hodge, chief of operations for the Million Muslim March, agrees.
“It is time for us as Muslims in America to stop being defensive and start being proactive by using our right to vote and our freedom of assemble and let our voices be heard by our country and the world,” Hodge says in a plea to Muslim-Americans. “Stand with us. Help us fight the injustices being committed against us.”
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