THE DAILY BLADE: MN Taxpayers Funding A Madrassa?
Columnist Katherine Kersten of the Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul) has been trying to get to the bottom of just what goes on inside the classrooms at Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy (TIZA), a K-8 charter school in Inver Grove Heights. After Kersten interviews substitute teacher Amanda Getz, who worked at the school on a recent Friday, she thinks that TIZA – which shares its digs with a mosque and the headquarters of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota - is “an Islamic school, funded by Minnesota taxpayers.” Here’s the scoop:
TIZA's executive director, Asad Zaman, is a Muslim imam, or religious leader, and its sponsor is an organization called Islamic Relief.
Students pray daily, the cafeteria serves halal food - permissible under Islamic law - and “Islamic Studies” is offered at the end of the school day. …
[Amanda Getz’s] experience suggests that school-sponsored religious activity plays an integral role at TIZA.
Arriving on a Friday, the Muslim holy day, she says she was told that the day's schedule included a "school assembly" in the gym after lunch.
Before the assembly, she says she was told, her duties would include taking her fifth-grade students to the bathroom, four at a time, to perform “their ritual washing.”
Afterward, Getz said, “teachers led the kids into the gym, where a man dressed in white with a white cap, who had been at the school all day,” was preparing to lead prayer. Beside him, another man “was prostrating himself in prayer on a carpet as the students entered.”
“The prayer I saw was not voluntary,” Getz said. “The kids were corralled by adults and required to go to the assembly where prayer occurred.”
When Kersten e-mailed Zaman about the prayer session built into the school’s schedule, he claimed that “prayer is not mandated by TIZA and so is legal.” She begs to differ: “charter schools are public schools and by law must not endorse or promote religion”; “according to federal guidelines … teachers at a public school cannot participate in prayer with students; and “schools cannot favor one religion by offering services for only its adherents.”
Kersten concludes: “TIZA's operation as a public, taxpayer-funded school is troubling on several fronts. TIZA is skirting the law by operating what is essentially an Islamic school at taxpayer expense. … TIZA is now being held up as a national model for a new kind of charter school. If it passes legal muster, Minnesota taxpayers may soon find themselves footing the bill for a separate system of education for Muslims.”
Something About Which All The Presidential Candidates Can Agree - Sorta
Over the strenuous protests of the current administration, former Dem president Jimmy Carter plans to meet with Hamas chief Khaled Meshal in Syria next week. John McCain “was quick to blast Carter's plans and called on both [Barack] Obama and [Huillary] Clinton to condemn the meeting … Both Clinton and Obama issued statements with milder language, saying they ‘disagreed’ or did ‘not agree’ with Carter's plans,” reports The Washington Post:
McCain spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker said the candidate “believes it is a serious and dangerous mistake for Americans of any stature to meet with an organization like Hamas that is committed to the destruction of Israel and regularly conducts terrorist attacks against innocent Israelis.”
Phil Singer, a Clinton spokesman, said, “Hillary respects former president Carter but disagrees with his decision,” adding: “She would not meet with Hamas without coordinating with Israel.”
Obama has said he is willing to meet with officials of hostile governments, but he puts Hamas in a different category.
Spokesman Tommy Vietor said Obama “does not agree with President Carter's decision to go forward with this meeting because he does not support negotiations with Hamas until they renounce terrorism, recognize Israel's right to exist, and abide by past agreements.”
Note how neither Dem candidate would “reject and denounce” Carter’s peanut farmer diplomacy (last item).
Don’t Shoot Me, I’m Only The Piano Player
Elton John held a fundraising concert for Hillary at the Honky Chateau (AKA Radio City Music Hall) the other night and raised some $2.5 million for her struggling campaign. Reports The Associated Press, “The cheapest tickets, $125 and $250, sold out quickly … other seats were filled by fans paying as much as $2,300, the limit for an individual's contribution to a federal candidate.”
Before John sat down to tickle the ivories, Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton all took to the stage to address the crowd. Reuters describes Hillary’s remarks as striking “a defiant, underdog note in describing her battle against Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois”:
"What I want you to know is I'm still standing, and I believe this country is worth fighting for," the New York senator said, playing off the title of one of John's hits. "So we're taking our campaign to Pennsylvania and all the states that haven't voted." Pennsylvania votes April 22.
For his part, John claimed, “I've always been a Hillary supporter” and opined that “[t]here is no one more qualified to lead America." He added, “I'm amazed by the misogynistic attitudes of some of the people in this country. And I say to hell with them … I love you Hillary, I'll be there for you.”
The Stiletto has just one piece of advice for John: Don’t trust that woman … oh don’t believe that woman please … she’s a liar.
Editorial Note: The Clog, a new grandmother who works at a prestigious NYC law firm and is a friend of The Stiletto’s, attended the concert. Here’s her review:
There was a long line to go through the metal detectors and the concert started late, but it was worth it. Elton gave a wonderful performance. It was just him and his piano, no band. The crowd - evenly divided between men and women and ranging in age from the 30s to the 70s - was very enthusiastic and the adrenalin was pumping. It was a spectacular evening!
Got some wonderful articles. GW Bush is a big disappointment to me - all the way! Lots of people could hold it over my head because I voted for him. But the alternative? Americans need to sort out their issues. I think that the Tibetans deserve full moral and spiritual support.
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