Honor killing in the United States
Encyclopedia
Several claims of honor killing
in the United States have been documented.
argues that the United States is far behind Europe
in acknowledging that honor killings are a special form of domestic violence
, requiring special training and programs to protect the young women and girls most subject to it. The article suggests that the fear of being labeled culturally insensitive
prevents US government officials and the media from both identifying and accurately reporting these women's murders as "honor killings" when they occur. Failing to accurately describe the problem makes it more difficult to develop public policies to address it.
have condemned all honor killings as well as specific incidents. Many Muslim leaders in the US say that Islam does not promote honor killings and that the practice stems from sexism and tribal behavior that predates the religion. "You're always going to get problems with chauvinism and suppressing vulnerable populations and gender discrimination," says Salam Al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council
.
In February 2009, after the high-profile killing of Aasiya Zubair
, Muslim leaders began a nationwide, unified effort entitled "Imams Speak Out: Domestic Violence Will Not Be Tolerated in Our Communities," asking all imams and religious leaders to discuss domestic violence in their weekly sermon on their Friday prayer services. The group, Muslim Men Against Domestic Violence, was founded soon after the murder.
immigrants living in St. Louis, Missouri. After learning that Palestina had taken a part-time job without her parents' permission, and dated an African American
, Maria held Palestina down, while Zein repeatedly stabbed her.
Zein Isa was a member of the Abu Nidal Organization, which, at the time he murdered his daughter, was plotting to bomb the Israel
i Embassy in Washington, D.C.
. A crucial factor in his trial was that the FBI had bugged
Zein's house in connection with his suspected terrorist activities, and had recorded Palestina's murder on an audio cassette. This was especially important in confirming that Maria was an active participant in the murder, and that Zein's claim of self-defense
was unwarranted.
On December 20, 1991 both Zein and Maria Isa were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death
. On April 1, 1993 Zein was indicted
by the FBI in connection with his activities within Abu Nidal Organization, but the charges were dropped as he was already on death row
.
Zein Isa died of diabetes on February 17, 1997. Maria's death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment
without parole.
An episode of Forensic Files
featured this case.
writer John P. Avlon claimed that the murder of 25-year-old Sandeela Kanwal—allegedly by her father, Chaudhry Rashid—was an "American Honor Killing." Rashid is said to have strangled Kanwal to death with a bungee cord
after she tried to end her arranged marriage
.
and a Fox News special about honor killings in America.
Aasiya Zubair
In February 2009, Muzzammil Hassan
was arrested and charged with murdering his estranged wife Aasiya Zubair
with a knife.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations
and the Islamic Society of North America
responded with an "Open Letter to Muslim Leaders", expressing shock and sadness at the murder, condemning domestic violence, and calling on imams and Muslim leaders to "provide support and help to protect the victims of domestic violence" and "to never second-guess a woman who comes to us indicating that she feels her life to be in danger." Imam Mohamed Hagmagid Ali, vice-president of ISNA, stated: "This is a wake up call to all of us, that violence against women is real and can not be ignored. It must be addressed collectively by every member of our community."
Honor killing
An honor killing or honour killing is the homicide of a member of a family or social group by other members, due to the belief of the perpetrators that the victim has brought dishonor upon the family or community...
in the United States have been documented.
History
An article in the Spring 2009 edition of Middle East QuarterlyMiddle East Quarterly
Middle East Quarterly is a peer reviewed quarterly journal, a publication of the American conservative think tank Middle East Forum founded by Daniel Pipes in 1994. It is devoted to subjects relating to the Middle East and Islam and analyzes the region "explicitly from the viewpoint of American...
argues that the United States is far behind Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in acknowledging that honor killings are a special form of domestic violence
Domestic violence
Domestic violence, also known as domestic abuse, spousal abuse, battering, family violence, and intimate partner violence , is broadly defined as a pattern of abusive behaviors by one or both partners in an intimate relationship such as marriage, dating, family, or cohabitation...
, requiring special training and programs to protect the young women and girls most subject to it. The article suggests that the fear of being labeled culturally insensitive
Cross cultural sensitivity
Cross cultural sensitivity is the quality of being aware and accepting of other cultures. This is important because what seems acceptable in some countries can be rude or derogatory in others....
prevents US government officials and the media from both identifying and accurately reporting these women's murders as "honor killings" when they occur. Failing to accurately describe the problem makes it more difficult to develop public policies to address it.
Views and Reaction
Mainstream Islam condemns honor killings, and leaders of the American Muslim community have unanimously condemned the practice. Members of the Council on American-Islamic RelationsCouncil on American-Islamic Relations
The Council on American-Islamic Relations is America's largest Muslim civil liberties advocacy organization that deals with civil advocacy and promotes human rights...
have condemned all honor killings as well as specific incidents. Many Muslim leaders in the US say that Islam does not promote honor killings and that the practice stems from sexism and tribal behavior that predates the religion. "You're always going to get problems with chauvinism and suppressing vulnerable populations and gender discrimination," says Salam Al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council
Muslim Public Affairs Council
The Muslim Public Affairs Council is a national American Muslim advocacy and public policy organization headquartered in Los Angeles and with offices in Washington D.C...
.
In February 2009, after the high-profile killing of Aasiya Zubair
Aasiya Zubair
Aasiya Zubair, also known as Aasiya Hassan was with her husband Muzzammil Hassan, the founder and owner of Bridges TV, the first American Muslim English-language television network...
, Muslim leaders began a nationwide, unified effort entitled "Imams Speak Out: Domestic Violence Will Not Be Tolerated in Our Communities," asking all imams and religious leaders to discuss domestic violence in their weekly sermon on their Friday prayer services. The group, Muslim Men Against Domestic Violence, was founded soon after the murder.
