The Investigative Project has published an article titled “American Islamists Push Negative American Image” which analyzes the role played by the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood in fostering anti-U.S. sentiment among Muslim communities. The article begins:
IPT News May 9, 2012 Traveling in Bangladesh last weekend, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was confronted with a question she said ‘hurts me so much.’ Why, she was asked, is there ‘a common perception held by many young people that the U.S. is anti-Muslim?’ ‘I mean, it’s a painful perception to hear about, Clinton said, ‘and I deeply regret that anyone believes that or propagates it.’ There may be discrimination, but that cuts across racial, religious and ethnic lines, she said. American law and culture ‘has gone probably farther than anywhere else in the world in trying to guarantee legal protections for people.’ Claims that America is anti-Muslim come from people ‘who, for their own reasons, try to politicize what the United States has done in a way that I think is unfortunate and unfair,’ she said. In many cases, however, the message that America is hostile toward Muslims is promoted by the same people Clinton’s State Department and other Cabinet-level agencies turn to as outreach partners. We’ve noted repeatedly how national Islamist groups like the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Muslim Advocates and others have pushed the notion that America’s legal and military war on terror amounts to a war on Islam. It’s an irresponsible message for two reasons. It is wrong. And it has been proven to be among the most effective messages in radicalizing young Muslims. Yet the same groups who perpetuate it in America find themselves embraced by the government. Officials legitimize and empower them by attending and speaking at their events rather than building the profile of Muslim voices who tout the freedom and opportunity their families find here. Most recently, Cyrus McGoldrick, civil rights director for CAIR’s New York chapter, told a newspaper that a spate of arson attacks by a lone suspect on mosques was driven by bigotry even though police say personal vendettas were in play. In one case, a mosque had refused to let the suspect use its restroom. ‘It was only a matter of time before the war abroad became a war at home,’ McGoldrick said. ‘Fearmongering about Islam and other American minorities have ripped this country apart. Warmongering politicians and willing media confirm this narrative, the warrantless incomprehensive surveillance of the Muslim community by the NYPD confirms this narrative and the destruction of the Constitution in the name of the war on terror confirms this narrative.’
Read the rest here
All of the groups mentioned in the above article have been identified in a Hudson Institute report as part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood.
A post from June 2011 reported that Ibrahim Hooper, a leader of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), appeared on Iranian TV where he complained he said that “The rise of anti-Muslim sentiment in our society is being generated by a cottage industry of Muslim bashers and Islamophobic groups.” An earlier post discussed another appearance by Mr. Hooper on Press TV where he said that “we are the first defenders of the constitution.”
For further details on anti-American views by CAIR representatives appearing on Iranian TV, go here.
In a post discussing Muslim Brotherhood postions on terrorism, the notion of a “war on Islam” was identified as part of the Brotherhood rhetorical strategy:
4. OBSTRUCTION- Having explained the violence of Islamist groups as a response to legitimate grievances, the Brotherhood is free to obstruct counter-terror efforts. One portion of its efforts is devoted to protecting its charities (e.g. Holy Land) and associated infrastructure which help to support Hamas and other Palestinian terrorism. The second part of the effort lies in hindering wider U.S counter-terror policies which it does by providing inaccurate analysis, positing plots and conspiracies about a “war on Islam” and opposing almost every counter-terror initiative undertaken by the government, suggesting instead that the correct response to terrorism is to change U.S. foreign policy, the ultimate goal of the obstruction. Again, the natural ally is the far-left and the Brotherhood has been successful in the U.S and forming such alliances with respect to counterterrorism policy.