Source: The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21950-2004Feb7.html

On February 8, 2004 the The Washington Post reported, "After being accused of links to extremists, one of the nation's largest Muslim organizations has withdrawn from the Alliance for Marriage, an interfaith coalition pushing for a constitutional amendment against gay marriage. The Islamic Society of North America, an Indiana-based association of 300 mosques and Muslim professional societies, is the second Muslim group to resign from the alliance under similar circumstances. Sayyid M. Syeed, ISNA's general secretary, called the allegations 'completely baseless'" and said they were aimed at discrediting a voice of moderate Islam in the United States. Nevertheless, he said, ISNA voluntarily withdrew from the alliance's advisory board in January to avoid further dissension.... Lobbyists for religious organizations said the resignations show how difficult it is to hold together an alliance of national Muslim, Jewish and Christian groups, even on an issue unrelated to the Middle East."