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How Do You Solve A Problem Like Sharia? Awad v. Ziriax and the Question of Sharia Law in America
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Grunert, Jeremy |
| Copyright Year | 2013 |
| Abstract | To hear many pundits, politicians, and bloggers tell it, the United States is facing an existential threat: the proliferation of so-called "creeping sharia" in American society, and, worse, the supposed infiltration of Islamic law into the US judicial system. In an effort to address this danger, some politicians - borrowing a page from European nations that have prohibited such things as full-face veils, or the construction of new mosque minarets - have proposed legislation to "ban" the application of sharia. In several states, this legislation has been passed, signed into law, and, in the case of Oklahoma, even ratified by the state's citizenry through the state ballot initiative process.But is sharia law truly a threat to the United States' constitutional order, or to the liberty and happiness of its citizens? And are segments of the Muslim-American community really a potential "fifth column," as many pundits, and, especially, bloggers, allege? Or are state legislative attempts to preemptively "ban" sharia misguided, redundant, and counter-productive?This comment addresses the topic of sharia law in the United States and, specifically, the question of whether States can, or should, attempt to "ban" the application of sharia law. The comment addresses this question by examining the recent case of Awad v. Ziriax, in which Muneer Awad, a Muslim citizen of Oklahoma, successfully challenged a state constitutional amendment banning the application of sharia that was approved by Oklahoma voters in November 2010. Using the Awad judgment as a guidepost, the comment discusses the legal obstacles to state laws attempting to ban the application of sharia; the reasons why sharia bans are likely redundant; and policy-oriented reasons why sharia bans likely do much more harm than good. |
| Starting Page | 5 |
| Ending Page | 5 |
| Page Count | 1 |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Volume Number | 40 |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2133&context=plr |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