Palestina Isa
Sixteen-year-old Palestina (Tina) Isa was murdered by her father, Zein Isa, with the aid of her mother, Maria Isa, in 1989. The Isas were a family of PalestinianPalestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
immigrants living in St. Louis, Missouri. After learning that Palestina had taken a part-time job without her parents' permission, and dated an African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
, Maria held Palestina down, while Zein repeatedly stabbed her.
Zein Isa was a member of the Abu Nidal Organization, which, at the time he murdered his daughter, was plotting to bomb the Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. A crucial factor in his trial was that the FBI had bugged
Covert listening device
A covert listening device, more commonly known as a bug or a wire, is usually a combination of a miniature radio transmitter with a microphone. The use of bugs, called bugging, is a common technique in surveillance, espionage and in police investigations.A bug does not have to be a device...
Zein's house in connection with his suspected terrorist activities, and had recorded Palestina's murder on an audio cassette. This was especially important in confirming that Maria was an active participant in the murder, and that Zein's claim of self-defense
Self-defense
Self-defense, self-defence or private defense is a countermeasure that involves defending oneself, one's property or the well-being of another from physical harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in times of danger is available in many...
was unwarranted.
On December 20, 1991 both Zein and Maria Isa were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
. On April 1, 1993 Zein was indicted
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
by the FBI in connection with his activities within Abu Nidal Organization, but the charges were dropped as he was already on death row
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
.
Zein Isa died of diabetes on February 17, 1997. Maria's death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
without parole.
An episode of Forensic Files
Forensic Files
Forensic Files is an American documentary-style series which reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and even outbreaks of illness. The show is broadcast on truTV, narrated by Peter Thomas, and produced by Medstar Television, in association with truTV...
featured this case.
Sandeela Kanwal
In July 2008, New York PostNew York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
writer John P. Avlon claimed that the murder of 25-year-old Sandeela Kanwal—allegedly by her father, Chaudhry Rashid—was an "American Honor Killing." Rashid is said to have strangled Kanwal to death with a bungee cord
Bungee cord
A bungee cord , also known as a shock cord, is an elastic cord composed of one or more elastic strands forming a core, usually covered in a woven cotton or polypropylene sheath...
after she tried to end her arranged marriage
Arranged marriage
An arranged marriage is a practice in which someone other than the couple getting married makes the selection of the persons to be wed, meanwhile curtailing or avoiding the process of courtship. Such marriages had deep roots in royal and aristocratic families around the world...
.
Amina and Sarah Said
Amina and Sarah Said were the children of Egyptian Yaser Abdul Said and American Patricia Tissie Owens Said. Both girls were born in Texas. Amina was born on March 2, 1989 and Sarah March 16, 1990. The girls were found shot to death in a taxi at the Omni Mandalay Hotel, in Irving, Texas, January 1, 2008. Both girls had left their home in Lewisville, Texas earlier that evening, with their father Yaser Said. At 7:33 pm CT a call came in to the Irving Police Department’s 911 call center. The call was from Sarah Said. She had been shot 9 times and told the operator “My Dad shot me and my sister, I’m dying!” Their mother, Patricia Said, claims both girls were killed for having boyfriends. Death threats had been made by Yaser against the girls. They ran away and were safe, but their mother brought them back. Yaser Said is still at large and at present time there is a $10,000 reward for his capture. Said has been featured on America's Most WantedAmerica's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted is an American television program produced by 20th Television, and was the longest-running program of any kind in the history of the Fox Television Network until it was announced on May 16, 2011 that the series was canceled after twenty-three years, with the final episode...
and a Fox News special about honor killings in America.
Aasiya ZubairAasiya ZubairAasiya Zubair, also known as Aasiya Hassan was with her husband Muzzammil Hassan, the founder and owner of Bridges TV, the first American Muslim English-language television network...
In February 2009, Muzzammil HassanMuzzammil Hassan
Muzzammil Syed Hassan, also known as Mo Steve Hassan, , is a Pakistani-American man convicted of murder. He was the CEO of Bridges TV , the first American Muslim television network broadcast in English....
was arrested and charged with murdering his estranged wife Aasiya Zubair
Aasiya Zubair
Aasiya Zubair, also known as Aasiya Hassan was with her husband Muzzammil Hassan, the founder and owner of Bridges TV, the first American Muslim English-language television network...
with a knife.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations
Council on American-Islamic Relations
The Council on American-Islamic Relations is America's largest Muslim civil liberties advocacy organization that deals with civil advocacy and promotes human rights...
and the Islamic Society of North America
Islamic Society of North America
The Islamic Society of North America , based in Plainfield, Indiana, USA, is a Muslim umbrella group. It has been described in the media as the largest Muslim organization in North America.-History:...
responded with an "Open Letter to Muslim Leaders", expressing shock and sadness at the murder, condemning domestic violence, and calling on imams and Muslim leaders to "provide support and help to protect the victims of domestic violence" and "to never second-guess a woman who comes to us indicating that she feels her life to be in danger." Imam Mohamed Hagmagid Ali, vice-president of ISNA, stated: "This is a wake up call to all of us, that violence against women is real and can not be ignored. It must be addressed collectively by every member of our community."
- See also Muzzammil Hassan: Reaction to Arrest
External links
- Sarah Said and Amina Said on Find A GraveFind A GraveFind a Grave is a commercial website providing free access and input to an online database of cemetery records. It was founded in 1998 as a DBA and incorporated in 2000.-History:...