"If they come for me in the morning, they will come for you in the night" -Angela Davis
Marzieh Hashemi (legal name: Melanie Franklin), is an African-American Journalist and news anchor that has been arrested by the FBI. They have not announced any charges after 48+ hours. They forcibly removed her religious headscarf 崙 (hijab) and have been disrespectful and harsh in their treatment.
They are supboening her children to testify in court for unknown reasons. She has been subject to harrassment when traveling in and out of the United States for over a decade.
Keep in mind that she is a US citizen !
Do US citizens even have true free speech? Or is there truly freedom of religion? Are we innocent till proven guilty or is it the other way around?!
This event serves as a a reminder to all conscious people.
In the immortal words of Ali ibn Abi Talib: Stand firmly against the oppressor and be a helper of the oppressed.
I implore everyone to raise awareness about this issue. If you are unsure or doubtful about being outspoken and/or supportive, remember that your silence or neglect will only enable and ensure that in due time your rights too will be inevitably infringed upon. Remember, this could be your mother, sister, aunt.
Public opinion matters!
Action Items
- Call the FBI of Washington DC.
- Reach out to her children (Sarah, Hossein, Reza Hasheminiasari) and offer your encouragement and support
- Donate to the GoFundme to cover the lawyer /legal expenses
- Write, call, email your local congressman /senator.
- Contact ACLU
- Contact CAIR
- Reach out to NGO and non profit organizations and ask them to raise awareness of the issue.
- Hold an event at your school, MSA, religious institution
- Post everywhere on social media using hashtags #Freemarziehhashemi and #Pray4marziehhashemi
This is about her being black, being Muslim and being a woman.
This is a matter of Human Rights!
Sheikh Husayn El-Mekki Abdullah-Aziz
Ahl al-Bayt Assembly of America
Denver, Colorado
from the children of Marzieh Hashemi
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
May peace and blessings be upon Muhammad, his pure progeny, and his loyal companions.
We wanted to thank everyone again for the outreach and support for our mother, Marzieh Hashemi. It has been overwhelming, and is, in fact, making all the difference.
We have also seen significant media exposure for Marzieh Hashemi, although we have ourselves held back from speaking to the media over the past few days due to legal concerns. We will be happy to be more candid once these concerns subside.
The media exposure has been extremely helpful, in a very real way. The prison where she is being held is now making special arrangements for her food to be halal. They have also finally facilitated her requests regarding hijab. We do not think this would have been possible without media exposure and community pressure.
We have multiple lawyers and legal experts now involved in her case at the same time. These are seasoned individuals with high security clearance that allows them the necessary access they need to try and resolve this case on the legal front.
Alhamdulillah our mother has access and exposure, but there are unfortunately many Muslims in American prisons who need similar accommodations that are never arranged for them. Many Muslims in American prisons who do not, and cannot afford the most qualified legal teams. Our main worry should be with them.
They are invisible, and may go years without their religious requests taken seriously by anyone. Perhaps our mother’s imprisonment will bring exposure to these less known members of our community, and encourage on the ground activism to ensure the rights of these brothers and sisters.
We are all responsible for their wellbeing. These are the people that our mother speaks to us about most often, and tells us not to forget them, not to ignore them.
For us; Hossein, Sarah, and Reza Hashemi, this is not just about our mother. Her case highlights a larger constitutionally legitimized process by way of which people who have not committed a crime can be put in prison through legal means. They can be kept in prison for an indefinite period of time, and all of this is deemed legal and legitimate under U.S. law. This is highly problematic and can effect any one of us at any time.
We believe that it is imperative, especially for marginalized people in the United States of America to understand these controversial laws pertaining to being a “material witness” and other laws that can lead to our detention even if we have done nothing wrong.
We echo the voice of many legal and rights advocacy groups in the United States that find the constitutionality of these laws highly problematic, and, moving forward, we intend to assist organizations that are challenging this legal loophole.
At the moment, we are led to believe that Marzieh Hashemi’s release this coming week is a possibility, although nothing is for certain. We also believe that we are in a strong position on the legal front in general. This is certainly a result of community support.
Again, we don’t know anything for certain about her release. We were able to speak to her on the phone a second time on Friday 18 January. Her overall condition seems to be okay at the moment, but she did seem quite tired.
What is most difficult for us to grapple with is the fact that our mother will remain in prison for the duration of the legal proceedings, however long it may be, despite the fact that she has not been charged with any crime.
We will go forward by placing all this in Allah’s hands, for we plan and they plan, but He is the best of planners.
في أمان الله الكريم
For further queries or to keep updated email
UPDATE ON MARZIEH HASHEMI - January 19, 2019
We want to provide the following update on our mother Marzieh Hashemi: Sarah, Marzieh’s daughter, received a second phone call from her on the evening of Friday 18th January. Marzieh said that a grand jury session took place Friday 18th January and that a subsequent session is scheduled on Wednesday 23rd January.
Reza, Marzieh’s youngest son, who had been subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury Friday 18th January, has had his appearance postponed until Wednesday 23rd January. Marzieh’s two other children; Hossein and Sarah are also scheduled to appear on Wednesday 23rd January.
Marzieh’s children have been very concerned for their mother since her first phone call to them on Tuesday 15th January in which she described that her hijab was removed against her will and she was forced to take a mug shot without her hijab on. She was given short-sleeved clothing that does not comply with her religious dress code and she was forced to wrap a t-shirt on her hair as a temporary headcovering.
The police had refused to give her halal or vegetarian meals, effectively denying her food and meaning she has only been able to eat a little bread since being detained. Marzieh has informed her daughter, that she has now been given a hijab and “food to get by”. The children had transferred money to Marzieh but she had not been made aware of this.
A partially unsealed federal court document released Friday confirmed that Marzieh has not been accused of any crime and is being detained as a material witness. The document states that Marzieh is “expected” to be released after her testimony is complete, but it is not clear when that will be. Nor is it clear what is being investigated.
Her children have still been given no indication as to what the investigation is about. Marzieh’s sons and daughter are still very concerned.
Sarah Hashemi says “Nothing is for sure at the moment, we are hoping she will be free soon, but we have no concrete information and don’t know when that will be.
We still do not know what this is about, which concerns us greatly. This is a very difficult time for the whole family. My mother is a well-known journalist and has not committed any crime but this whole process has felt as if she is being treated like a criminal. It was very distressing to hear that her hijab was taken off and mug shot taken without it and I was relieved to hear she now has her hijab. We just want mom home.”
BACKGROUND:
Marzieh Hashemi, 59, is an African-American Muslim journalist who has been in the United States, visiting family including her ailing brother and her grandchildren. On Sunday 13th January she was taking an internal flight from St Louis airport to Denver when she was detained and transferred to a Washington DC facility by the FBI. Marzieh was born in the United States and is an American citizen. She is a Journalism graduate from Louisiana State University. She has been a journalist for several decades. In recent years she has been living in Iran for work as a journalist and often travels home to the United States to visit family and friends. She has also, sometimes, filmed about issues concerning the treatment of African Americans on these trips.
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