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A potential tempest in the Iowa House was quickly diffused Wednesday after lawmakers shared their views about an Islamic prayer during an unusual exchange on the floor.
The controversy had been simmering since Imam Muhammad Khan of Des Moines offered the daily prayer Jan. 14, the first day of the 2008 legislative session. During the invocation, Khan prayed that God “give us victory over those that disbelieve,” which some construed as being a reference to the United States’ war in the Middle East. Khan was the guest of Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines.
Although some reporters questioned the remarks on the day they were made, Republicans and Democrats were generally dismissive of the questions initially, noting that leaders of several religions and denominations are invited to the Capitol during the session to offer an invocation.
Muslim clerics have delivered prayers for at least five years, according to a review of Senate and House minutes. However, this is the first time an imam has been invited to open the annual session with the official prayer, a point that irked some Republicans.In recent weeks, Khan’s appearance at the legislature has been fodder for conservative talk show hosts and a popular topic at websites like Jihadwatch.org and the conservative Little Green Footballs.
Abdul-Samad told the Iowa Independent that he decided to address the controversy by invoking point of privilege Wednesday after a Democratic colleague received an e-mail from a woman in Arizona who asked why the Iowa Legislature would allow a prayer from an imam who “was talking about destroying America.”
“I don’t identify with Muslims who want to destroy America and I recognize where this has reached a point where what (Imam Muhammed Khan) had said was being taken out of context,” Abdul-Samad said. “We can’t let people define us and we can’t let the House chamber become a place where misinformation prevents us from coming together. We have to be able to reach out and talk to one another.”
Most legislators contacted by the Iowa Independent were reluctant to talk about the unusual events in the legislature on Wednesday, saying that it diverts attention away from an ambitious agenda that includes issues ranging from a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage to increasing funding for education, health care and the environment.
One veteran Republican representative said Abdul-Samad’s remarks were generally well-received by most members of the House.
But after Abdul-Samad finished, Rep. Gary Worthan, R-Storm Lake, invoked his point of privilege and said that he recounted the imam’s prayer to two sons who had served in the Middle East. Both were offended by the remarks. In his criticism of the prayer, Worthen asked representatives to be sensitive to the opinions of Christians as well as Muslims.
“At that point it could have gotten tense,” a Republican lawmaker, who asked not to be identified, said. “I have to give credit to (Speaker Pat Murphy and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy) for diffusing the situation.”
As Worthen wrapped up his remarks, Reps. Ray Zirkelbach and McKinley Bailey — two Democrats who veterans of the Iraq war — signaled their intention to speak, at which point the leadership called all four representatives to the well of the House chamber. Abdul-Samad said Zirkelbach and Bailey were preparing to tell their colleagues that they fought in the Middle East to protect every American’s right to freedom of speech and religion.
The Republican representative we spoke to said that although he wasn’t privy to the actual conversation, it was obvious that the exchange was congenial. Abdul-Samad said that he and Worthen exchanged a hug when they finished talking.
“I understand and respect his concerns just as I hope he understands my point of view,” Abdul-Samad said. “I don’t condone violence of any kind and I hope people understand that the point that was trying to be made was that in a society where people are dying from disease and violent crime and poverty, we need individuals to come together to strengthen society.
“We understand that the war is a very sensitive issue. People have lost their lives. And you don’t separate one Muslim from another when you have lost loved ones,” Abdul-Samad said. “But we have to understand that not every Muslim supports strapping a bomb to a physically challenged woman and then detonating it in a crowded market in the name of God.”
Abdul-Samad said he was moved by news reports on Wednesday regarding a decision by the Roman Catholic Church to change the wording of a prayer recited on Good Friday that Jews found offensive.
“With society the way it is today, the last thing we should have issues over is prayer,” Abdul-Samad said.
Abdul-Samad said that a majority of Iowans are tolerant of Muslims and said that imams have been invited to lead prayer at the Capitol for several years. He noted that the first mosque in the United States was built in Cedar Rapids.
Dean Fiihr, communications director for Murphy, said almost all the e-mails that representatives have received regarding the issue have come from out of state.
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