Statement on behalf of the Indian Springs School Jew Crew

Last week the Birmingham metropolitan area watched as the city of Hoover rejected the Islamic Academy of Alabama’s request to move to Hoover from the Homewood area. There is not much to be said about nitpicking zoning regulations, as they are largely subjective and face as much scrutiny as the city wants. However, we watched as people engaged in pure bigotry and racism in response to IAA’s proposal. Imagery promoting a conspiracy of the ‘100-year plan’ was prevalent; many in the chambers held signs referencing Dearborn, Michigan, and direct attacks against Muslim theology.

Tommy Tuberville, our current senator, posted absolute vitriol in the wake of this, developing a fantasy of “judeo-christian” America in which Muslim values are incompatible. He claims that Muslims hate America, drawing upon sensationalized radicals to substantiate this narrative. However, Birmingham is privileged in having a gifted Muslim community that lives harmoniously with Birmingham’s diverse population. In particular, their decades-long positive record in Homewood. 

Here is one of Tuberville’s statements;

“But folks, Islam is not just a religion. It’s also a political ideology and it’s incompatible with our Western values. It teaches that it is righteous to kill Christians. And many cases, Americans. Muslims go by the Quran. And the Quran is cited on the Islamic Academy of Alabama’s website. The Quran says to kill all infidels. That means all people who don’t believe in Islam. These radical beliefs don’t belong in America, and they certainly don’t belong in our great state of Alabama.”

We deem Tuberville’s rhetoric to be bigoted to its very core, and antithetical to values of peace, fraternity, and compassion. CAIR (Council of American Islamic Relations) called his response George Wallace-esque, to which he quoted in a tweet as “a badge of honor”. 

George Wallace’s time as governor of Alabama during the Civil Rights movement perpetuated deep social fissures in our Alabama. Tuberville’s demonization of a minority group in our city should bring back memories of such turmoil that lambasted Birmingham in the 50s and 60s. However, Birmingham yet again has found itself in the fray of social justice.

Our Muslim neighbors should not face such a challenge alone. Perhaps we as American Jews have grown too used to the relative safety that America has provided us with, despite the massive rise in antisemitism since October 7th, though it was not too long ago that our institutions were downtrodden by populists, kings, and dictators. Now, we watch as another group faces similar challenges to their religious liberties, and it is our imperative to show the compassion that our ancestors wished they had received.

And it should not be lost upon us for our Jewish community’s unwavering support of social justice in Birmingham and Selma. We marched and locked arms with the likes of Martin Luther King Jr. through Birmingham; now, it is in the hands of our generation to reaffirm our commitment to neighborliness, and we should not stand by and watch our brothers and sisters face bigotry.

Eliyahu Brook, President of the ISS Jew Crew