Broward County, FL – Muslim Ads on County Buses drive Jewish Group to Protest

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    Broward County, FL – There’s a new front in the conflict between Jew and Muslim: Broward County buses.

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    Fifty of the county’s 290-bus fleet have been chugging around area streets for the past several weeks with a message that might seem more oblique than inflammatory. Black letters on a white backdrop proclaim, “ISLAM: The Way of Life of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad.”

    The $60,000 ad was paid for by the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

    “We owe it to our fellow Americans to let them know that Islam stands for peace,” said Altaf Ali, director of CAIR’s South Florida chapter. “Muslims are here and Muslims are part and parcel of the United States.”

    But the words have inspired opposition from a group called Americans Against Hate, led by Jewish activist Joe Kaufman. The group says the ad is misleading because it implies that Abraham, Moses and Jesus were Muslim.

    “That’s offensive to both Jews and Christians,” said Kaufman, a resident of Coral Springs.

    County officials have rejected Kaufman’s request they remove the ads. Now he plans a rally outside County Hall at noon Friday.

    “We want to send a message right to the commission that it’s not right to legitimize this organization,” he said.

    Both CAIR and AAH accuse each other of being affiliated with terrorists.

    Kaufman notes the U.S. Department of Justice labeled CAIR an “unindicted co-conspirator” in a Dallas case which last November saw five leaders of the Holy Land Foundation, a Muslim charity, convicted of providing more than $12 million in support to the Hamas terrorist organization.

    Ali, who lives in Pembroke Pines, counters that Kaufman is affiliated with the Kahanist Movement founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane, who advocated removing all Muslims from Israel.

    Because of its terrorist activities, the group was banned in Israel and its U.S. assets were frozen.

    Kaufman writes for the right-leaning Web publication Front Page Magazine, and once called for nuclear attacks on Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. Since founding Americans Against Hate as a terrorism watchdog group, he wrote that “pure merciless force” was the only way to deal with Muslims.

    “He’s a man who advocates for killing,” Ali said.

    Ali said the ad accurately describes Abraham, Moses and Jesus. “A Muslim is anyone who submits their will to God,” he said. “By that definition Abraham and all the prophets are Muslim because they submitted their will to God.”

    As to CAIR’s alleged ties to Hamas, Ali said: “There is no credible evidence that that is true. Unindicted means unindicted.”

    Kaufman remains unconvinced. “They are an organization that’s connected to the terrorist group Hamas,” he said.

    Broward County Transit spokeswoman Phyllis Berry said the county accepted CAIR’s message because it didn’t violate guidelines against ads that demean religions. The county also accepts ads from Christian churches, and courts have designated buses as “public forums” where free speech rights apply.

    The ads will run through Jan. 26, but may be the last of their kind on county buses.

    “We have restrictions on cigarettes and adult entertainment, and we should eliminate religious ads hereafter,” County Commissioner Suzanne Gunzburger said at Tuesday’s commission meeting.


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    31 Comments
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    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    Though I, personally, do not like to see adds for Islam, by what right does anyone have to stop them.

    They are not in bad taste. They are not lacking in tznius.

    They are no different than announcing a Chanukah event, or any shul or church advertisement.

    They paid for it, they have the right to the add.
    Jews should never try to close the mouths of others, unless we want others to close our mouths.

    dreikup
    dreikup
    15 years ago

    as frightening as it may be, we should keep in mind that the US is not jewish property. just like we have the right to practice our beleifs so do others. if there’s anything wrong with these ads, perhaps any billboards stating that lubavitcher rebbe is moshiach should also be removed.
    let’s not forget: we’re in golus.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    If these ads annoy us, think of all the ads placed on lamp posts all over Brooklyn (illegally) which must annoy non-jews.

    Oy Gevald
    Oy Gevald
    15 years ago

    At first glance, this appears to be another feather in the cap of the Muslim P.R. attempting to brainwash Americans and all non-muslims to believing that they only desire peace etc. The missing ingredient in the P.R. war here is the Jewish world’s answer to this and all Arabic whitewashing of the facts. The Arabic world msotly condones violence and its religious leaders (imams) preach violence and hatred continuosly. They are blasting their way through media into the minds of the American public that they are peaceful etc. Where are the counter-attack ads showing their leaders preaching violence regularly?

