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| Fifth Column |
| Maryland Muslims offended by Baltimore County school curriculum |
| 2006-12-31 |
| Some Muslims in Baltimore County say lessons involving Islam being taught to seventh and 10th-graders in public schools are inaccurate. Bash Pharoan, president of the Baltimore chapter of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, said resource sheets, called "Islamic Life," given to seventh-graders studying world cultures, and "World Religions" for 10th-graders in world history classes, not only misrepresent Islam, but show disrespect to the prophet Muhammad. For three years, Pharoan said, he has unsuccessfully petitioned the Baltimore County school board to review the way Islam is presented in public school classrooms. Joe Hairston, county school superintendent, said his "teachers do not use materials that contain inaccurate information." Pharoan disagrees. He said the resource sheet on Islam belittles the prophet Muhammad by referring to him only as "Muhammad." Muslims always say "Prophet Muhammad," Pharoan said. "Omitting the word prophet is disrespectful," he said. Pharoan said many of facts on the resource sheets are untrue or half-true, and they "emphasize negative differences that are divisive in nature." He said it is wrong to knowingly teach children inaccurate information. Getting accurate information to children is important now because of the war in Iraq, he said. Pharoan said the information given to students about "jihad" and the Quran, the sacred book of Islam, is especially objectionable. The resource sheets state Muhammad's "main goal was to get people to accept Allah and to spread the faith of Islam. Muhammad justified his attacks to his followers by explaining that to weaken those who opposed the spread of God's word was a virtue, and that those who fell in battle would be rewarded in heaven. Thus the idea of the jihad became the holy war of the Muslims against 'the unbelievers.'" This reference, Pharoan said, inaccurately portrays Islam as a religion that embraces the use of force. I can see how they wouldn't want that little nugget broadcast far and wide. "Islamic teachings explicitly forbid coercing others to adopt the Islamic religion. Suicide is forbidden. The taking of innocent lives is forbidden. Yet the curriculum would have students believing otherwise," Pharoan said. "Jihad" is defined in the resource sheet as a "struggle." Pharoan said that is a true depiction. But it's "a struggle to be a good person, a struggle to help the community and mankind. It does not mean a holy war." Mahammad Jameel, of Reisterstown, has also petitioned the board about school lessons on Islamic culture. Giving a partial definition of "jihad" -- as in the resource sheet -- is like saying gravity only exists under apple trees. Not only is it misleading, but it is inaccurate, Jameel said. "We have many jihads," Jameel said, like "a jihad against poverty, just like the U.S. has a war against poverty." "Jihad" does not mean a Muslim should go out and kill the poor, he said. Donald Arnold, the school board president, said he has not asked the school administration to look into Pharoan's and Jameel's allegations. "We take the approach that the class material was chosen on a scholarly basis (by the administration), and it (the information being taught) reflects the history of the Muslim community." Cara Calder, a spokeswoman for the school system, said the class material was selected on a scholarly basis. "Our perspective is that when it comes to curriculum, our focus is academic rather than social or political," she said. "We (the administration) are aware of Dr. Pharoan's and Mr. Jameel's concerns, and as we would with any question of curriculum, we will rely on academic and scholarly information." Calder did not know if the curriculum had already been reviewed, or if it was scheduled for review at some future date. Pharoan said it is unfair to the students to perpetuate misinformation, and it might be up to the faculty to correct the problem. "Teachers should ask themselves, 'Am I teaching fact or opinion?'" Pharoan said. |
| Posted by:Anguper Hupomosing9418 |
| #31 Something offends Muslims? Wow. When did this happen? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2006-12-31 23:18 |
| #30 Enough Bash Bushing. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-12-31 20:12 |
| #29 My mom used to tell me that you get whay you give. It works with respect for others as well. Too bad Bash never payed attention. |
| Posted by: 49 Pan 2006-12-31 19:10 |
| #28 I'm offended by their constant offense. Not to mention their constant lying.... |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2006-12-31 19:06 |
| #27 None of this has much to do with the overall problem. Islam wants to convert or kill, in that order, all non-Muslims in the world, and practically nobody with any power has the balls to do anything about it. Happy New Year. |
| Posted by: wxjames 2006-12-31 17:03 |
