It is a free country and Prager is free to hate Islam, Muslims, Arabs, or African-Americans, if he wishes to. However, an institution that states a mission to fight anti-Semitism should not allow for those who promote hatred against others to serve on its board. The success in fighting anti-Semitism will not be complete nor genuine unless we challenge all other forms of racism and bigotry, including Islamophobia.
In a letter to the United States Holocaust Memorial Council Chairman Fred S. Zeidman, CAIR wrote:
"No one who holds such bigoted, intolerant and divisive views should be in a policymaking position at a taxpayer-funded institution that seeks to educate Americans about the destructive impact hatred has had, and continues to have, on every society. As a presidential appointee, Prager's continued presence on the council would send a negative message to Muslims worldwide about America's commitment to religious tolerance."
2 comments:
Dennis Prager’s article is in no way “anti-islamic,” in fact, it is anti-nothing. It is pro-American values. Congressmen who affirm the Bible, solely or as well as their own holy book, in public, symbolic ceremonies, affirm the values that built America. (Which, not incidentally, provides Muslems with more religious or other freedom than they have in any Islamic country.)
Secondly, there is NO incongruity with being anti-Islamic and being on a holocaust memorial advisory board; indeed, it is almost a requirement, given the regular denials, or worse, praise, of the Holocaust done my prominent Muslem leaders or clerics, when speaking to their own people. (I assume you are familiar with MEMRI.org?)
Unfortunately, as a presidential appointee, the Museum is powerless to fire Prager, but they did adopt a resolution describing his comments as "antithetical to the mission of the Museum." See the full resolution below.
UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL COUNCIL
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE RESOLUTION
On December 20, the Executive Committee of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council adopted the following resolution.
Resolution
WHEREAS, the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, the governing body of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, is charged with implementing the mission of the Museum as a living memorial to the victims of the Holocaust devoted to teaching the lessons of the Holocaust for the benefit of all mankind; and
WHEREAS, Dennis Prager, a member of the Council, has recently publicly expressed and disseminated certain statements which have been widely interpreted as being intolerant;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Executive Committee of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, while recognizing that Dennis Prager has the right to express his personal views freely, disassociates itself from Mr. Prager’s statements as being antithetical to the mission of the Museum as an institution promoting tolerance and respect for all peoples regardless of their race, religion or ethnicity.
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