by Chas Sisk
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Muslims in the lobby watch the House Judiciary Committee meeting on TV after the room filled. Hundreds of people showed up at the Capitol to oppose a bill that sponsors say is intended to fight terrorism. / DIPTI VAIDYA / THE TENNESSEAN
Muslims from across the state — many wearing traditional skullcaps and headscarves — packed a committee room and corridors to hear testimony on a bill that supporters say would help Tennessee stop terrorist plots but opponents believe singles out Muslims who adhere to Islamic law.
They urged lawmakers to withdraw the bill, or at least to delay it until it can be rewritten so that groups labeled as terrorist organizations can protest the designation before they are forced to shut down.
“These are issues for any group,” said Nadeem Siddiqi, a native Knoxville resident who traveled to Nashville to speak against the bill. “The United States of America is known for its freedoms, known for due process, known for a fair system, and to be able to have a few individuals in a state of panic create this kind of risk to civil society is just inappropriate.”
The gathering, which was put together by mosques and Muslim civic groups around the state, comes in response to legislation that originally criticized Shariah, the basic set of Muslim religious laws governing everything from warfare and criminal punishments to prayer preparations and family matters.
The first version of the bill, which was written by an Arizona organization critical of Islam, labeled Shariah “a legal-political-military doctrine and system” that requires its followers to support the overthrow of the United States government. Several Muslims who turned out Tuesday said that is a distortion.
“People have this idea that Shariah is just chopping people’s hands, but Shariah is a way of life for us,” said Arshia Shah, a lawyer originally from Britain who now lives in Sparta and came to the Capitol with her husband and two daughters. “It’s prayer. It’s how we deal with our spouses. And to tell people that they can’t practice this — that they’re doing something wrong — is a great concern.”
The bill has since been amended to remove all references to Shariah and Islam.
What is left is legislation, known formally as the Material Support to Designated Entities Act, that would let the governor and the state attorney general label groups as terrorist organizations.
Once designated, a group’s financial assets could be frozen and its contributors could face criminal penalties.
The bill’s sponsors, House Speaker Pro Tempore Judd Matheny, R-Tullahoma, and state Sen. Bill Ketron, R-Murfreesboro, say the bill gives Tennessee law enforcement agencies the ability to disrupt terrorist plots. They also say it could be used to disrupt street gangs and neo-Nazi groups, as well as terrorist organizations.
“I think it’s a good bill,” Ketron said. “They say it’s duplicative because it mirrors the Patriot Act on the federal level, but local law enforcement see and hear what’s going on locally.”
Large turnout
Muslim organizations have been opposed to the legislation from the outset, but Tuesday was the first time they turned out in large numbers, drawing a crowd that rivaled those brought to the Capitol by labor and teachers organizations earlier this session.
Several said they had heard about Tuesday’s hearing before the House Judiciary Committee at weekly prayer services last Friday or through an email distribution list maintained by the Islamic Center of Nashville, a local mosque.
“We’re proud of being in Tennessee,” said Rashed Fakhouddin, an outreach volunteer with the Islamic Center. “We want Tennessee to be a shining image all across the country. Bills like this just make us look like we’re witch-hunting Muslims.”
Only 20 minutes of testimony was given Tuesday, as the committee spent most of its allotted time discussing other bills.
During their testimony, opponents complained that the bill gives the attorney general and governor too much discretion to label groups as terrorist and that they would have to wait two years to contest the designation in court. They also say the bill would allow for the use of confidential evidence that they could not contest.
Opponents also derided the legislation’s origins. The original bill was drafted by the Society of Americans for National Existence, an organization that they characterized as a hate group.
“If a bill was written by the KKK, would you consider it even if it was amended?” Sabina Mohyuddin, a youth coordinator at the Islamic Center of Nashville, asked the committee.
Opponents called for the bill to be withdrawn or sent to a summer study committee to be rewritten.
Ketron said he sees little reason to do so.
“I don’t think if it goes through a study committee that we are going to do anything different,” he said. “They just want it to go away.”
The House Judiciary Committee took no action on the bill before adjourning. It is expected to take the bill up again next week, when it also will be heard in a Senate committee.
Chas Sisk
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