Religion

Anti-Islamic Party Is Playing With Fear

jenniferg — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:29:51 -0500

(Spiegel Online International, January 3, 2008) The article, "Anti-Islamic Party Is Playing With Fear," explains why the German intelligence agency is concerned about the increasing popularity of a far-right political party.

Antisemitism: The Power of Myth - Confronting Antisemitism

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 08:48:17 -0600

What responsibilities does a society have to protect everyone in the community or nation? To what extent is a crime against one group in a community a crime against the community as a whole? In the foreword to a report on antisemitism in Europe published by the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights, Executive Director Michael Posner reflected on those questions: A year ago the United Nations convened the third World Conference on Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance in Durban, South Africa.

Antisemitism: The Power of Myth - Defining Antisemitism

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 08:34:16 -0600

Although we see ourselves as unique individuals, we tend to see others as representatives of groups. It's a natural tendency, psychologists tell us. Although it is natural to generalize, stereotypes are offensive.

Antisemitism: The Power of Myth - More than a Lie

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 08:50:46 -0600

The Introduction described some slanders as not merely lies but "malignant new myths" that link "classic anti-Jewish slanders with contemporary anti-Israel politics." How do such myths become weapons in a war of words? What power do words have to turn neighbor against neighbor? Nowhere have these questions been more heatedly debated than on college campuses, places where young people traditionally encounter new ideas and are encouraged to challenge old truths.

Antisemitism: The Power of Myth - Rumors, Lies, and the Media

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 08:53:00 -0600

When Adolf Hitler came to power in the 1930s, he used "the blood libel" and other myths to justify the Holocaust. Julius Streicher, a staunch member of the Nazi party and the publisher of the magazine Der Stürmer, gave life to those charges.

Cartoons: Tolerance and Freedom of Speech

jenniferg — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 11:00:03 -0500

Cartoons: Tolerance and Freedom of Speech The recent controversy over cartoons depicting the Muslim Prophet Mohammed has prompted serious questions about the responsibilities that come with freedom of the press and how particular religious beliefs should be respected within democratic, pluralistic societies.

Colorado Meatpacking Plant Lays off 100 Muslim Workers

jenniferg — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 14:06:33 -0500

The news story, "Colorado Meatpacking Plant Lays off 100 Muslim Workers" describes a situation at a Colorado Meatpacking plant where, for the holy month of Ramadan, Muslim workers (from Somalia) asked to move a dinner break forward two hours or have an additional 15 minute break so that they could pray a traditional prayer which is specific to that time of day.

Confronting September 11

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 09:23:29 -0600

In the aftermath of September 11, 2001, many people began to explore the complex issues of identity and religion. Accepted democratic ideals have begun to collide with issues of national security, creating a tension between neighbors and nations.

Confronting September 11: A Vision of the World

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:17:17 -0600

In the aftermath of the September 11th atrocities many scholars have commented that states and nations have become less important. What do we need to live in a world where, as political scientist Benjamin Barber notes, "it could hardly escape even casual observers that global warming recognizes no sovereign territory, that AIDS carries no passport, that technology renders national borders meaningless, that the internet defies regulation, that oil and cocaine addiction circle the planet like twin plagues.

Confronting September 11: Confronting Intolerance and Reforming the Schools

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:12:35 -0600

Tensions between secular culture and a religious practice often focus on education. How should governments balance the right to religious freedom and the best interests of the state, its citizens, and the larger world? Since the September 11th attacks Pakistani President Musharraf has tried to reform the Islamic religious schools in his country, some of which were responsible for educating leaders of the Taliban and thousands of young people who became recruits for Al Qaeda and other extremist groups.