Please show your support for a fellow Kossak who is running as a first-time candidate in Maryland, and who has just been targeted by a bigot protestor because of his private religious beliefs. The bigot is betting that by making this candidate's Muslim faith an issue in this campaign, voters will be turned off and interfaith animosity will be incited. I'm betting that when you read this story, you'll show your support for a good Democratic candidate and take a stand for freedom of religion and religious pluralism.
When Saqib Ali first announced his candidacy as a Maryland state delegate, I immediately sent him financial support, because I have seen him energetically working to build the Democratic party -- first, on the Howard Dean "people powered" campaign, and also on the successful Congressional campaign of Chris VanHollen (D-MD), which ousted an incumbent Republican in a rare upset. Saqib is an asset to the Democratic party, who will bring fresh ideas for reinvigorating our democracy from the grassroots and netroots.
Saqib and I have spoken about the need for interfaith understanding. While he does not make his faith an issue in his campaign, I know that Saqib is proud to be a Muslim and proud to be an American, and that he believes in freedom of conscience and religious pluralism.
But until this weekend, religion was not an issue in this race. Instead, this race has focused on concerns such as securing a better education for our children, and tossing out Diebold's unsecure and inaccurate electronic voting machines, in favor of getting Maryland a secure, reliable, and verifiable means of voting and auditing votes with a paper trail.
So I was shocked and saddened to read stories in the Associated Press and in the Washington Post that an anti-Muslim protestor has been conducting what he calls "an experiment" in hate speech against Mr. Ali because of his faith.
The protestor, Mr. Timothy J. Truett of Montgomery Village, Maryland, installed his bigoted self in a lawn chair in a common area outside Mr. Ali's house (which doubles as his campaign headquarters). Mr. Truett wore a T-shirt with the message, "This mind is an Allah-free zone," and held a sign proclaiming, "Islam sucks." Photos of the protestor and his sign are posted on Mr. Ali's campaign site.
Mr. Ali stated to the Post that he did not engage in a debate with the protestor, but took photos of his sign and his license plate, while Mr. Truett said, "You are a terrorist. . . . You guys are violent extremists."
Okay, enough. You get the picture. The bigot has freedom of speech to spout his bigoted message. But we also have freedom of speech to stand up for freedom of religion and religious pluralism. And, if you are so inclined, your free speech may also take the form of a timely campaign contribution to Mr. Ali's campaign.
If nothing else, please send Mr. Ali a message of support. This is America. America is founded on free speech, freedom of conscience, and religious pluralism. A bigot should not be allowed to conduct, unopposed, what he calls "an experiment" to see how much anti-Muslim paranoia he can incite. Let's show Maryland voters -- and a fellow Kossak who is running to represent them and reenergize the Democratic party -- that when bigots exercise their free speech, we exercise our democratic, pluralistic message even louder and longer.
An Associated Press account said Truett, 46, claimed his demonstration was "basically an experiment."
"I had heard that Muslims were generally intolerant of views other than their own, and so I thought I would put it to the test," the AP quoted him as saying. "I wanted to see what would happen."
The police have issued Mr. Truett a notice that he can be arrested for trespass if he crosses onto Mr. Ali's property. Now let's send a message of our own: people who exercise their legal right to spout anti-religious bigotry will be challenged by those of us who believe that America is great because our country welcomes all people, regardless of their private religious beliefs. And under our Constitution, there are no religious tests for public office. Anyone who says or implies otherwise is simply unAmerican.
Exercise some freedom of speech today. To support Mr. Ali's campaign, click here. Thank you.