Islam in the Heartland
When residents of the East or West Coast tell me their impressions of the American Midwest, they think of bucolic terrain, churchgoing folks, Main Streets dotted with Old Glory, Mom and Pop stores and family values. While much of this is true, especially the farther you move out from the major Midwest cities, most of these folks actually mistake the Midwest for the Great Plains.
Look at a map of any election, especially a county breakdown, and you’ll see that Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and even Indiana resemble that description far less than, say, Nebraska, the Dakotas, Kansas, and even Iowa.
I have this on good authority. Born in Washington, DC and raised and educated in Southern California, it took me until I was in my mid-20s to realize what so many sheltered coastalites don’t: that there is an America in between the Hudson and Sierra Nevadas.
Not only that, but it’s beautiful and embodies the American spirit far more than does the physical and socio-political “fringe.” Trust me, I’ve driven through all 48 contiguous states just in the past three years. I now live in Indiana, and despite even the perplexed looks of Hoosiers when I tell them I moved FROM California to Indy, I have no regrets.
Flyover country generally is thought to vote Republican. And while that’s true, it’s a very vague assertion.
Most of the major cities of the Midwest (Detroit, Chicago, Saint Louis, Milwaukee, Cleveland and Minneapolis, for starters) have long been Democrat strongholds. Watch any election night if you disagree. As a resident of Indianapolis and someone who also visits Cincinnati multiple times yearly, I can further tell you the latter two, despite traditionally being more conservative, currently have Democrat mayors. “Cincy” has not had a Republican city executive in over 30 years, and, like Indy voted for John Kerry in 2004. The political leanings in my area of downtown Indianapolis often remind me of when I lived near Venice Beach, not the Indiana the media describes.
If you noticed that Detroit and St. Louis regularly take first and second place in murder rate, as they were in 2006, would that sound like the heartland? Probably about as little as Dearborn, Michigan, a city with a university that is over 10% Muslim, an anti-Israeli congressman, and so many terrorist cells and Islamic appeasers that it has earned the moniker “Dearbornistan,” sounds like warm apple pie.
It then may come as little surprise then, that the city of Plainfield, just west of Indianapolis, is home to the Islamic Center of North America, which, according to their mission, “has served the Muslims of this continent for well over forty years.”
The entire continent. And it’s based in “The Heartland.” As is Dearborn.
What’s next? Accommodating Islam—and Islam only—at the local airport?
Yes, of course. After digesting some of the “surprising information” it isn’t really surpising that the aforementioned Indiana based Islamic Center succeeded in their efforts, to install religious sinks in Indianapolis’ new airport terminal, thanks to a friendship with the ACLU of Indiana (the ICLU).
The ICLU is nowhere to be found on the religious aspect of the airport sinks matter. Last seen, they and their legal director, Ken Falk, were assisting The American Atheists in removing any semblance of religion from small towns in Indiana and suing the state over the “In God We Trust” license plates issued by the Indiana BMV earlier this year. These innocuous matters apparently make the litigation agenda, not sectarian sinks in a major airport.
In a controversy that has been widely publicized, at issue is a washroom that is designed specifically for Muslims to sit down and wash their feet before they pray. The proposal calls for such a facility to be built in the “taxi drivers’ lounge” at the airport, since 80 percent of cabbies are Muslims.
As Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch noted soon after discovering the plan:
“The only conceivable group that will use the foot bath are Muslims for prayer,” Spencer said. “It’s a religious installation for a religious use.”
Without the ICLU or other major political bodies taking a stand, the Hope Baptist Church on Indianapolis’ west side, decided to organize a Columbus Day Weekend protest. {For pictures of the event, click here. For a transcripts of the Pastor’s speech on the matter, click here.}
According to the a recap of a similar Sunday sermon from late September on the matter, Pastor Jerry Hillenburg has already blasted what he described as a secular government “that is condemning Christianity, lifting its support on the government’s dime to the religion of Islam. ”
Seemingly, many view this as going beyond religious “tolerance,” especially since no Muslim groups ever asked for the facility. As far back as a month ago, news reports have said opposition toward the endeavor is strong.
“It is the establishment of a religion to take taxpayers’ dollars on taxpayers’ property and build a building that will support that religious entity during its times of prayer and has simply no other purpose,” says Hillenburg, whose son died fighting in Iraq.
Like many parents whose children made the ultimate sacrifice, Hillenburg believes Americans are “caving in to Islam. It is absolutely unconstitutional and positively discriminatory,” Hillenburg said.
My personal e-mails to Mr. Falk, who is also a Professor at Indiana University’s Law School, and others at the ICLU have long gone unanswered. But in public appearances he seems mostly concerned about the rights of—and discrimination against—”Arab Americans” than in the separation of church and state.
Similarly unresponsive has been Union for Reform Judaism President, Eric Yoffie. As Jewish leaders like Yoffie stand in solidarity with the ACLU, the URJ and Islam, it’s apparently up to the churches to stand up to Islamofascism.
Common local consensus on the airport matter is negative, even from the left. But if the supportive local publicity is an indication, people like Spencer being silenced, and and if post-9/11 history is a guide, rest assured that the “Religion of Peace” will have its sinks with the opening of the new terminal next summer just like those at NYU – but in the heartland.
“…it’s apparently up to the churches to stand up to Islamofascism.”
