Courage of Franklin Graham

U.K. MUSLIMS WANT PREACHER FRANKLIN GRAHAM BANNED FOR SPREADING ANTI-ISLAM HATE SPEECH

BY TOM PORTER ON 9/9/18
Newsweek

Opponents say that he has incited hatred of Muslims and the LGBTQ community, and ought not to be allowed into the country.

The MCB in a statement to The Guardian said: “In the past the government has banned individuals whom they claim are ‘not conducive to the public good’. Mr Graham’s remarks are on record and clearly demonstrate a hatred for Muslims and other minorities.

“We would expect the government to apply its criteria here. If it does not, it will send a clear message that it is not consistent in challenging all forms of bigotry.”

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A supporter of President Donald Trump, Graham has described Islam as “evil” and a “religion of war,” claimed that Barack Obama was “born a Muslim,” claimed that Satan is behind the movement for LGBTQ rights. He has praised Russian leader Vladimir Putin for opposing the “homosexual agenda” in his country and his controversial "gay propaganda" ban.

Members of the public have also called for Graham to be banned, with more than 8,000 people calling for the home secretary to deny Graham a visa in an online petition. Lawmakers Gordon Marsden and Afzal Khan of the opposition Labour Party and government whip Paul Maynard all oppose the visit.

The MCB though has itself faced criticism in the past for refusing to back a visa ban on a Muslim preacher who called for apostates to be killed and alleged George W. Bush was behind the 9/11 attacks. It has also been criticised for ties with a group accused of fostering sectarian hatred in the U.K.

Graham is scheduled to be headline speaker at the Festival of Hope in Blackpool on September 21, an event organised by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and supported by 30 local churches.

Billy Graham Evangelistic Association UK has not responded to a request for comment.

Much more sense makes what the American evangelist Franklin Graham proposed on his Facebook page, namely completely closing the US borders to Islam:

Franklin Graham
July 17 at 10:46am · Edited ·
Four innocent Marines (United States Marine Corps) killed and three others wounded in ‪#‎Chattanooga‬‬ yesterday including a policeman and another Marine--all by a radical Muslim whose family was allowed to immigrate to this country from Kuwait. We are under attack by Muslims at home and abroad. We should stop all immigration of Muslims to the U.S. until this threat with Islam has been settled. Every Muslim that comes into this country has the potential to be radicalized--and they do their killing to honor their religion and Muhammad. During World War 2, we didn't allow Japanese to immigrate to America, nor did we allow Germans. Why are we allowing Muslims now? Do you agree? Let your Congressman know that we've got to put a stop to this and close the flood gates. Pray for the men and women who serve this nation in uniform, that God would protect them.

Why Was Graham Disinvited From Pentagon Prayer Event?

Written by Jack Kenny
New American
Tuesday, 04 May 2010

Evangelist Franklin Graham said the Obama White House was behind the decision to bar him from speaking at a National Day of Prayer event at the Pentagon because of his comments about the Muslim religion. After the 9/11 attacks, Graham called Islam a "very evil and wicked religion." More recently, the Associated Press reported, he has said he finds Islam offensive and wants Muslims to know that Jesus Christ died for their sins. U.S. Army spokesman Col. Tom Collins said on April 22 that Graham's remarks were "not appropriate."

"We're an all-inclusive military," Collins said. "We honor all faiths.... Our message to our service and civilian work force is about the need for diversity and appreciation of all faiths." In an interview with Newsmax.TV, Graham said he discussed the matter with President Obama last week when the President paid a visit to the North Carolina home of his father, the renowned evangelist Billy Graham.

"He said he didn't know anything about it until two days prior to that meeting," Franklin Graham told Newsmax. "And I would certainly believe him. I don't think that he would say something that wasn't true, so I believe what he said." But, Graham added, "I certainly believe that it was people in his administration that said no.... I don't think the Pentagon would say no on an invitation like this without consulting the White House."

The invitation to Graham did not come from the Pentagon but from the Colorado-based National Day of Prayer Task Force, which works with the Pentagon chaplain's office on the annual prayer event, Collins said. The Task Force had chosen Graham as honorary co-chairman and main speaker for the event. Since the Army announced Graham would not be welcome, the task force decided it would not participate. Its leader, Shirley Dobson, wife of radio preacher Dr. James Dobson, denounced the Pentagon decision, saying it reeked of "political correctness."

"Enough is enough," said Dobson. "We at the National Day of Prayer Task Force ask the American people to defend the right to pray in the Pentagon."

Graham participated in a Good Friday prayer service at the Pentagon in 2003, despite the objections of some Muslim groups. But the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, which raised the objection this year, said Graham should never have been invited.

"I want to say this is a victory," the foundation's Mikey Weinstein told the Associated Press when the Army announced its decision, "but in a way it's a Pyrrhic victory because it shows how far this got. We're not exactly doing cartwheels."

Nihad Awad, national executive director of Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, said having Graham at the Prayer Day event would send "entirely the wrong message" at a time when American troops are stationed in Muslim nations. "Promoting one's own religious beliefs is something to be defended and encouraged, but other faiths should not be attacked or misrepresented in the process," Awad said.

