2
VOL. VIII NO. 33 JULY 13 - It, I
a
es
a
a
and State Department regula­
tion ,H alleging that the regula­
tion 'are calculated to have a
chilling effect on . . . co
. ionally protected rights
dom of religion, free
and travel' by thre teo .0
imprison U.S. citizens who
travel to and from Libya.
The complaint further states
that the Reagan adrnini tration
eks to parate and isolate
inister F arrakhan from his
brethren in faith.
CHICAGO ini ter Loui
Farrakhan and the ation of
Islam filed it gain President
Reagan and three Reagan
cabinet members in Federal
Court in Washington, D.C. on
June 25.
The Plaintiffs rt that
Re an executive order bann­
ing tr vel to Libya, and sub­
quent dministration threat .
of pro cution gainst the us­
lim inister, violate their con­
itutionally guaranteed rights,
and potentially the rights of all
U.S. citizen unle challen ed.
e are testing today, on
behalf of all liberty-loving per­
son , the c pacity of thi coun­
try to allow it citizenry the
freedom to worship God, each
in his own ay," ccording to a
kesperson for the Plaintiffs.
Th Co l' t for Decl
tory J
. injury ffered die r t of
the threa of prosecution for
violation of certain TIe sury
OTHERS AMED
amed in the suit in addition
to r. Reagan are Secretary
of State George C. Schultz,
Secretary of Trea ry James
B er and ttomey General
Ed in
z
ea
a
a I f sane ion
against South A rica
By Rhoda cKinn y
NNPA National Correspondent
BALTI 0 - As the Rev.
Benjamin L. Ho s recapped
past legal victorie of the at­
ional Association for the Ad­
vancement of Colored People,
he told the delegate- udience
that their truggle for civil
rights wa a continu u battle
and t forth ne and tronger
goal fOT CP of abolishing
the sy tern of partheid in
South Afric and comb ting the
• dual economic system" in the
U.S. which restrict Blacks from
gaining co nomic equality.
'This cruel and immoral
situation must come to an
end," stated Hooks at the
organization's 77th annual con­
ven ion, held at the Conven­
tion Center in Baltimore, MD.
"We must force our nation
which prides itself in support­
ing freedom movements in i­
caragua . . . and literally scores
of nations around the world,
to y forcefully and forth­
rightly to the regime of P.W.
Botha, we can no longer support
a system of immorality which
discriminates solely on the basis
of color."
The theme of the five-day
(J un 29-J uly 3 mbly was
, Building Toward On ciety'
to which H s frequentl gave
reference during his Sunday
evening peech, ddressingxhe
. e of ' economic p rity. U
"ln the 1950 e fought
for the right to vote" said an
excited Hoo . Hi statement
w met by a round of applau .
"Today e mu struggl to have
our vote counted. In th 1960
we fought for the right to live
. any neighborhood th t e
could afford. Today we are
fighting for a fair share ith
the banks and mortgage com­
panie ."
"Ye terday we a ed for
charity," he said. 'Today we
see economic parity.'
Hoo s pleaded with the
AACP members to turn their
concerns for the nation's pro­
blems into action by inundat­
ing local officials ith letters
and visits to congre eople,
forcing legislature into action. '
Hoo s encouraged the upport
of Congressman Ronald V. Del-
e on 2
Farrakhan had indicated he
would in February 5 pres con­
ference.
The regulations impo d
under the Executive Order "Im­
permissibly infringe upon their
ation of Islam and Minister
Loui Farrakhan) constitutional­
ly protected right to freedom of
religion" by interfering with
their right and duty to repay
the interest-free loan granted
them by the Islamic Call Society
of Libya, and agency established
for the prop ation of the
religion of Islam.
In effect, thi disallows mone­
tary support of th religion
of their choice by stopping
transfer of fund from uslirhs
in the United States to uslims
in libya.
Plaintiff Farrakhan, the spirit­
ual le der and ini er of the
. n of I am, particip ed in
a press conference on February
5th at the ational Press Club
in ashington during which he
served a the spokesperson for a
coalition of Black, Caucasian,
Hispanic and American Indian
groups.
At the pres conference Far­
rakhan indicated that r. Rea­
gan and his advisors are planning
to nd the Six th Fleet again
into the Gulf of Sidra to pro­
voke Muammar Qadhafi," and
that "Mr. Qadhafi and the
Libyan people are purpo fully
being dehumanized and used to
divert attention from the con­
tradictions that are rampant
within the American society."
In Count I of the Complaint,
the Plaintiffs indicate that it
was Minister Farrakhan's "re­
ligious and moral duty a a
Minister and citizen of the
United States to warn the
Reagan Administration of the
folly of its action within the
international sphere."
The Reagan Administration's
threat of prosecution therefore
wa intended to discourage him
from returning to Libya "to
use it as a forum in which to
speak out against the foreign
policy of the United States in
derogation of the inister's right
to the free expression of his
religious viewpoint."
Count II charges that threats
of pro cution for spe ing out
again the U.S. foreign policy
were calculated to have a chilling
effect upon the First Amend­
ment right to engage in free
h, a violation of the Con­
itutioll.