Muslim Leaders Demand Inclusion

A coalition of American Muslim leaders gathered Friday on the steps of Los Angeles City Hall and angrily called on Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to represent all residents on the Israel-Lebanon crisis, not just those who support Israel.

The mayor, they said, has expressed strong support for Israel while ignoring repeated invitations to attend interfaith vigils for victims of both sides of the conflict. They noted that Beirut, the scene of heavy shelling, is one of Los Angeles’ newest sister cities.

“The mayor serves all Angelenos, and his public appearances should reflect that,” said Edina Lekovic, spokeswoman for the Muslim Affairs Council. “We expect the leader of this city to use his office as a tool for dialogue and mutual cooperation, not divisiveness.”

“We’re fed up,” added Maher Hathout, chairman of the Islamic Center of Southern California.

“Our message to the mayor is twofold,” he said. “Include everybody in your comments about the conflict, because this city is very diverse and we are part of the diversity. We will not be shoved aside and ignored. Issues that touch our hearts should be respected.”

Villaraigosa was unavailable for comment. But his spokesman, Joe Ramallo, said the mayor has spoken with the consul general of Lebanon twice, most recently two days ago.

“We are also putting together a group of Lebanese Americans in Los Angeles,” Ramallo said, “to sit down and have a dialogue very soon.”

The Muslim leaders also felt insulted by Schwarzenegger, who was a featured speaker at a recent pro-Israel rally.

Schwarzenegger was not available for comment either. But his spokeswoman, Sabina Lockhart, said that, although the governor backs Israel, “his thoughts and prayers are for everyone in the region.”

In a separate news conference Friday, a group of Simon Wiesenthal Center rabbis, along with Los Angeles Councilman Jack Weiss, reported their findings from a trip earlier this week to what they called the “front lines of Israel’s war on terror.” Their activities included visiting war-zone hospitals where they handed out hundreds of T-shirts donated by Schwarzenegger and emblazoned with the words “Terminator 3.”

“The governor is popular in Israel,” said Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and dean of the Wiesenthal Center.

Friday’s news conferences were the latest in a series of protests, rallies and fundraisers that are frustrating efforts by Jewish and Muslim leaders in Southern California to build bridges of cooperation able to withstand the tumult of the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.

It’s not just in California. Clashing rallies and news conferences between Arabs and Jews in Detroit -- home to an estimated 300,000 Muslims -- over the Middle East conflict have worsened relations between the groups, which had coexisted for years.

Of particular concern to the eight Muslim leaders who assembled Friday at City Hall was the mayor’s failure to directly address the plight of victims of the fighting in the Palestinian territories and Lebanon or to show up at interfaith vigils.

“We’ve sent five letters and 11 e-mails and placed three telephone calls,” said Shakeel Syed, executive director of the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California. “We heard back one time from a person who said, ‘Your messages have been forwarded to the mayor or the right people.’ ”

In an interview, Councilman Weiss said the Muslim leaders missed the point.

“Los Angeles is an international city, and its leaders have a long history of speaking on human rights issues such as apartheid, repression in the Soviet Union and, today, the ultimate human rights issue: terrorism.

“That’s what this war is all about,” he added. “It was started by a terrorist organization against a democracy and an ally of the United States.”

Weiss added that he hoped the Muslim leaders would fall in step with “mainstream America” when it comes to the Middle East crises.

In response, Syed said that “Councilman Weiss is out of touch with reality.”

“Two Israeli soldiers were abducted by the militia of Lebanon,” Syed said. “I have no problem with them fighting the militia. But they’ve got a lot of gall saying Israel has a right to defend itself by bombing infrastructure, innocents, women and children.

“The mayor and the governor continue to ignore the views of an entire group of people about such things,” he added. “We will continue to hold them to the fire, or there will come a time when they realize their continued lack of response will be politically costly.”