Source: The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

On October 18, 2002 The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported that "about 150 civic leaders, architects and the charity's employees gathered on weedy industrial land on the eastern edge of Little Rock. Their heads bowed, they prayed Jewish, Muslim and Christian prayers and blessed the roughly 27 acres that bulldozers will begin transforming next year... For Heifer International, a Little Rock-based world relief organization, the blessing marked the first time the organization publicly acknowledged that its...

Source: Hindustan Times

On October 18, 2002 the Hindustan Times reported that "The VHP is upset with the United States Embassy for ordering T-shirts for its security personnel which portray a caricature of Hindu Goddess Durga with the Taj Mahal in the backdrop. The Embassy had ordered the T-Shirts from a local supplier and upon receiving the shirts with the controversial designs, was quick to confiscate them to avoid ill sentiments."

Source: The Advocate

On October 18, 2002 The Advocate reported that "Soon visitors to public schools in East Baton Rouge Parish will see the national motto, 'In God We Trust,' emblazoned on framed posters at the entrances. With no discussion, the School Board agreed Thursday to put up the 'In God We Trust' posters in schools. The posters will be supplied by the East Baton Rouge Republican Women, a local chapter of the Louisiana and National Federation of Republican Women. Afterward, state Rep. A.G. Crowe said that the national motto on the poster is a...

Source: The Associated Press

On October 18, 2002 The Associated Press reported that "a health agency is seeking to force six Amish families to install septic systems, something they say violates their religious beliefs. Meanwhile, a one-room Mennonite schoolhouse in Elkton, Ky., was ordered closed after school officials there refused to install running water and a septic system for outhouse toilets. The regional Central Michigan District Health Department in Mount Pleasant wants to bring the Amish families' properties in line with health codes."

Source: The Buffalo News

On October 17, 2002 The Buffalo News reported that "in a gesture of good will and outreach to the Yemeni community, the Lackawanna School Board held its regular monthly meeting Wednesday night at the Yemenite Benevolent Association, drawing both compliments and questions from Yemeni parents. The meeting... was attended by the usual participants and observers at School Board meetings, as well by as about three dozen men, women and children from the local Muslim community. In a statement that drew great applause, Jim Tatko, a...

Source: The Associated Press

On October 15, 2002 The Associated Press reported that "a plaque displaying the Ten Commandments no longer hangs in Altoona's [PA] municipal building, and some council members who want to put it back on display are running into opposition. Groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Atheists Inc. argue that displaying the religious text in a government building is a clear violation of the separation of church and state and would offend some people. Altoona city officials say the plaque deserves to be...

Source: Portland Press Herald

http://www.portland.com/news/state/021014lewiston.shtml

On October 14, 2002 the Portland Press Herald reported that "about 300 people Sunday joined a peaceful march to show support for Somali immigrants. The one-mile march originally was planned as a Sunday school procession, but it was opened to the entire community after Lewiston's mayor issued a letter expressing concerns that local services will be strained if many more Somalis...

Source: The Washington Post

On October 14, 2002 The Washington Post reported that "Lewiston, Maine mayor, Laurier T. Raymond, has asked the Somali elders [leaders of the Somali Muslim immigrant community] to put a stop to... immigration. In a public letter earlier this month, Raymond warned of the toll taken by so many immigrants on the city's finances and cultural fabric, and asked the elders to help stanch the flow. 'This large number of new arrivals cannot continue without negative results for all,' Raymond wrote. 'I am well aware of the legal right...

Source: The Boston Globe

On October 14, 2002 The Boston Globe reported that "a year ago, a coalition of religious charities told Holyoke [Mass.] Mayor Michael Sullivan they were seeking nearly $1 million in federal funds to relocate as many as 60 Somali Muslim families over the next three years to this city, one of the state's poorest. Holyoke seemed the perfect fit, the charities said, because of affordable housing, entry-level jobs, and the city's long tradition of absorbing newcomers. Sullivan agreed, but advised the coalition to find more money...

Source: Foxnews

http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,65540,00.html

On October 14, 2002 Foxnews reported that "they are three young, black Muslim-Americans who are in a religious rap group called Native Deen, based in a suburb of Washington, D.C. -- and they're part of a growing trend of singing or rapping about Islam. Mainstream musician/actor Mos Def, who is Muslim, incorporates Islamic principles and Arabic words into his raps. Even R...

Source: Maine Sunday Telegram

On October 13, 2002 the Maine Sunday Telegram reported that "[Mayor Laurier] Raymond finally met with Somali leaders on Friday. While he stopped short of giving them the apology they wanted, he did say he was 'deeply concerned' that so many people misunderstood the intent of his letter, and he managed to soothe hurt feelings... Still, the loaded language in Raymond's letter... insulted most Somalis... who see themselves as hard-working, contributing members of the Lewiston community."

Source: Capital Times

On October 12, 2002 Capital Times reported that "more than 60 Madison [WI] Muslims held a protest march Friday to counter what they said were bigoted comments by the Rev. Jerry Falwell, who in a TV interview last described the prophet Mohammed as a terrorist. As the group walked up State Street, they sang prayers and some discussed the charged atmosphere in which they were delivering their message of understanding and awareness. Congressional passage of a resolution authorizing President Bush to use force against Iraq created...

Source: The Record

On October 12, 2002 The Record reported that "the mayor of Lewiston, Maine, on Friday backed away from his earlier statement that a recent, dramatic influx of more than 1,000 Somali refugees was creating an overwhelming financial burden in his city of 36,000. Following a meeting with elders from the Somali community, Mayor Larry Raymond vowed to work to reduce tensions with the hundreds of mostly Muslim families who have migrated to Maine's second-largest city."

Source: Los Angeles Times

On October 12, 2002 the Los Angeles Times reported that "the questions of when death begins and when donated organs may be used have raised a thicket of moral issues... The Catholic Church and Islamic groups see such acts as charity. Among Jews, a debate rages. Rabbis from opposing camps continue to vociferously debate when death begins-- at the cessation of neurological functions, known as brain death, or when the heart and respiratory systems fail. The definition is key to organ donations, because doctors using heart-lung...

Source: The Chapel Hill Herald

On October 11, 2002, The Chapel Hill Herald reported that "College presidents who declined to endorse a pledge against campus anti-Semitism... including Nan Keohane at Duke and N.C. State Chancellor Marye Anne Fox - faulted the manifesto for its lack of 'symmetry,' meaning it didn't also decry threats to Arabs and Muslims... UNC's James Moeser was among the nearly 300 college presidents who signed the New York Times advertisement sponsored by the American Jewish Committee... Moeser noted he would have been 'happier' if the...