Washington D.C. (March 29th, 2011) -- The following is a statement from Andrea Lafferty, president of Traditional Values Coalition, regarding today's hearing on Islam held by the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights:
"Islam is not just a religion. Islam is a geo-political military system wrapped in a cloak of religious belief that penalizes conversion with death.
"While today's hearings will focus on Islam as a religion, it will not focus on the many victims of Islam. Nor will these hearings focus on the long history of Islam as a system of political control cloaked in the veneer of faith that systematically deprives millions of their basic human and civil rights.
"In order to clarify whether Islam is ready to truly live up to the values it proclaims to believe rather than the incendiary hatred preached by radical imams, terrorist organizations, and a system of shariah designed to displace the United States Constitution, we suggest five basic principles upon which Muslim leaders and organizations must be undeniably clear:
- Islam must respect the rule of law, including the primacy of the United States Constitution as the law of the land.
- Islam must reject violence as a means of resistance or struggle (jihad).
- Islam must respect and honor the equal rights of women in the context of American jurisprudence.
- Islam must respect and honor the rights of human conscience.
- Islam must respect the United States Constitution and honor the equal station of every human being.
"Islam has a long and bloody history of violence and resistance. Islamic leaders still resist on questions as to whether a Muslim should respect the rule of law, the Constitution, reject violence as a means of resistance, respect the equal rights of women and human conscience, and honor the equal station of every human being. These conditions are fundamental to an American understanding of justice and freedom.