ACLU Report Documents Serious Problems With U.S. Restrictions on Muslim Charities
The American Civil Liberties Union just issued this report (with this neat YouTube video accompanying it) on the range of problems created by the U.S.
Jul 31, 202085.6K Shares1.4M Views
The American Civil Liberties Union just issued this report(with this neatYouTube videoaccompanying it) on the range of problems created by the U.S. government’s crackdown on Muslim charities suspected of supporting terrorism since 9/11.
” picks up on a point that President Obama made in his recent speech in Egypt, in which he acknowledged that U.S. policies have made it difficult for American Muslims to fulfill their religious obligations of Zakat, or charitable giving. The problem is that the U.S. government has shut so many Muslim charities down based on suspicion that they support terrorism, and declared the broad power to freeze the assets of Muslim charities pending investigation and without revealing its evidence that the groups have engaged in any wrongdoing. What’s more, anyone who supports any of these suspected charities — even if their intentions are to support legitimate humanitarian aid — can be prosecuted for “providing material support to terrorism.”
The ACLU report notes that “A 9/11 Commission staff report on terrorism financing found that the laws that allow the Treasury Department to designate and seize the assets of charities raise “substantial civil liberty concerns.”
Despite President Obama’s acknowledgment of the problems with these policies, they have, so far, remained unchanged.
According to the ACLU: “Today, the Treasury Department has virtually unchecked power to designate groups as terrorist organizations. Terrorism financing laws are overly broad and lack procedural safeguards that would protect American charities against government mistake and abuse.”
Rhyley Carney
Reviewer
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