The Anti-Defamation League, one of the most important organizations fighting antisemitism and promoting human rights in the world, issued a statement condemning Switzerland for putting in its constitution a ban on minarets, a type of religious building directly associated with the Islamic faith.
The statement is as follows:
On November 29, the Swiss Muslim community fell victim to a populist political campaign of religious intolerance, led by the far-right Swiss People's Party (SVP). The Swiss government opposed the initiative during the campaign and underscored its commitment to religious freedom in a statement after the vote.
We urge the government to be vigilant in its defense of religious freedom, even though the SVP is the largest party in the Swiss Parliament and has two of the seven government ministries.
The Federation of Swiss Jewish Communities (FSJC) clearly stated its opposition to the initiative before the vote and expressed its disappointment at the result. This is not the first time a Swiss popular vote has been used to promote religious intolerance. A century ago, a Swiss referendum banned Jewish ritual slaughter in an attempt to drive out its Jewish population. We share the FSJC's stated concern that those who initiated the anti-minaret campaign could try to further erode religious freedom through similar means.
The ADL realizes that there is always racism, religious bigotry, tribalism, and that it always ends up getting taken out on the minority, whether it be Jews, Muslims, Christians, or even atheists. Thats why they're standing with Swiss Muslims who wish to peacefully practice their religion.
I also bring this to DailyKos' attention to fight back against the smears of the ADL that have taken place on this site recently. A few examples:
ADL? (29+ / 10-)
Gonna reference Stormfront next?
by [redacted] on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 04:19:32 PM EST
[ Parent | Reply to This ]
A comparison of the ADL to the most notorious white supremacist website out there. Seriously. But it got worse:
So yes it it fitting to lump the ADL in with Stormfront. If anything, the ADL is worse since the media use them as a credible source while they wouldn't touch Stormfront with a 10-foot-pole.
And...
For now, the National Organization is simply an anti-Arab and Anti-Muslim hate group.
And a bit more tempered:
The ADL isn't primarily a hate group. It is primarily a pro-Israel group. Its categorization as hateful comes from the manner in which it defends Israel, i.e., by going after Muslims and Arabs (particularly Palestinians) and their defenders when Israel is involved.
So it's important that we don't let the extremists control the debate, much like the Faux "News" and teabagger crowd did with ACORN, and praise and support the Anti-Defamation League for the great work they've done for decades.
Please consider donating whatever you can so we can make sure this great organization can keep up the good work.