BY CRAIG GIAMMONA AND ADAM PINCUS
Organizers said the rally was designed to drive home the Muslim community's anger over the cartoons, which were originally published in September in a Danish newspaper and have since been reprinted by several newspapers in Europe.The speakers, including two from the Jamaica Muslim Center, emphasized their respect for freedom of the press and freedom of speech but said the publication of the cartoons, one of which depicted Muhammad wearing a bomb-shaped turban, amounted to “reckless speech” that was deliberately provocative and divisive.”Freedom of speech is a tool to eradicate hatred – not to install hatred or racism,” said Kwaja Hassan, president of the Jamaica Muslim Center.”Very few American newspapers have printed the cartoons and the U.S. State Department, while recognizing the importance of free speech, condemned their publication. In fact, it was the reprinting of the cartoons by several European newspapers in late January that seemed to spur the violent protests that as off Tuesday had left 29 dead in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria and prompted one Iranian newspaper to announce its sponsorship of a Holocaust cartoon contest.But Friday's rally, which drew an estimated 1,000 Muslims, including members of several mosques and Muslim organizations from Queens, to Dag Hammarskjold Plaza on Second Avenue, was in stark contrast to violent protests that have racked the globe. The demonstration, which was peaceful and featured a prayer break, was moderated by Imam Shamsi Ali, of the Jamaica Muslim Center, headquartered on 168th Street. Ali, who stressed religious tolerance, said the cartoon controversy was about “Islam vs. Ignorance.”His sentiments were shared by Kwaja Hassan, who agreed that the media attention generated by the controversy was an opportunity to educate Westerners about Islam. Hassan stressed that Muhammad is a sacred figure in Islam and said that a depiction of Muhammad with a bomb-shaped turban led to the natural conclusion that all Muslims are terrorists.”If Muhammad is a terrorist, then every Muslim is a terrorist,” Hassan said, explaining the outrage created by the cartoons. He also pointed out that Muslim scholars have determined that depicting Muhammad in any way is prohibited in Islam for fear that the depiction could lead to idolatry. Hassan, who like others is concerned about the prevalence of “Islamophobia” in Europe and the United States, did not defend the violent response the cartoons have generated internationally, which he described as “totally un-Islamic.””It is totally against the teachings of the prophet Mohammed,” he said. “There is nothing in our religion that tells us to be violent. Some leaders instigate violence for their own political purposes.”Hassan said that as an American he understands the importance of free speech, a value he pointed out that is not seminal in some of the more shuttered societies where the violent protests have taken place. He added, however, that free speech, should not take precedence over religious tolerance, a sentiment echoed Friday by Muslims praying at a mosque in Jamaica. “I believe in freedom of the speech and the press as a liberal thinker and writer,” said Dr. Maqsood Jafri, a Pakistani author who was attending the Friday services at the Iman al-Khoei Islamic Center Mosque, just off the Van Wyck Expressway.”But we have some universal divine values. We condemn this act of making caricatures of any prophets, including Jesus as well.”Jafri, blamed the outburst of violence on a minority of the population. “The violent demonstrations and burning property I condemn strongly. These are miscreants and religious extremists.” The principal of the Iman al-Khoei Islamic Center School, Reza Naqvi, supported the peaceful protest in Manhattan and deemed the cartoons an insult. “We have to raise our voices in protest. What else can you do? You have your freedom of speech.”Following Friday's rally, a group representing the Islamic Leadership Council, an umbrella organization comprising several New York-area mosques and Muslim organizations, had a prearranged meeting with the Danish Consul General to discuss their concerns about the cartoons.Dr. Shaik Ubaid, who attended the meeting, said the Danish government is finally taking the controversy seriously. He said a member of the Danish parliament will travel to New York next week to participant in a symposium with Muslims at Columbia University.Reach Reporter Craig Giammona by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300 Ext. 146.
