OnIslam.net

CAIRO – In a new uproar over a bill aiming to ban Shari`ah, hundreds of American Muslims rallied in the south-eastern state of Tennessee to condemn the proposed legislation for restricting their religious freedoms.

“People have this idea that Shari`ah is just chopping people’s hands,” Arshia Shah, a lawyer originally from Britain who now lives in Sparta, told The Tennessean newspaper on Wednesday, April 20.

“But Shari`ah is a way of life for us.

“It’s prayer. It’s how we deal with our spouses. And to tell people that they can’t practice this — that they’re doing something wrong — is a great concern.”

Shah joined hundreds of Muslims, who gathered on the state Capitol on Tuesday, to protest a bill proposed by two local representatives to ban Shari`ah in Tennessee.

Two local representatives have presented a bill that would make the practice of Shari`ah in Tennessee a felony.

The bill initially described Shari`ah as a threat to the US security on claimed that it requires followers to “overthrow” the US government.

But under growing protests against the bill, the sponsors removed all references to Shari`ah and Islam.

The proposed legislation, known formally as the Material Support to Designated Entities Act, gives the governor and the state attorney general the power to designate groups as terrorist organizations.

Once designated, a group’s financial assets could be frozen and its contributors could face criminal penalties.

“I think it’s a good bill,” Senator Bill Ketron, one of the bill’s sponsors, told a hearing on Tuesday.

“They say it’s duplicative because it mirrors the Patriot Act on the federal level, but local law enforcement see and hear what’s going on locally.”

If approved, the bill would make the practice of Shari`ah punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Critics warn that the legislation, if passed, would make the practice of Islam itself illegal.

Harmful

Opponents warn that the anti-Shari`ah bill harms America’s reputation as a beacon of religious tolerance.

“We’re proud of being in Tennessee,” Rashed Fakhouddin, an outreach volunteer with the Islamic Center, told The Tennessean.

“We want Tennessee to be a shining image all across the country. Bills like this just make us look like we’re witch-hunting Muslims.”

Ossama Bahloul, imam of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro, agrees.

"I don't think there's any need for this bill when we have a federal act," Bahloul told The Daily News Journal of Murfreesboro.

"I think it's a time for us in Tennessee to open doors and open dialogue."

Bahloul said the Muslim community supports laws that make their city and the whole country safe.

But this bill is "not doing anything but hurting the reputation of the state," he said.

Lawmakers in at least 13 states have introduced proposals forbidding local judges from considering Shari`ah when rendering verdicts on issues of divorces and marital disputes.

Last November, a federal court blocked constitutional amendments that would have prohibited the use of Shari`ah in Oklahoma.

In Islam, Shari`ah governs all issues in Muslims’ lives from daily prayers to fasting and from, marriage and inheritance to financial disputes.