Tennessee Mayor Defends Sending Out Anti-Muslim E-mail

Posted by Faiz Shakir, Think Progress at 6:00 AM on September 8, 2009.

Johnny Piper, the mayor of Clarksville, TN, recently forwarded an anti-Muslim email urging all "patriotic Americans" to protest a U.S. Postal Service stamp that commemorates an Islamic holiday. Piper’s email falsely claims that the creation of the Eid stamp was ordered by President Obama. In fact, the stamp was first issued in 2001, during the Bush administration. It was reissued in 2002, 2006, 2007 and 2008. Nevertheless, Piper is defending his email:

"I don’t see any reason why it would be inappropriate," Piper said.

He said he forwarded the e-mail to provide "information" that others could make up their own minds about.

"I was surprised at a stamp being developed, and would have thought others would be, too," he said. He added that he did not know what the stamp was commemorating.

"I laughed when I read it," said Ahmed Joudah, head of the Islamic Center of Clarksville. "But at the same time, I felt sorry that we still have people around us that think that way."

Tagged as: racism, muslims, eid, johnny piper, u.s. postal service, ahmed joudah

Faiz Shakir is the Research Director at the Center for American Progress and serves as Editor of ThinkProgress.org and The Progress Report.