(TAMPA, FL, 11/19/13) - CAIR-FL applauds the Volusia County school board, and many allies for resisting calls by Islamophobes to drop a textbook offering basic historical information about Islam and the Muslim civilization.
Yesterday, representatives of CAIR's Florida chapter joined with local students, members of the Democratic Party, moderate Republicans, academics and interfaith allies at a school board meeting near Deltona, Fla., to counter an organized protest against the textbook.
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| Volusia County High School Students Defend Their Textbook |
Local students presented the board with a petition signed by some 500+ classmates rejecting the call for censorship. Most of those who spoke at the school board meeting spoke for religious tolerance and against censoring textbooks. Protesters meanwhile made outlandish statements such as claiming the US President was not born in the US.
VIDEO: CAIR-FL Joins Students, Dems, Moderate GOPers in Opposing Censorship of Textbook on Islam
"We welcome the tremendous support from the local community and applaud the determination of school board members to resist bullying by anti-Muslim bigots," said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad.
SEE: Volusia Schools will keep using history book
Listen to the Meeting Recording: At 1:03 Hassan Shibly's Testimony
"It was heartening to see the tremendous support from Floridians of all faiths and backgrounds who stood for mutual understanding and against censorship," said CAIR-Florida's Tampa Executive Director Hassan Shibly, who spoke at yesterday's school board meeting.
Shibly noted that the school board has issued a fact sheet refuting the false claims of the anti-Islam protesters, while one Republican school board member has ridiculed the anti-Islam hysteria promoted by the book's opponents.
SEE: Setting the Record Straight on the Grade 10 World History Textbook
CAIR's recently-released report, "Legislating Fear: Islamophobia and its Impact in the United States," exposes the anti-Islam groups and individuals behind such censorship efforts.
Obtain the full report HERE:
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
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CONTACT: CAIR-Florida's Tampa Executive Director Hassan Shibly, 813-541-4321, hshibly@cair.com; CAIR-Florida Communications Director Samantha Bowden, 703-298-7782, sbowden@cair.com; CAIR-South Florida Executive Director Nezar Hamze,954-673-9459, nhamze@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com
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