St. Paul, MN – Oral arguments were made before a three-judge panel from the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, June 18, in Saint Paul on behalf of Guled Omar, Mohamed Farah and Abdirahman Daud, who were found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder abroad in 2016. Their lawyers argued today that the jury instructions were grounds for granting their clients’ appeal. Bruce Nestor, representing Daud, argued to the court that the jury instructions conflated wanting to join ISIS with conspiracy to commit murder and that the prosecution had never proven that his client had any intent to kill.

The court room was packed with members of the defendants’ family and supporters from the Somali community and the anti-war movement. There were so many supporters that an additional overflow room was also filled.

Nestor spoke to the crowd of supporters outside the courthouse afterwards, “I’m really thankful for the community support and for all of you coming out today. And I’m sure that my client is really thankful for that support too. Throughout this case it’s my belief based on the law that an injustice has occurred. This occurred with the prosecution and in particular with the sentence that was imposed.” “Whatever was proven in that courtroom was not anything that justified a sentence of 35 years. And the government proceeded under a legal theory which you heard us argue today was deeply flawed which allowed someone to be convicted under the most serious offense possible under the law convicted essentially of murder without proving that they really intended to take a human life or that they did take a human life. Mr. Daud was convicted of a thought crime and we are hopeful based on the arguments made today that the court of appeals will reverse the conviction and that we will have an opportunity for some measure of justice in this case.”

The appeals court will take several months to consider their ruling and could possibly rule on it in September.

#SaintPaul #SaintPaulMN #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #Antiracism #Islamaphobia #GuledAmar

Houston, TX — On May 21, right-wing groups attempted to intimidate the Muslim community in Houston by holding an armed rally outside of the Islamic Daw'ah Center. The fifteen white supremacists displayed racist symbols, including the confederate flag, and chanted racist and anti-Muslim slurs. However, scores of people came out to fight back and confront the white supremacists’ message of hate and fear.

Over eighty people showed up to protest the white supremacists Islamophobic hate speech. Arab-Americans, Chicanos and progressive white activists joined together to defend Muslim Americans. The activists guarded the Islamic Daw'ah Center so that the Islamophobes could not get near the building. A huge line of cops stood between the white supremacists and the protesters. The chants of the Center’s defenders could be heard for blocks, “When Muslims are under attack. What do we do? Stand up fight back!” and “Islamophobes go home!”

Angelica Hernandez with the Freedom Road Socialist Organization said, “Wall Street, Trump, and his fascist supporters promote Islamophobia at home in order to wage their imperialist wars abroad. They create fear of the Muslim community in order to get the public to support their wars. These wars have one purpose, and one purpose alone: to expand US imperialist hegemony in the Middle East and gain access to new markets. To oppose Islamophobia is to oppose US imperialism and stand with oppressed peoples in their struggle for liberation”.

Ian Cox, with Students for a Democratic Society, said, “Islamophobia is designed to strengthen the State of Israel, which only exists so that the US can continue its wars and domination in the Middle East. These fascist crooks across the street are no different than the Zionists in Israel who create fear of the Palestinian people in order to legitimate their occupation.”

#HoustonTX #PeoplesStruggles #AntiRacism #Texas #Antifascism #Islamaphobia

Minneapolis, MN – Around 200 people rallied and marched in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood against Islamopobia, Feb. 20. The protest was organized by a new coalition of some two dozen state organizations calling themselves Minnesotans Against Islamophobia.

The protest began with a rally in front of the May Day Bookstore with two speakers. Rihab Naheel from Minnesotans for Syrian Refugees spoke about how discrimination has affected her and her children. Sabry Wazwaz from the Minnesota Anti-War Committee addressed how important it was to challenge the Islamophobic messages of Donald Trump.

The protesters then marched through the neighborhood which has a large Somali population. People from the neighborhood joined the march and were very emotional at seeing the intergenerational and multinational crowd of people marching with signs that said “Muslims are welcome here,” and “No to war; yes to refugees.” Some people on the sidewalks even hugged protesters to express their appreciation for the solidarity from non-Muslims.

The march ended with a forum at the Brian Coyle Community Center. Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) was the first speaker, “Islamophobia is a real challenge facing the Minnesota Muslim community,” He added, “It is much more than some comments made by politicians. It is something that is creating a very unsafe environment in our Muslim communities.”

Sadik Warfa from the Global Somali Diaspora, Imam Hassan Mohammed and Dega Warsame, mother of one of the young men facing charges material support for terrorism charges, also addressed the crowd. They spoke about the growing incidents of Islamophobia in Minnesota, especially at local schools, and the divisive efforts of local and federal law enforcement to investigate and entrap local Muslims.

“We brought together representatives of over two dozen concerned organizations and created Minnesotans Against Islamophobia,” said Karen Schraufnagel, the new coalition's founder. “We need to do more than just respond to the national call for action. We are creating an ongoing network to stand with a Minnesota community that is under attack. Muslims are welcome here.”

#MinneapolisMN #ImmigrantRights #InJusticeSystem #PeoplesStruggles #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #Minnesota #Antiracism #Islamaphobia