| #26 Robert, That is "Lord and Savior..." You forgot that key "S" word. |
| Posted by: 3dc 2006-12-31 14:50 |
| #25 Is Bash a shortened form of Bashir? It seems that being offended these days requires a remedy to make up for the offending. I propose Bashir leave the USA as a solution to make everyone happy. (Hopefully, he will also be humilliated as the door hits him in the ass.) |
| Posted by: Phineter Thraviger 2006-12-31 14:35 |
| #24 Happy New Year Bash, and I wish many more such insults to you and your fellows in 2007. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2006-12-31 13:54 |
| #23 I agree with this joker. The explanation given of Muhamhead does not suffice. All school districts should have a curriculum depicting exactly what this crimianl was and did. A child molesting thug and barbarian who used every means of treachery to accomplish his stealing and unthinkable tortures. A drug addict who came up with tales which could only have occurred in a drug induced stupor. A desert bedouin thief. The absolute lowest form of humanity on the ladder of life. A usurper and cult master who has deformed the lives of millions and millions of simpletons over the millenia. The cancer of the Muzzie cult should be made very well known to the children who will find their adult lives twisted and bent in the effort to throw the barbarism on the trash pile of history. |
| Posted by: SpecOp35 2006-12-31 13:25 |
| #22 If you read the rest of the article posted by Whiskettes4Hillali in #17, you get to what's really irritating the boil on Bash's butt. It's not so much that he wants the holiday, it's that those damn Jooooooos have their holidays on the school calendar. Can't have that! |
| Posted by: Swamp Blondie 2006-12-31 12:21 |
| #21 I got an idea. We'll refer to the "Prophet Mohammed" if Muslims refer to "Our Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God". How's that? |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2006-12-31 12:20 |
| #20 Wow, the Baltimore Catechism I had not seen that in, um, a long time Sister Mary Chokehold. I started to read it and the words were like listening to an old song... I'm back in the Wayback machine Sherman. |
| Posted by: Capsu 78 2006-12-31 12:09 |
| #19 Public schools close for Christmas because the great majority of the students are Christian, and will take the holiday off, regardless... and the winter break has to occur sometime in midwinter anyway. Those schools with relatively high percentages of Jewish students learn that significant numbers of their students will be absent for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, and don't give important tests or key lessons on those days. *shrug* In the trailing daughters' schools the Jewish kids have always been a small minority, so we warn the teachers up front when they'll be absent and get the work ahead of time. That's how it works. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2006-12-31 11:32 |
| #18 More on Bash Pharoan: Images offensive to Muslims are debated by Matthew Hay Brown March 14, 2006 Baltimore Sun Charles Mitchell sat before a full-color blowup of the most notorious of the newspaper cartoons that have roiled the Islamic world - the one that shows the Prophet Muhammad wearing a turban in the shape of a bomb - and said that how it makes Muslims feel was beside the point. [...] But Bash Pharoan called the image unnecessarily hurtful. "It indicates that all Muslims are terrorists, or potentially could be terrorists," said Pharoan, president of the Baltimore County Muslim Council. "It means that the Prophet Muhammad teaches terrorism. If you look at the face, it's an ugly face. ... It really gives the impression that Arabs or Muslims are ugly people, and that they do ugly things." ------------------------------------------------ "Ugly things", like seek to destroy Israel, blow up trains, planes and nightclubs, shoot teachers? If the David Jones tea towel fits.... |
| Posted by: Whiskettes4Hilali 2006-12-31 11:16 |
| #17 #13 They keep pushing. A little bit here, a little bit more over there. Are we going to push back? My guess is "no", not until it gets a LOT worse. Lucky guess! Bashar Pharoan, MD, PA, whose philosophy is "doing unto others what you would want done unto you" has been campaigning for the Muslim holidays of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha to be included in the Baltimore County Public Schools calendar. Dr. Bash Pharoan is asking for just two days a year. In his decade-long campaign to have key Muslim holidays included in the Baltimore County Public Schools calendar, the dispute boils down to a question of two school days annually. That's the controversy on its surface - but for Dr. Pharoan, the wound goes much deeper, reflecting what he calls a national prejudice against his faith. "It's clear cut that Muslim - Americans really face a wave or religious discrimination," he said. "I really feel this is religious discrimination." |
| Posted by: Whiskettes4Hilali 2006-12-31 11:04 |
