I got extremely worked up last night reading about House Republicans' attempts to sow fear and division by suggesting that Muslim interns on Capitol Hill are connected to terrorists, which Justin Elliott ably documents. Not just because of the racial profiling of interns, not just because of the irony that the GOP accusations are based on a conservative author who pretended to be a Muslim in order to infiltrate the Council on American Islamic-Relations and steal documents, and not because the documents he stole revealed an entirely prosaic interest group lobbying strategy. All that would make me angry enough. But the worst part is that Reps. Sue Myrick, John Shadegg, Paul Broun and Trent Franks are undermining one of the greatest advantages the United States has against Islamist extremists. The United States, with our freedom of religion and relatively large amount of social mobility, has one of the most successful Muslim communities in the world. American Muslims reacted to 9/11 and the discrimination that came after it not by radicalizing, but by organizing, trying to become part of the fabric of civil society and advocate their concerns through the democratic system. The strategy document the Republicans were freaking out about is a great example of that: This organization is playing by the rules! They want their young people to be part of the American democratic process. But these four fools have lined up to say they think any Muslim who might want to peacefully advocate their interests should be investigated for terrorist connections, simply by dint of their religion, which could send the message to Muslim Americans that they aren't welcome in the democratic process. I hope that isn't the result of these misguided demands for an investigation. Muslim Americans deserve to have their civil rights respected and should be encouraged to exercise their privilege of participating in our government. Shame on anyone who suggests otherwise.
-- Tim Fernholz
