Drawing the ire of many Americans who believe that the anniversary of September 11 should be a solemn day of reflection, the American Muslim Political Action Committee plans a "Million Muslim March" in Washington DC on that day, in what they hope will have them seeking to demand justice by the U.S. government, The Washington Times reported.
Choosing to demonstrate on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks, AMPAC wrote on its site: "We are asking President Obama to fufill his promise from his last campaign for Presidency of a transparent government. Lastly, we are asking for the release of the 9/11 commission report to the American people."
Isa Hodge, AMPAC's Chief of Operations, wrote that Muslims and non-Muslims were traumatized by the attacks on 9/11 but that "Muslims continue 12 years later to be victimized by being made the villains. Yet our government either sits idly by and does nothing to protect our freedoms or it exacerbates the problem with its constant war on terrorism in Islamic countries, congressional hearings on Islam in America."
In an interview last week with Fox News' Sean Hannity, one of the main organizers of the event M.D. Rabbi Alam defended the movement and for why they intend to march: "We Muslims have become villainized and victimized," he said.
Critics charge that the date chosen for the march on the nation's capitol is highly insensitive:
"These guys are problematic and they're trying to exploit 9/11," Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, president of the Islamic Forum for Democracy told Fox News. "If they were truly patriotic Americans and moderates, they'd be marching on the courthouse steps of the Fort Hood trial that's happening this week to tell Americans that we want the death penalty for Nidal Hissan rather than this circus that they're doing in exploiting the murders and horrific acts of 9/11. America has gone on to liberate Muslims. They gave our families freedom that we could not have in any so-called Muslim countries."
The Anti-Defamation League also said that some of the leaders of the march were identified as "being virulent, anti-Semites who think 9/11 was a conspiracy theory."
In 1995, Louis Farrakhan organized the Million Man March, which brought together many black activists who were seeking social justice.
The march will likely attract far less the number the organizers had hoped for. Thus far, it has received just "8" likes on its Facebook page.
