This issue of ‘Mosque near ground zero’ has sharply divided America and is being hotly debated in media. The protagonist of ‘Mosque near ground zero’ say that it is the constitutional right of ‘freedom of religion’ and ‘right to property‘, hence any body who opposes mosque near ground zero is (as per these protagonist) a bigot and anti-constitution.

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St. Paul, Minn. (July 9, 2010) – The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations today asked the FBI to investigate recent graffiti spray-painted on a St. Cloud business as a possible hate crime. The Hormud Market, owned by a Somali Muslim St. Cloud resident, was spray painted with the words, “Go Home” on Thursday, July 8.

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From left, U.S. Ambassador to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic Ravic R. Huso, speaks to press prior to his public address at Metropolitan State University with U.S. Senator Al Franken (DFL-MN); State Sen. Mee Moua (DFL-67); and State Rep. Cy Thao (DFL-65A) (AAP staff photo by Tom LaVenture)

By TOM LAVENTURE

AAP staff writer

ST. PAUL (June 1, 2010) – U.S. Ambassador to Laos, Ravic Huso was in St. Paul last week to discuss ongoing issues affecting the more than 4,500 Hmong who were forcibly repatriated from Thailand to Laos in December 2009. Huso updated several hundred in attendance at Metropolitan State University Auditorium on the progress of Laos on many fronts as well as the Hmong repatriation issues that have relatives and community concerned in Minnesota.

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St. Paul, Minn. (June 2, 2010) – The Saint Paul Foundation’s Facing Race We’re All in This Together initiative received a grant of $1.8 million to expand its Saint Paul-focused anti-racism work to the entire state of Minnesota. “Facing Race We’re all in this together” is an initiative of The Saint Paul Foundation that addresses racism. The vision of Facing Race is to create a more equitable, just and open region where everyone feels safe, valued and respected.

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By Zaid Jilani

Two weeks ago, as I traveled to my Washington office at the Center for American Progress think tank, I noticed that the Washington Post-published Express newspaper for the day had splashed the image of Faisal Shahzad, the chief suspect in the failed Times Square car bombing, across its front page alongside the sensationalist headline “MADE IN PAKISTAN.”

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St. Paul, Minn. (May 25, 2010) – The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) today welcomed a decision by the U.S. Department of Education – Office for Civil Rights (DOE-OCR) to launch an investigation into growing racial tensions in public high schools in St. Cloud and Owatonna.

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The US Media has simply ignored the heroic deed of a Muslim vendor who was the first to spot the smoke coming from the car loaded with deadly explosives.  According to the UK Times, Aliou Niasse, a street vendor selling framed photographs of New York, said that he was the first to spot the car containing the bomb, which pulled up right in front of his cart on the corner of 45th street and Broadway next to the Marriott hotel.

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The actors from left, Gerardo Rodriquez (in mask), Ansa Akyea, Bill Borea (an actual professional wrestler and actor), and Shalin Agarwal.

By TOM LAVENTURE

AAP staff Writer

MINNEAPOLIS (March 26, 2010) – The world of professional wrestling becomes a microcosm for the ills of American society as four athletes find grappling with their stereotypical characters to be a bigger challenge than the physical challenges of the ring.

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The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations this week called on the U.S. Department of Education to investigate and address reports of growing racial and religious tensions in Minnesota public schools.

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WASHINGTON, DC (MASNET – Mar. 29, 2010) – On Sunday, U.S. federal authorities arrested nine members of a shadowy, armed militia group known as the Hutaree who describe themselves as “Christian warriors” committed to “take up arms to fight alongside Jesus”.

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