Deace’s comments on Islam draw sharp rebuke

Radio host Steve Deace’s recent comments about Islam were over the line and demonstrate bigotry and religious hatred, two national Muslim leaders said last week.

WHO-AM radio host Steve Deace

Deace’s comments came while discussing the recent shootings at Fort Hood in Texas, a topic he has returned to repeatedly on his daily WHO-AM program and on his blog.

He first questioned whether those who have “sworn allegiance to Islamic ideology” should be allowed to serve in the U.S. armed forces. He later said the shooter “may have done America a favor” if the tragedy serves as a wake-up call that Islam is incompatible with military service.

He discussed the shootings with Walid Shoebat, an ardent critic of radical Islam and a self-described former Palestine Liberation Organization terrorist (a claim disputed by some Middle East scholars).

Later, Deace and Bob Deever, pastor at Grace West Church in West Des Moines, concluded that the military’s quest for diversity was a “recipe for disaster.”

Lastly, he interviewed Dave Gaubatz, author of “Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld that’s Conspiring to Islamize America.” Gaubatz has drawn criticism for his book and for publically calling for a “professional and legal backlash against the Muslim community and their leaders.”

Sheila Musaji, founder and editor of The American Muslim magazine, said despite the fact that every major Muslim and Arab organization has condemned the shootings and offered their condolences to the families of the victims, many are still trying to use the tragedy to inspire hatred of Muslims.

“The suggestion that Islam is the problem can only be called Islamophobia, bigotry, religious hatred,” she said. “The danger in this sort of labeling is that it sets off those among us who are only too happy to have a scapegoat on which to vent their rage. It is an irrational prejudice that lumps all Muslims into one category — the ‘other,’ ‘them,’ ‘those people.’”

Abed Ayoub, legal adviser to the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, said Deace’s comments are simply hate speech.

“It’s garbage,” Ayoub said. “He’s prejudiced. He believes his race and beliefs are superior to others and wants to attack a segment of the population because of their religious beliefs.”

Since the shootings, Ayoub said his group has responded to a number of attacks against Islam similar to Deace’s, as well has a large amount of hate mail and death threats.When Deace tells listeners that Muslims have “declared their loyalty to a theology that we are currently at war against” then says America needs to “kill [the enemy] before they kill us,” someone listening could take that as a call to violence and “take it a step further,” Ayoub said.

“Everyone has First Amendment rights,” he said. “But we can’t have it escalate from hate speech to hate crimes. After Sept. 11 there were numerous acts of violence.”

If Islam is incompatible with military service, what about “all the other Muslims who have and are serving in the military and those that fought and died in Afghanistan and Iraq, Vietnam, World War I and II?” Musaji said.

“Was it in spite of being Muslims — or does religion matter only when a Muslim commits a crime, not when a Muslim is a good and productive citizen?” she said.

Despite comments from those who want to blame the shootings on Islam, the reality is that the shooter “betrayed his country, he betrayed his military oath, he betrayed his medical oath, he betrayed his religion,” Musaji said.

Ultimately, it is up to Muslims to counter statements by reaching out to people in their community.

“Most people want to know the truth,” Ayoub said. “They want to learn. Muslims have to make their voices heard.”

Calling the radio station and complaining to companies that advertise on his show can also go a long way towards combating Deace’s comments, he said, adding: “We have just as much right to be heard as he does.”

This isn’t the first time that Deace has been criticized for statements regarding religion.

In 2004, while he was hosting a sports talk show on WHO-AM’s sister station, KXNO-AM, he criticized Shawn Green, a Jewish outfielder who at the time played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, for missing an important game scheduled during Yom Kippur. Deace said Green could solve all his problems by “accepting the fulfillment of his Jewish heritage, recognizing his Messiah is Jesus Christ, therefore he is the atonement for his sins, no further need to jump through hoops, no further need to recognize or go through observances or rituals or rites.”

Deace said at the time that an executive with Clear Channel Communications, which owns WHO-AM, asked him to allow Jewish leaders a chance to present their views on his show. The Jewish Federation of Greater Des Moines declined the invitation and instead discussed the comments with Deace and station executives off the air. They also publicly called for Clear Channel to rebuke Deace’s comments.

In a statement to the Iowa Independent, Deace said he was confused why the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee would speak out against his program:

I wasn’t aware Islam was a religion unique to Arabs, since Iran isn’t even an Arab country and State Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, who is a Muslim, is also not an Arab. Not to mention the fact my comments regarding Major Hasan’s alleged actions were based on his belief system, not his race.  Thus, I’m not even sure why the ‘American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee’ has a comment on my radio program, but I am flattered by the publicity nonetheless.  All I ask is that if they plan on protesting my program could they please make sure to spell my name right, because it is spelled differently then it is pronounced and we are in a ratings period at the moment.

It’s also ironic that I did have an Arab guest on my show condemning Major Hasan’s actions named Walid Shoebat, but somehow the ‘American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee’ missed that. If a representative of the ‘American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee’ would like to come on my show to discuss my comments and the actions of Major Hasan, I’d be happy to provide them access to the largest media audience in the state of Iowa at their convenience. They’ll reach far more people with their message on WHO then they will on a blog, even one as well-funded as the Iowa Independent.

When asked about whether he is concerned that his statements could be construed as a call for violence against Muslims, Deace said:  “As a broadcaster, I take very seriously how my comments may be construed by the audience, and even try to anticipate that response before I give them. And I took that very seriously in this case. I’m sure I am just as concerned about someone using my comments to justify their own violent tendencies as Muslim and Arab groups are that people like Major Hasan use their religion to justify theirs.”