NEWS STORY: Supreme Court won’t change panel that sparked Muslim protest

c. 1997 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Supreme Court Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist has rejected a request from American Muslim groups to remove an image of the Prophet Muhammad from a marble frieze in the court’s chamber. Some 16 Muslim organizations had asked for the depiction to be removed from the 64-year-old frieze, a […]

c. 1997 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ Supreme Court Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist has rejected a request from American Muslim groups to remove an image of the Prophet Muhammad from a marble frieze in the court’s chamber.

Some 16 Muslim organizations had asked for the depiction to be removed from the 64-year-old frieze, a bas-relief that honors persons important to the historical development of the law and which decorates the court chamber’s four walls just below the ceiling.


The Muslims said the image was offensive because it countered Islamic injunctions against all forms of idolatry, which includes showing any human likeness of the prophet.

But in a letter to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Rehnquist said altering the depiction of Muhammad”would impair the artistic integrity”of the frieze. He also said it would violate a law prohibiting all actions that”injure”the Supreme Court’s architectural features.

Officials at CAIR, a Washington-based group that coordinated the Muslim request to the court, said Wednesday (March 12) they would consult with the 15 other Muslim organizations that jointly asked for the frieze to be altered before taking any further action.

In a statement, however, Nihad Awad, CAIR’s executive director, said the problem remained”unresolved”and”the Islamic principles behind our objections have not changed.” Meanwhile, there was a Muslim demonstration Thursday (March 13) in the disputed Indian state of Kashmir to protest Rehnquist’s decision, according to news reports.

The Reuter news agency said Indian police fired shots and used tear gas to disperse Muslim protesters in the city of Srinagar who were reportedly angered by the decision. More than a dozen demonstrators were reported injured. Reuters said a similar demonstration was held Wednesday at which anti-American slogans were shouted.

CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper cautioned against reading too much into the Reuters reports, however.

He noted in an interview that tensions are always high in Kashmir, a majority Muslim state ruled by predominantly Hindu India. Hooper said Kashmiri Muslim separatists frequently clash with Indian authorities and the Supreme Court issue may have been seized upon as another pretext for a protest.

In his letter to CAIR, which was made public Wednesday, Rehnquist said the depiction of Muhammad”was intended only to recognize him, among many other lawgivers, as an important figure on the history of law; it is not intended as a form of idol worship.” Muslims were also upset because the Muhammad image holds a sword in one hand. CAIR and the other groups argued this played into stereotypes about Islam being a violent religion.


Rehnquist, however, said”swords are used throughout the court’s architecture as a symbol of justice; for example, nearly a dozen swords appear in the courtroom frieze alone, and one is featured in the large statue entitled `The Authority of Law’ in the front of the building.” A third Muslim concern centered on court literature about the frieze calling Muhammad the”founder”of Islam, a term Muslims do not use. Muslims prefer to say Muhammad was God’s”final”prophet to whom the Koran, the Islamic scripture, was divinely revealed and whose activities led to the establishment of Islamic culture.

Rehnquist said references to Muhammad as Islam’s founder would be removed. He also said a statement would be added saying the depiction of Muhammad in the frieze was”a well-intentioned attempt by the sculptor Adolph Weinman to honor Muhammad and it bears no resemblance to Muhammad.”

MJP END RIFKIN

Donate to Support Independent Journalism!

Donate Now!