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The March of Islamic Law in Minnesota
Why our Spring New Member Drive is so important
Dear Harold,
Yesterday we reported that the Oklahoma House of Representatives passed a resolution relating to shariah law.
The resolution would give voters the opportunity to amend the state constitution to prohibit Oklahoma courts from considering shariah law in their court rulings.
We also learned yesterday that the Tennessee House of Representatives unanimously passed “Rachel’s law,” a law to protect authors and publishers from intimidation lawsuits, a tactic frequently employed by Islamists. ACT! for America chapter leaders and members in Tennessee, as well as Eagle Forum leaders, were involved in this successful effort.
Meanwhile, in Minnesota, Islamic shariah law marches forward. Robert Spencer, who will be one of the speakers at the American Congress for Truth FREE national webcast conference on April 24th, posted the story and comment below.
ACT! for America members in Minnesota are currently engaged in a grassroots effort to challenge another advance of shariah law in that state: shariah-compliant home mortgages for Muslims.
Last week we announced our Spring New Member Drive. Recent victories show us what happens because we are organized and growing. Minnesota’s march to shariah shows what will happen if we don’t continue to organize and grow.
Click here to learn more about how you can help us grow—and qualify to win some valuable prizes as well!
Minneapolis adopts Sharia-friendly loan program
Posted by Robert on March 25, 2010 11:22 AM
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2010/03/minneapolis-adopts-sharia-friendly-loan-program.html
What could go wrong? Well, for one thing, Sharia is a program for every aspect of life. So once one sets the precedent that it is good to accommodate Sharia, there is always more Sharia to accommodate -- including provisions institutionalizing discrimination against women and non-Muslims.
"Loan caters to Minneapolis Muslim business owners: The Alternative Finance Program respects Islamic law by offering fixed-rate loans," by Katherine Lymn for the Minnesota Daily, March 24 (thanks to Arafat):
An Islamic law enacted centuries ago was an obstacle for modern Minneapolis businesses until Minneapolis partnered with an African business resource group to allow Muslim business owners a way to both comply with their beliefs and invest in their businesses.
Since April 2007, the city of Minneapolis, in partnership with the African Development Center, has given out 38 loans in a way that is compliant to Islamic law by using a fixed rate in place of a variable interest rate.
Through the system, called the Alternative Finance Program, businesses pay a set rate of return, which corresponds with Islamic practices. The program is a slightly altered version of the common "Two-Percent" loans also offered by the city's Department of Community Planning and Economic Development.
"It really amounts to the same thing," Bob Lind, CPED director of business finance, said. "But it's ... just a different way of looking at it."
Recipients of the loan operate businesses that lie mainly in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood and along Lake Street, "typical strongholds for the Somali community," Lind said.
That is, the Somali community that has seen so many of its members return to Somalia to wage jihad in recent years.
Five of the loans went to businesses that are part of a Somali marketplace in the Cedar-Riverside area.
Said Karie, who works at Hijaz Clothing in the marketplace, explained that "everything that has [an] interest rate is actually a sin" for Muslims.
"It's been that way for years and years," Karie said.
The rule extends beyond just loans, as Muslims who follow the religion strictly will go as far as returning interest gained on savings to the bank or a charity, said Abdirahman Omar, general manager of Mustaqbal Computer Center.
"Personally, I wouldn't take it [interest] even if I needed it," Omar said....
The loan program is a response to the wave of Middle Eastern and East African immigrants in recent years, Lind said.
"We're just trying to work with those new immigrant populations to try to provide assistance and financing just like we would for anybody with the last name 'Smith' or 'Johnson,' " he said.
Partnering with the Minneapolis-based African Development Center, CPED has distributed almost $1.5 million to the businesses, with loans ranging from $10,000 to $150,000. Most fall between $10,000 and $20,000, Lind said.
He added that loan recipients have been good clients of the city; "[they] tend to borrow as short a term as possible [and] pay it back as quick as possible," Lind said.
Before the program, businesses were unable to get loans because of these religious beliefs, and they would turn to raising money internally, Lind said.
The program is a pathway for business owners to "achieve the American dream of creating wealth," Lind said.
He added that Minneapolis is the first city, to his knowledge, to adopt a Shariah-friendly loan program. He sees the city's version as becoming a model for others in the future.
I am sure it will be.
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