© CAIR CaliforniaGlenn Greenwald
Glenn Greenwald, the civil rights attorney and journalist who helped reveal evidence that the U.S. was spying on its citizens and allies, said it's crucial to safeguard the civil liberties of American Muslims to ensure the rights of all Americans.
Greenwald, who published a series of articles based on documents provided by former National Security Administration contractor Edward Snowden, served as the keynote speaker Nov. 16 at the annual "Faith in Freedom" banquet hosted by the Los Angeles chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
He spoke to the group by video, rather than in person, citing concerns about possible attempts by American officials to prosecute him for his journalistic work.
Greenwald also noted reports, columns and statement issued by groups who questioned his ties to CAIR, portraying his speech as a
"propaganda coup" for a group that some right-wing critics have described as having ties to terrorist organizations.
Other critics have called for
Greenwald's arrest and questioned whether he
hated America"What really makes me genuinely, in all seriousness, happy about those kind of reactions is that it just underscores for me the kind of demonization that American Muslims are routinely subjected to, even to this day," Greenwald said.
Comment: What if speaking the truth is paramount to a request to be fired from a position where one has ready access to the minds of the populace? What if, no matter how outraged, the public opinion on what they want to hear from their televisions is ignored or forcibly silenced? What if, what if, what if?