Don’t count on that. Local churches are often complacent, and many of the mainline Protestant bureaucracies are lining up for dhimmitude in the name of “tolerance.” This summer’s ELCA confirmation camp at Rock Island, IL included a trip to a mosque where our teenagers were lectured about the war in Iraq. The parents at our church were deliberately NOT told about this field trip in advance. It took a trip to the Bishop’s office to get at the truth of what had happened. In the end, the Bishop agreed that parents should be told about such events in advance — but remained sincerely perplexed that anyone might have questions or objections to taking teenaged confirmands into a mosque.
Parishoners of all denominations should take a look at what the national-level churches are up to — and in particular at how their tithes are being spent. We have suspended our own offering and are instead sending it directly to charities that we can support.
I have some Greek in me.
If driving a cab, and subject to murder, robbery, accident and Canadian tippers, I’d would like to put up offerings to Zeus. When will I be able to burn small animals at government buildings?
Or, are some violent religion with commandments to kill Christians, Jews and us Pagan-Americans, more equal?
It’s all about white guilt tripping over past racial injustice. Dark skinned individuals are presumed victims of Western imperialism. They have essentially a blank check to do anything they wish. The West is evil. We are allegedly the scum of the Earth.
Let’s be blunt: Reform Jews are often of the self-hating variety. Their fellow Jews should cease cutting them slack. They have simply become too dangerous. Yes, confronting these patheitic individuals might break up some friendships and even families. Nonetheless, this price must be paid.
Well, I think the only folks we can count on are the Christians. And I say this as a Jew. If you look at the anti-war hatefests, like the one this weekend, who is out there standing besides all the Palestinian-lovers as they bash America? Jews, Atheists, Muslims, Secular folks, etc?
I live in a nearby midwestern state and Kaufman is right: the upper midwest is hardly patriotic and troop supporting once you enter the urban dwellings. Too much misinformation and moral relativism given to those folks for them to understand good vs. evil. We’ll just have to see. It’s scary, and it would be nice if not only did “politics stop at the water’s edge” but to have all of America united behind saving us from–and fighting—the Islamo Fascists. Sadly, seems half of us would rather apologize for them and take our fight to global warming. Wow.
Nice piece, Ari. David, I agree, in my opinion white guilt is our culture’s biggest problem today.
another piece shedding light on the cancerous infestation that is Islam — NOT “radical islam” but Islam — there is no difference
these people are here to colonize and conquer and they don’t need terror to do it — all they need are leftist useful idiots and traitors
It is white guilt all the way. Recently in the Mumbai (Bombay) airport (which is reasonable, but grubby) I watched a crowd of Muslim men washing their feet in the washbasins.
Not exactly a turn on, but the point is that not even in Mumbai, that has a large Muslim population, do they worry about silly public rituals.
But the foot basins are not the end of it: Muslim ritual requires washing of the bottom after using the toilet – no toilet paper for them – so in all Muslim countries their is a kind of hose / shower head beside each toilet bowl.
The result is toilets tend to be spattered with water and who knows what else. Look forward to similar contraptions in your politically correct toilets in the near future.
Completely irrelevant to the article I know, but readers may be interested to know there are no public toilets for woman in Saudi Arabia office buildings – and that is not to save on plumbing.
I have heard directly from Muslims who have lived in Muslim dominated nations before coming to the U.S.A. that they’ve never seen any such thing as “Islamic foot washing stations” in airports in their homelands.
These measures are clearly sign of a successful radical Islamic agenda enacted right in the heartland of America — these fascists have clearly parasitized our sense of tolerance and openness to forward their nazi agenda.
The sad and telling fact that most Muslims in the U.S. are completely mum about this type of development, or directly in support of it — indicates to me that most American Muslims are tacitly or explicitly in favor of the radicalizing agenda to spread Islam in the U.S.A. and to radicalize Islam in the U.S.A. before we get too wise about it…
If there actually are such things as “moderate Muslims”, then why haven’t they spoken up to stop this obnoxious attempt to impose fascist Islam in the heartland?
We’d best wise up before it’s too late — these Muslims are making America even more “Muslim friendly” than their 100% Islamic homelands are — it’s truly insane on our part to allow it to continue.
When are we going to wake up and stop this insanity?Are we going to stand by and let our nation slowly collapse?
Will Becker:
You and I are awake. But the rot within the Cincys and Indys and the Twins has narcolepsy. It will take the evangelicals and those others among us with backbones to set things right.
25% of the USA population is Catholic. So when do Catholics get holy water stations installed at airports so they can properly perform the sign of the cross before boarding planes?
I live on the West Coast but enjoy my visits to the Heartland. It is disappointing to see Islam infiltrating that area also, but at least the military presence is extensive in the Midwest/Plains, so the troop bashing and American hatred you see on the streets of SF, LA, DC, NYC ETC does not occur in Indy…at least I don’t think? Great, informative article. Very thorough with excellent links to back up each of Mr. Kaufmnan’s stances.
When will I be able to burn small animals at government buildings?
Well, hop to it! Given the work ethic of our government employees, it’s not like anyone will notice….
Using culture change at an airport, as an example of culture change in a wider area, is bogus. The airport is, by definition, merely an interchange with the aerial highways, a “Welcome to Paradise” facade. Not until one actually drives away from the airport can one make observations about “the local culture.”
Wake up America!! If we don’t get rid of this PC crap and stand up for our own country’s principles instead of some arabs, we won’t have a country. We need to back these people into a corner until they go away.
This prisdent obama winned but 25% of the USA population is Catholic
Thank you for the add..