A.K. Hassan, a Muslim migrant from Somalia, signs a statement on the Qur’an, pledging to “be careful to serve all the needs of all the creation of Allah.”
There are, of course, numerous calls within the Qur’an to wage war against and subjugate unbelievers (cf. 9:29), as well as permission to deceive Infidels to guard oneself from them (3:28). Consequently, Hassan’s oath on the Qur’an raises questions that will certainly not be asked by the Minneapolis mainstream media. Those who will respond with a facile invocation of bad bits from the Bible, pointing out that officials who take oaths on the Bible are never asked about such passages, are ignoring the important fact that oaths have been taken on the Bible since the beginning of the American republic, with the understanding that its principles were the foundation of the American legal system, without any sectarian endorsement and certainly without endorsing passages that no Jewish or Christian exegetes have taken literally for at least twenty centuries.
The Qur’an is different not only because it contains principles that are vastly different from Judeo-Christian ones, but also is used to this day by jihadis as a pretext and justification for violence against unbelievers. If there were any reporters left, one would ask A.K. Hassan how he approaches its problematic passages, and how he understands his oath on the Qur’an vis-a-vis his responsibility toward non-Muslims. But there are no reporters left.
“Somali refugee takes oath of office on Koran in Minneapolis (video),” by Anneta Griffee, DML News, February 6, 2018 (thanks to Creeping Sharia):
A.K. Hassan, a refugee from Somalia who arrived in Minneapolis in 2008, worked as a “community organizer,” and has now positioned himself within the American political system.
Hassan was elected to the District 3 seat on the Minneapolis Park Board in the November 2016 elections, and took his oath of office on January 2 – with his left hand placed firmly over the Koran….
After he took his oath, promising to uphold the Constitution of the United States, Hassan then opened his Koran and declared, “In the name of the Allah….” and said “Allah has honored me… so be careful to serve all the needs of all the creation of Allah.”
According to the Minneapolis Labor Federation:
Hassan was a former teen coordinator for the Franklin Ave. library. He serves as chair of the Ventura Village neighborhood group in the Phillips Neighborhood. He’s worked as a community organizer for Minneapolis Open Streets. And he’s been the chair of the Minnesota DFL Somali-American Caucus….