Dear Editor,

As a lifelong Hayward resident and university alumni, I have long been an avid reader of the university newspaper. Although I’m not a journalist, I always appreciated the efforts of your writers to produce an informative and relatively unbiased publication every week. Perhaps you can imagine the magnitude of my dismay at seeing the fox news style journalism I found in the editorial section of your paper in the July 15th issue. Your editorialist, Michael Orion Powell presents us with two pieces that lack basic standards of research, logic, and accuracy.
In his first article (“Fundamentalism Should Be Questioned—No Matter The Stripe” July 15, 2010), Powell decries the opening of the new Islamic university in Berkeley. In this article, we encounter several logical fallacies. Powell attempts to link the new Zaytuna College to Islamic fundamentalism by drawing on several anecdotal stories of perceived fundamentalists. A true journalist would have conducted some research before making any sort of assumption on the Zaytuna College. The group was founded by Hamza Yousef and has been operating in Hayward for quite some time now. In fact, their location is less than 10 minutes from our university campus. It seems odd that Powell couldn’t find the time to interview Mr. Yousef. Just a few minutes with Mr. Yousef would have revealed the fact that neither he, nor his organization does not even remotely resemble a fundamentalist organization. Hamza Yousef is on the board of One Nation, an organization that is dedicated to pluralism and inclusion.
Mr. Powell then goes on to discuss several issues in an attempt to link Zaytuna to fundamentalism. First he refers to “minorities that are treated barbaric in the Middle East” Here we are presented with what is called “proof by example.”
I noticed Mr. Powell also wrote about the Oscar Grant trial. Perhaps he was confusing stories with regards to the treatment of minorities. Islam was the first religion to recognize, validate, and tolerate people of other faiths and races. The most viscous and problematic atrocities in the middle east are the barbaric acts of the Israelis (who are not Muslims) perpetrated against the Palestinians. We are then directed to an anonymous blog that heaps praise upon the Zaytuna institute. Its very easy for anyone to Cherry Pick certain arguments on the internet. However the web site’s endorsement of Zaytuna does not prove Zaytuna’s religious or political leanings. Similarly, the KKK’s support of John McCain during the 2008 election does not lead to the classification of McCain as a member of the Klan.
We are then presented with several Red Herrings. It is very easy to look at these two anecdotal stories and feel shocked. A closer look at these arguments show us that these stories show that neither have anything to do with Zaytuna and one has nothing to do with Islam at all. Salman Rushdie authored a book in 1988 that was considered blasphemous by Muslims in various parts of the world. In Iran, various religious leaders called for Rushdie to be put to death. We hear a lot in the news about outrageous and shocking stories that are designed to stir our emotions, but what does this have to do with Zaytuna? Should we also mention that the penalty for blasphemy in Judaism according to the scriptures is also death? We are then presented with the story of Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who escaped from an arranged marriage in Somalia. Islam does not permit people to be forced into marriage. Unfortunately, the practice of arranged marriage does happen in many eastern countries, however this is predominately a cultural practice. Just like the Rushdie example, this story has nothing to do with Zaytuna.
Why has the author chosen to use these arguments to attempt to paint Zaytuna as a fundamentalist organization? I would encourage the university to abstain from going down the path of shock jocks and opinion based TV shows that seeks to manufacture controversy by stirring up hatred and confusion. Our paper should focus on discovering the truth through proper journalism and scholarship.

Sincerely,
Anmar
CSUEB Alumnus