American Muslims Afraid
of Giving Cash to Charities
By Khalid Hasan
Washington, DC: American Muslims are
afraid of making cash contributions to Islamic charities
for fear that US intelligence and security agencies might
haul them up as financial backers of terrorism.
Instead, they have been sending packages of medicines and
other goods to leading Islamic charities, assuming that
they are contributing to relief efforts in the Middle East.
However, it not only burdens the charities, to whom such
gifts are sent, with shipping and delivery costs at the
US end but once the goods land at the intended place, there
are fresh difficulties involving storage, transport and
delivery. All charities prefer cash donations but since
9/11, American Muslims are wary of making cash contributions,
as many of them had their fingers burnt when government
agents came chasing after them following 9/11, subjecting
them to intensive questioning.
A report in the Washington Post on Wednesday describes in
some detail the dilemma facing Islamic charities and American
Muslims who want to contribute to assist Palestinian and
Lebanese people. “Obviously, it makes more sense for
us to get financial contributions. Obviously, this is the
most inefficient way to do humanitarian aid,” Mohammed
Alomari, a spokesman for the charity, Life for Relief and
Development in Southfield, Michigan, told the newspaper.
“The problem, according to relief groups, is that
many people who are inclined to write checks for emergency
aid and reconstruction in Lebanon are afraid of ending up
in some government database of suspected supporters of terrorism.
Arab American leaders say this is one of the unintended
consequences of the US government’s crackdown on charities
run by Muslims. Though aimed at cutting off illicit funding
for terrorist groups, the crackdown has complicated legitimate
humanitarian relief efforts in Lebanon, Gaza and the West
Bank,” says the report.
Nihad Awad, executive director of the Washington-based Council
on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), told the Post, “Dozens
of people have approached me. They want to help, they want
to send money to buy medicine, and they’re afraid
of the government reaction to their contribution. Some do
it anyway. They can’t sit idly. But they worry that
one day they’ll hear a knock on the door.”
James J Zogby, president of a Washington-based advocacy
group, said there is “a chill factor” on giving
money to charities operating in Arab countries. “In
the context of the National Security Agency (NSA) monitoring
everything under the sun, people are afraid,” he said,
referring to the NSA’s monitoring of international
phone calls and e-mails. He added that he has repeatedly
urged US officials to publish a list of legitimate charities,
to no avail. (Courtesy Daily Times)
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