| #16 "Islamic teachings explicitly forbid coercing others to adopt the Islamic religion. Suicide is forbidden. The taking of innocent lives is forbidden. Yet the curriculum would have students believing otherwise," Pharoan said. Sorry Pharoan, but reality (not to mention 1400-odd years of history of continuous violent Jihad and conversions by the sword) calls you a liar. How about we teach about the 1400 years of Jihad and how the 'middle east' was converted to Islam by the sword? About how the Crusades were a defensive measure? |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2006-12-31 10:54 |
| #15 Amusingly, describing Islam in dry academic terms will really get their panties in a bunch. For example, "Mohammed, whose name has about 30 accepted spellings, is always referred to as "The Prophet Mohammed" by Muslims, and "The Prophet Mohammed, Praise Be Upon Him", in print, sometimes abbreviated as "The Prophet Mohammed (PBOH). Muslims trace their ethnic roots to the early Hebrews, known today as Jewish people, though they dislike Jews intensely." |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2006-12-31 10:46 |
| #14 Time to look a bit deeper at "Bash Pharoan"... "Pharoan disagrees. He said the resource sheet on Islam belittles the prophet Muhammad by referring to him only as "Muhammad." Muslims always say "Prophet Muhammad," Pharoan said. "Omitting the word prophet is disrespectful," he said." When the shoe is on the other foot, and Muslims are causing deep offence to (eg) holocaust survivors, Bash plays it down, and doesn't see a big deal about it ... Local Leaders React To Holocaust Conference [...] However, president of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee Dr. Bash Pharoan said he believes it's an attempt at propaganda by Ahmadinejad. "I don't really see the big deal about it. Iranians, anyone else has the right to make a conference about any topic. Truthfully, I don't think Jewish Americans (or) Israelis have to fear anything. The facts speak for themselves," Pharoan said. Hypocrite! |
| Posted by: Whiskettes4Hilali 2006-12-31 10:39 |
| #13 They keep pushing. A little bit here, a little bit more over there. Are we going to push back? My guess is "no", not until it gets a LOT worse. |
| Posted by: Dave D. 2006-12-31 10:21 |
| #12 Suicide is forbidden. The taking of innocent lives is forbidden. Yet the curriculum would have students believing otherwise, Watching the daily news would have students believe otherwise. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2006-12-31 09:32 |
| #11 Everything the School Board hands out belittles Jesus Christ because they refer to the date only as 2006. Christians always say "In they Year of Our Lord 2006". Documents and assignments ommitting this phrase are disrespectful. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-12-31 09:19 |
| #10 "Jihad" does not mean a Muslim should go out and kill the poor, he said. Yet, oddly, it DOES include emptying an automatic rifle into a child strapped into a car seat. |
| Posted by: Rob Crawford 2006-12-31 09:19 |
| #9 I would like to see the entire AMERICAN-Muslim community condeming suicide bombing, the murderous aspect of jihad, and any type of violence perpetrated by Muslims in any place of the world very OPENLY, STRONGLY. |
| Posted by: very 2006-12-31 09:06 |
| #8 Gee I must have missed the articles about teaching Judaism and Christianity without being sued by the ACLU! |
| Posted by: Jim 2006-12-31 09:05 |
| #7 Some of the featured lectures should include; Head chopping 101, Clitorectomy - for fun and profit, Safe goat sex, Bronze age technology, How to take advantage of Western guilt, Hitler my Hero, Rosie O'Donnel and your 71 other virgins, Muhammed - savage pedophile warlord or false prophet? I'm tired of Muslim victimization in all facets. Grow the fuck up, join the 21st century and stop trying to jam yourselves down the civilized worlds throat. |
| Posted by: JerseyMike 2006-12-31 09:01 |
| #6 Well, if this annoys the muzzies, then the Baltimore Catechism is really going to put their panties in a wad. |
| Posted by: GORT 2006-12-31 08:53 |
| #5 " |
| Posted by: Spomort Greling4204 2006-12-31 08:51 |
| #4 "Jihad" does not mean a Muslim should go out and kill the poor, he said. Unless the poor are infidel or Shia. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2006-12-31 07:28 |
| #3 He never prophesized anything came true. |
| Posted by: Thineth Grusing1600 2006-12-31 07:26 |
| #2 "Muslims always say "Prophet Muhammad," Pharoan said. "Omitting the word prophet is disrespectful," he said." Omitting the word "false" before "prophet" is inaccurate. Omitting the word "rockspider" is optional. |
| Posted by: Whiskettes4Hilali 2006-12-31 07:12 |
| #1 Oh, the disrespect! Maybe Bash can tell us how many different meanings there are for taquiya and kufr. Most of what would follow that lesson would be redundant, as it sums up all the lies and hatred of the RoP, spit. |
| Posted by: fever (formerly Rhodesiafever) 2006-12-31 06:30 |