Keith Ellison’s Dangerous Liaisons
By Joe Kaufman
FrontPageMagazine.com | June 1, 2007

Anti-Semitism and Keith Ellison seem to gravitate toward one another. It was the case throughout the 90’s, when he was heavily active in the Nation of Islam (NOI), and it was the case just last weekend, when he gave the keynote address at the 4^th Annual Convention of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota. It’s a disturbing pattern from someone that purports to be a man of peace and, more importantly, someone sitting in the position of United States Congressman.

In May of 2006, then-candidate for House of Representatives, Keith Ellison, faxed a letter to the Executive Director of the Minnesota Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC), Stephen Silberfarb, stating, “There has been much speculation about my past connections to the Nation of Islam… I have long since distanced myself from and rejected the Nation of Islam due to its propagation of bigoted and anti-Semitic ideas and statements, as well as other issues. I have a deep and personal aversion to anti-Semitism regardless of its source and I reject and condemn the anti-Semitic statements and actions of the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan, and Khalid Muhammed.”

Indeed, although he has since denied it, Ellison was involved with NOI for ten long years. In that time, he participated in NOI rallies, including the Million Man March hate fest; he defended NOI hate speech; and he used such NOI aliases as Keith Hakim, Keith X Ellison, and Keith Ellison-Muhammad.

Ellison’s written denouncement of NOI and its representatives was welcome, but his actions after the message was sent were highly suspicious.

Shortly after he issued the letter, Ellison allowed the National Executive Director of CAIR, Nihad Awad, and its National Chairman, Parvez Ahmed, to donate and raise thousands of dollars for his campaign. CAIR or the Council on American-Islamic Relations is a creation of the former American propaganda wing of Hamas, the terrorist organization dedicated to “implementing Allah’s promise” of “fighting the Jews” and “killing them,” as is stated in the group’s charter. Awad, himself, had pledged his support for Hamas and had stated, in September of 2000, “They [the Jews] have been saying ‘Next year in Jerusalem’ – we say ‘Next year to all Palestine.’”

Following the election, Ellison continued to cavort with CAIR, addressing its November 2006 banquet, in addition to speaking at events sponsored by other groups connected to terrorism. This past weekend was no different, as he was the featured speaker at the 4^th Annual Convention of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota.

The Muslim American Society or MAS was incorporated, in June of 1993, in the state of Illinois. It was established by leaders of the radical Muslim Brotherhood (al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun), the group that was responsible for the founding of such terrorist organizations as Al-Qaeda, Hamas, Egyptian Islamic Jihad, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Today, it mostly acts as an activist organization, holding conferences and youth camps throughout the United States.

The Minnesota chapter of MAS, the chapter that Ellison addressed, has striven to uphold the Ikhwan legacy, by propagating materials authored by past Brotherhood leaders, like Hassan Al-Banna (Egypt MB founder), Sayyid Qutb, and Syed Abul Ala Maududi (Pakistan MB founder). Within these works, which are located via the group’s “Online Library,” one finds heated discussions about waging jihad, what MAS-Minnesota terms “holy battle,” against non-Muslims. One reads, “A Muslim must always worship Allah and wage jihad until death in order to reach his ultimate goal, although the goal is invisible and it takes a long time to achieve. Therefore the steadfast Muslim will achieve this goal either through a lifetime of effort or through sudden death as a martyr… Regularly make the intention to go on jihad with the ambition to die as a martyr. You should be ready for this right now, even though its time may not have come yet.”

As well as verses about murderous jihad, one discovers on MAS-Minnesota’s website a general obsession the group has with regard to Jews, including an entire section devoted to the “STONING TO DEATH OF JEWS AND OTHER DHIMMIS.” Some anti-Semitic statements on the site [there are too many to repeat] include:

• “The Holy Prophet (and through him the Muslims) has been reassured that he should not mind the enmity, the evil designs and the machinations of the Jews, but continue exerting his utmost to establish the Right Way in accordance with the Guidance of the Quran.”
• “In view of the degenerate moral condition of the Jews and the Christians, the Believers have been warned not to make them their friends and confidants.”
• “If you gain victory over the men of Jews, kill them.”
• “The Hour will not be established until you fight with the Jews, and the stone behind which a Jew will be hiding will say, ‘O Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, so kill him.’”
• “May Allah destroy the Jews, because they used the graves of their prophets as places of worship.”

Additionally, MAS-Minnesota’s website contains laudatory declarations towards Hamas. In an article on the site, entitled ‘Priorities of The Islamic Movement in The Coming Phase,’ Hamas is described as a “steadfast, brave, aware Islamic resistance movement.” It goes on to say, “Hamas is an embodiment of the Palestinian People’s belief in its Muslim and Arab origins, and a testimony that this people is still alive and will never die and that its jihad will be carried on by pure hands and clean hearts until victory is achieved with the will of Allah.” The piece was written by Yusuf al-Qaradawi, an individual that has been banned from the United States, due to his support for suicide bombings.

Prior to Ellison, there have been politicians who have been involved with hate groups. Robert Byrd, a United States Senator, was once a leader – Exalted Cyclops – in the Ku Klux Klan. Unlike Byrd, though, Congressman Ellison continues to surround himself with those that spread the most vile hatred, even while in office.

This is of grave concern. Not only is it a conflict of interest for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives to participate with such groups, but it is, as well, an issue of national security. Those in positions of power must demand an end to Keith Ellison’s dangerous and bigoted associations. Either that or they must insist on his resignation.

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