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21 Wm. & Mary Bill Rts. J. 273 (2012-2013)
The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself: Islamophobia and the Recently Proposed Unconstitutional and Unnecessary anti-Religion Laws

handle is hein.journals/wmbrts21 and id is 277 raw text is: THE ONLY THING WE HAVE TO FEAR IS FEAR ITSELF: ISLAMOPHOBIA AND THE RECENTLY PROPOSED UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND UNNECESSARY ANTI-RELIGION LAWS Lee Tankle * We are a religious people whose institutions presuppose a Supreme Being. We guarantee the freedom to worship as one chooses. We make room for as wide a variety of beliefs and creeds as the spiri- tual needs of man deem necessary. We sponsor an attitude on the part of government that shows no partiality to any one group and that lets each flourish according to the zeal of its adherents and the appeal of its dogma.' INTRODUCTION On September 11, 2001, nineteen al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four passenger airplanes with the intent to destroy American landmarks and inflict massive loss of life.2 All nineteen terrorists were adherents of the Muslim faith and members of the Islamist extremist group, al-Qaeda.3 In the aftermath of the attacks, popular evangelist Franklin Graham referred to Islam as a very evil and wicked religion.' Graham's comments were just the beginning of a slew of anti-Islamic sentiment in America fol- lowing the 9/11 attacks.5 Hate crimes against Arabs and Muslims rose dramatically * J.D., William & Mary School of Law, 2013; B.A., Dickinson College, 2010. Thank you to my parents, Gail Lashner and Paul Tankle, family, and friends for providing me with love and support throughout my entire academic career. A special thanks to Meg McEvoy, Emilie Whitehurst, Michelle Sudano, Kacie Inman, and Steve Torok for their thoughtful comments and editing of this Note. I also thank Razi Hashmi, former Executive Director of The Oklahoma Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-OK) and cur- rent CAIR-OK Executive Director and Plaintiff in Awad v. Ziriax, Muneer Awad, for their invaluable assistance. Zorach v. Clauson, 343 U.S. 306, 313 (1952). LoRI PEEK, BEHIND THE BACKLASH: MUSLIM AMERICANS AFTER 9/11 at 18 (2011). The 9/11 attacks killed 2,973 people (not including the hijackers). Nat'l Sept. 11 Mem'l & Museum, FA Q About 9/11, 9/11 MEMORIAL, http://www.91 Imemorial.org/faq-about-91 1 (last visited Oct. 14, 2012). Nat'l Sept. 11 Mem'l & Museum, supra note 2; see also MICHAEL A. SMERCONISH, FLYING BLIND 137 (2004). 4 PEEK, supra note 2, at 5. SThen Congressman, now Senator, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia commented in 2001 that Georgia sheriffs should be able to arrest any Muslim that crossed state lines. Jason Vest, Exit 273

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