Graham told Newsmax his view of the Muslim religion is based on his decades of travel and ministry in the Middle East, where he has seen evidence of religious violence and the mistreatment of women among Muslim peoples. He said the Obama administration has been excusing or overlooking human rights abuses in Islamic nations.

"It seems as though Muslims are getting a pass." Graham told Newsmax. "And you look at the violence that they have portrayed against women. It's just horrific. If you just take women alone.... And I just don't understand why the president would be giving Islam a pass."

In an interview on the Cable News Network last December, Graham said: "True Islam cannot be practiced in this country.... You can't beat your wife. You cannot murder your children if you think they've committed adultery or something like that, which they do practice in these other countries." He told Newsmax he considered revocation of his invitation to the Pentagon event "a slap at all evangelical Christians" and warned of a growing hostility in government toward conservative Christianity.

"And I don't know if it's exactly from President Obama," Graham said in the interview. "But I'm certain that some of the men around him are very much opposed to what we stand for and what we believe."

Newsmax noted that earlier this year an invitation to Family Research Council leader Tony Perkins to speak at a prayer luncheon at Andrews Air Force Base was rescinded after he criticized Obama's call to allow avowed homosexuals to serve in the Armed Forces. A year ago Georgetown University, a Jesuit institution, covered over a crucifix above the podium where Obama was to speak, reportedly at the request of the White House. Graham predicted that religious speech will soon be restricted in the United States as in England, where a British street preacher was arrested for publicly stating that homosexuality is a sin.

"Oh, no question. It's coming," Graham said. "I think when you preach that Jesus Christ is the way the truth and the life, I think we're going to see one day that people will say, 'This is hate speech, because you're being so narrow and you're excluding other people.'"

President Obama will sign a proclamation for the National Day of Prayer, but is not scheduled to participate in any of its activities. The Justice Department has said it will appeal U.S. District Court Judge Barbara Crabb's ruling that a government-proclaimed National Day of Prayer violates the First Amendment ban on an "establishment of religion."

Muslim Group Wants Christian Leader Barred from Canada

By Alison Espach
CNSNews.com Correspondent
July 17, 2006

(CNSNews.com) - An Islamic advocacy group wants Rev. Franklin Graham barred from entering Canada because of allegedly hateful statements made towards Islam. Graham's spokesman says the Evangelical minister's comments have been "misconstrued" by some Muslims.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations of Canada (CAIR-CAN) claims allowing Graham into Canada would be evidence of a "double standard." British Muslim Riyad ul-Haq was denied entry into Canada in June after being accused of inciting hatred towards Jews, Christians, and other non-Muslims - a violation of Canada's so-called "hate propaganda laws."

"We do not welcome hate-mongers," said Leslie Harmer, spokesperson for Immigration Minister Monte Solberg, the official who ordered that Canadian authorities block ul-Haq from entering the country.

CAIR-CAN noted that shortly after the 9/11 attacks Graham called Islam "a very evil and a very wicked religion." The group argues that, like ul-Haq, Graham should be forbidden to come to Canada for a scheduled visit later this year.

"The comments they have made are very widely available, and there isn't a great deal of difference between the two individuals," CAIR-CAN Communications Director Halima Mautbur told Cybercast News Service.

The group is further dismayed with the government's decision, because ul-Haq promised he would not speak about anything controversial while he was in Canada.

CAIR-CAN Executive Director Karl Nickner said in a news release Thursday that "some Canadian Muslims are wondering whether a double standard is being applied."

"As Muslims and as Canadians," Nickner added, "we stand firmly against any hateful religious speech by representatives of all faiths."

But Graham, who is president of his father's Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA), previously explained that he does not hate Muslim people and only wants to speak out about crimes committed in the name of Islam.

Jeremy Blume, a spokesman for the association, said Graham would not comment further on the matter because he already responded in an opinion-editorial piece for the Wall Street Journal, clarifying statements he said the Muslim community misconstrued.

"It is not what he is about. He is about relief work, about spreading hope of Jesus Christ," Blume said. "People misconstrue when he talks about it. They think he is against Islam and people of Islam. That is why he wrote this, so people could refer to it and just be done with it so he can get back to relief work.""

In his essay, Graham said that he does not believe Muslims are evil people because of their faith, adding that he has many Muslim friends.

"While as Christians we disagree with Islamic teachings, if we obey the teachings of Jesus, we will love all Muslims," Graham wrote.

"But I decry the evil that has been done in the name of Islam, or any other faith - including Christianity," Graham continued. "I believe it is my responsibility to speak out against the terrible deeds that are committed as a result of Islamic teaching."

Despite Graham's explanation, CAIR-CAN is demanding that the Canadian government clarify its position on freedom of speech.

"We have sort of entered into an area which is creating a lot of confusion for our community given the differential treatment of these two clerics," said Mautbur. "It is incumbent on the government to provide some information to Canadians about how exactly this sort of policy of censorship is going to be used, and when it is going to be used."

Canadian officials have not responded to CAIR-CAN's complaints. Graham is still scheduled to visit Winnipeg in October.