Minnesota gubernatorial candidate under fire for calling Islam “antithesis of Constitution”

A rare thing, a politician with moral nerve. He’s got my vote.

Islam is “antithesis of Constitution”. Islam means slavery and the U.S. Constitution is a document of freedom.

Minnesota gubernatorial candidate under fire for calling Islam “antithesis of Constitution”

Jan 29, 20181:00 pm By Robert Spencer, Jihad Watch:

“Mustafa…said she is deeply disturbed by Parrish’s comments, saying they demonstrate a lack of understanding about Islam. She said Muslims in America have demonstrated a respect for both the U.S. Constitution and their religion and his comments are unfair to the Muslim men and women who have served in the U.S. armed forces.”

Note the sleight of hand. Parrish said that “Islam, Sharia and the Quran are the antithesis of the U.S. Constitution.” In response, Mustafa “said Muslims in America have demonstrated a respect for both the U.S. Constitution and their religion and his comments are unfair to the Muslim men and women who have served in the U.S. armed forces.”

Parrish wasn’t talking about Muslims, he was talking about Islam. The two are conflated endlessly, but they are not the same, any more than Christians and Christianity are the same. Any given Christian may not love his neighbor and turn the other cheek, but Christianity nonetheless still teaches that they should. Any given Muslim, like any other human being of any faith or no faith, will have a variety of priorities, perspectives, influences, etc. He or she will not necessarily live 100% in accord with everything that Islam teaches, but that does not change what Islam teaches. The central question here, of whether or not Islam is compatible with the U.S. Constitution, is not answered by what some or even many Muslims do or do not do. It can only be answered by examining the teachings of the Qur’an and Sunnah.

In those sources, we find a denial of the freedom of speech in the prohibition of criticism of Islam, a denial of equality of rights for women, and a call for violence against and the subjugation under the hegemony of Islamic law of those who are non-Muslims, denying them basic rights. Regina Mustafa should explain whether or not these teachings are compatible with the U.S. Constitution. But an establishment media that invokes the hard-Left smear group the Southern Poverty Law Center as if it were a neutral and reliable source is never going to ask Mustafa such questions.

“Candidate under fire for calling Islam ‘antithesis of Constitution,’” by Heather J. Carlson, PostBulletin, January 19, 2018:

A long-shot Republican gubernatorial candidate is getting national attention for writing that he does not consider Islam a faith and that it is “the antithesis of the Constitution.”

Phillip Parrish, of Kenyon, wrote the comments in an email to Community Interfaith Dialogue on Islam founder Regina Mustafa. Mustafa, of Rochester, sent Parrish an email inviting him to sit down with her after learning he had recently attended a meeting featuring Usama Dakdok, an outspoken critic of Islam.

“I do not object to you attending his presentation, but wanted to know if you would like to speak to a Muslim about Islam. Since you have attended this talk about my faith, I figured you would also like to hear from a person who actually practices Islam,” wrote Mustafa, a former DFL candidate for the 1st Congressional District seat.

Parrish responded by saying he would be willing to meet but that “I separate Islam from the word faith because faith takes belief and Islam requires only submission.” He added that he would ask her to publicly denounce Sharia law and declare that “Islam, Sharia and the Quran are the antithesis of the U.S. Constitution.”

Mustafa posted the email exchanges on her Facebook page. Since then, Parrish’s response has drawn sharp criticism from civil rights organizations. The Southern Poverty Law Center wrote about Parrish’s comments on its “Hatewatch” blog. Muslim Advocates, a nonprofit based in Oakland, Calif., blasted Parrish’s remarks.

“Anti-Muslim bigotry like this emboldens those who would discriminate or commit acts of violence against Muslims. We’ve seen hate crimes, violence, and bigotry skyrocket as politicians have increased their attacks on Islam and Muslims,” said Muslim Advocates Policy Director Scott Simpson.

Mustafa has called on Parrish to drop out of the Republican gubernatorial race. In a press release, Parrish pushed back, saying he has no intention of leaving the race. In an interview, Parrish accused Mustafa of making a “disingenuous request” to meet with him in order to advance her own propaganda.

What is his response to being called anti-Muslim?

“I see myself as a person attempting to expose those who are attempting to set up rules and laws and regulations contrary to the U.S. Constitution,” Parrish said….

“It’s causing harm to people. Thousands of analysts like myself, thousands of law enforcement specialists have been trying to tell leadership this same message for over 20 years. And no one seems to want to listen or they live in some kind of utopic world of no, people really don’t think like that. They don’t really mean to cut somebody’s hand off because they stole something. They don’t really mean to put someone to death because they defiled themselves with an unclean woman. They don’t really mean to rape little boys on Thursday night because the imam gave them permission to do that,” Parrish said.

Mustafa rejected the idea that her invitation was in any way insincere. She said she is deeply disturbed by Parrish’s comments, saying they demonstrate a lack of understanding about Islam. She said Muslims in America have demonstrated a respect for both the U.S. Constitution and their religion and his comments are unfair to the Muslim men and women who have served in the U.S. armed forces.

“If you don’t think (Islam) is a faith, then my religious freedoms to you are negotiable and are at risk and I find that very alarming, and if he is saying that to his supporters, it’s the epitome of fear mongering and hate,” Mustafa said….

Rochester DFL Rep. Tina Liebling, a candidate for governor, called on Republican candidates to “denounce Mr. Parrish’s ignorant, islamophobic statement and pledge to encourage peace and understanding among Minnesotans regardless of race, religion, or national origin.”