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    The muslims are trying to proselytize. There needs to be information on the web and elsewhere about what Judaism says about Islam just like there is info about what Judaism says about Christianity.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    why dont jews put out their ads to show the world what really gos on in the middle east.i always wonderd.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    Any worse (from the gentile perspective) than menoraha on public land?

    anonymous
    anonymous
    15 years ago

    What about Dade county? Miami, Miami Beach, Aventura? I see these busses all around here too.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    Maybe call the police of Duisburg, Germany , the ones who tore down the Israeli flag. They’ll take care of it and then apoligize.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    STOP-if y’all are threatened so much by some ads then you obviously need serious mental help

    Dave
    Dave
    15 years ago

    They are paying to place an add up about religious beliefs. There is no way that having a government agency refuse those ads is legal.

    And Murray, do you really want to set that precedent? You’d give any government anywhere in America the freedom to turn down any pro-Israel or Jewish advertisements, on the grounds that an extremist might decide to attack the bus to get rid of the ad. Or, using your other argument, any anti-semetic bus driver the right to veto the advertisements.

    Sara
    Sara
    15 years ago

    How could they say that Avraham and Moshe were Muslams? Don’t they know they were chasidish?

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    I just spent some time on their website. The website advertized on these busses openly condemns violence and terrorism, and condemns the Moslems who commit these acts of violence.

    Hmmm maybe more Muslims need to visit this website.

    Charlie Hall
    Charlie Hall
    15 years ago

    I checked out the internet site that is advertised on the bus. I did not notice anything at all hateful towards Jews.

    It contains a theological statement that could appear on a Jewish site:

    ‘God is the eternal, the infinite and the absolute in all His attributes. It is beyond us to imagine a form for Him or express Him in any way that limits Him or reduces Him to less than the infinity He is.’

    It contains an admonition against harming Jews or Christians:

    ‘Muslims were warned against acts of bigotry or prejudice towards the People of the Book, and prophet Mohammad himself said, “Whoever hurts a person from the People of the Book it will be as though he hurt me personally.”‘

    And it even includes an acknowledgment of past evils done by Muslims:

    ‘we should be far from claiming that the history of Muslims has always been a true representation of the teachings of Islam. Particularly under dictatorial rule, Jews and Christians had their share of maltreatment’

    While we will not agree with most of the site (it *is*, after all, promoting another religion!), the contrast with the aggressively hostile anti-Semitism in things like the Hamas charter is striking. They should put these ads on buses in Gaza.

    I also second the idea that whoever is paying for the ad absolutely has the right to put it there and we should not object. Hopefully the ACLU, who defended a Christian group that was not permitted to put its anti-abortion ads in the Boston transit system, will help out here.

    Kop Doktar
    Kop Doktar
    15 years ago

    Imagine for a moment the furious reaction if a bus ad would claim Muhammad was a Jew and Christian…imagine the riots. Remember the reaction when a comic of Muhammad was printed, or the teacher who called a teddy bear Muhammad. It is amazing the double standard these people use. I suggest we hold them to the standard they profess when claiming insult against Muslims. Unfortunately, they are vocal and manage to get officials to cower to their demands.

    So for all the comments that see no problem with these ads, you are looking at them with Western eyes. Change the ad to Muhammad being a Christian or Jew and watch the opening of the gates of hell breaking loose.

    Cool It
    Cool It
    15 years ago

    I don’t want Muslims to…
    ..kill me.
    ..hurt me.
    ..terrorize my country.
    Why should this ad bother me?

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    I live in Broward County and I am a Sephardic woman who covers her hair with a scarf. I am hoping that these ads will stop some of the obvious hatred and prejudice that I face when I am out and about.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    If we demand restrictions on the freedom of speech and expression, it will only be a matter of time that before these new “tolerance laws” will be used exclusively against Jews. I say get on the bandwagon! design a very similar looking ad with the slogan ISLAM and Sharia! The religion that brought you the genocide of 1.5 million Armenians! And in smaller letters and Athens, Rome, Munich, Beirut, Avivim, 9/11 NYC , 7/7 London, Pam AM 103, Madrid, Mumbai, etc the list should wrap around the bus… a few times

    Christian
    Christian
    15 years ago

    I am a Christian and I defend the right of any religion to post its opininion anywhere. Jews as a race have a kneejerk reaction to other religions and peoples. All are wrong but Jews. You will always be a target with that kind of attitude.