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In September 2010, on ABC's '']'' show, ] said that SIOA is an offshoot of ], which he said had been referred to as a neo-Nazi organization by the ].<ref>{{cite web|title=Should Americans Fear Islam? pt.3|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dCHm_H0c1U&feature=youtu.be&t=13m40s|accessdate=June 18, 2011}}</ref> Spencer later challenged Aslan to produce any evidence of his claim.<ref>{{cite web|last=Spencer|first=Robert|title=Why is Reza Aslan taken seriously?|url=http://www.jihadwatch.org/2010/10/questions-for-reza-aslan.html|publisher=Jihad Watch|date=October 4, 2010|accessdate=June 18, 2011}}</ref> In September 2010, on ABC's '']'' show, ] said that SIOA is an offshoot of ], which he said had been referred to as a neo-Nazi organization by the ].<ref>{{cite web|title=Should Americans Fear Islam? pt.3|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dCHm_H0c1U&feature=youtu.be&t=13m40s|accessdate=June 18, 2011}}</ref> Spencer later challenged Aslan to produce any evidence of his claim.<ref>{{cite web|last=Spencer|first=Robert|title=Why is Reza Aslan taken seriously?|url=http://www.jihadwatch.org/2010/10/questions-for-reza-aslan.html|publisher=Jihad Watch|date=October 4, 2010|accessdate=June 18, 2011}}</ref>

In a manifesto which denounced multiculturalism and declared Islam to be a threat to the West, ], the perpetrator of the July 22, 2011, ] in Norway, quoted Spencer 64 times.<ref>{{cite news|title=Killings in Norway Spotlight Anti-Muslim Thought in U.S.|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/25/us/25debate.html|last=Shane|first=Scott|work=The New York Times|date=July 24, 2011}}</ref>


==Bibliography== ==Bibliography==

Revision as of 00:19, 31 July 2011

For other people named Robert Spencer, see Robert Spencer
Robert Spencer
Born1962 (age 61–62)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materThe University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, B.A. (1983),
M.A. (1986), Religious Studies)
Occupation(s)Author, blogger
Years active2002–present
Known forCriticism of Islam,
books and websites about
Jihad and Islamic terrorism
Notable workThe Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World's Most Intolerant Religion, (2006)
The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (And the Crusades), (2005)
StyleAdvocacy journalism
Websitewww.jihadwatch.org

Robert Bruce Spencer (born 1962) is an American author and blogger best known for critiques of Islam and research into Islamic terrorism and jihad. He has published ten books, including two New York Times bestsellers, and is a regular contributor to David Horowitz's FrontPage Magazine and Human Events. In 2003, with sponsorship by David Horowitz Freedom Center, he founded and has since directed Jihad Watch, a blog he describes as containing "...news of the international jihad, commentary..." which is dedicated to "bringing public attention to the role that jihad theology and ideology plays in the modern world, and to correcting popular misconceptions about the role of jihad and religion in modern-day conflicts". He also co-founded Stop Islamization of America (SIOA) and the Freedom Defense Initiative, with activist Pamela Geller, with whom he co-authored a book, The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America.

Background

According to a 2010 interview in New York magazine, Spencer's father worked for the Voice of America during the Cold War, and in his younger days, Spencer himself worked at Revolution Books, a Communist bookstore in New York City founded by Robert Avakian. Spencer is a practicing Melkite Greek Catholic. It is a rite of the Catholic Church whose adherents are, according to Spencer, "mostly concentrated in Lebanon and Syria, also in Jordan and the Palestinian territories." He has said his grandparents were forced to immigrate from an area that is now part of Turkey because they were Christians.

Spencer received a B.A. in 1983 and an M.A. in 1986 in religious studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His masters thesis was on a Catholic history topic. He has said he has been studying Islamic theology, law, and history on his own since 1980. He worked in think tanks for more than 20 years, and in 2002–2003 did a stint as an adjunct fellow with the Free Congress Foundation, an arm of the Heritage Foundation. Spencer named Paul Weyrich, also a Melkite Catholic, as a mentor of his writings on Islam. Spencer writes, "Paul Weyrich taught me a great deal, by word and by example – about how to deal both personally and professionally with the slanders and smears that are a daily aspect of this work." Spencer's first book on Islam was published in 2002.

Spencer's views on Islam

Spencer does not believe that traditional Islam is "inherently terroristic" but says he can prove that "traditional Islam contains violent and supremacist elements", and that "its various schools unanimously teach warfare against and the subjugation of unbelievers". However, he rejects the notion that all Muslims are necessarily violent people. He has said that among moderate Muslims, "there are some who are genuinely trying to frame a theory and practice of Islam that will allow for peaceful coexistence with unbelievers as equals." Spencer has also said he would welcome any Muslim who renounces jihad and dhimmitude to join in his "anti-jihadist efforts", but feels that anyone pursuing his called-for reforms will face a difficult task, because "the radicals actually do have a stronger theoretical, theological, and legal basis within Islam for what they believe than the moderates do." He has also argued that many so-called reformers are not interested in genuine reform, but instead are aiming to deflect scrutiny of Islam.

Spencer has expressed criticism of the Council on American-Islamic Relations and numerous other Muslim advocacy groups that he claims are closely tied to allegedly jihadist organizations such as the Muslim Brotherhood. He has also criticized the employment of several Muslims who were convicted on charges relating to terrorism.

He has appeared with Ayn Rand Institute speakers on several occasions. In an interview with the Washington Post he was "...asked if he was being deliberately combative and provocative, Spencer chuckled. "Why not?" he asked. "It's fun."

Qur'an critic and secularist author Ibn Warraq has said that Spencer "tells the truth that few in the U.S. or Europe wish to face".

Michelle Malkin says that Spencer "tells truths about jihadists that no one else will tell." Conservative radio talk show host Dennis Prager has called JihadWatch, "one of most honorable Web sites that I know of monitoring jihad in the world today."

In a public debate between Spencer and Daniel C. Peterson, a professor of Islamic Studies and Arabic, Peterson was critical about what he described as a selective criticism of Islam, but conceded to Spencer that "yes there is a broad consensus and has been for a long time about certain elements of jihadi teaching," about Spencer's assertion that the schools of Islamic jurisprudence do agree on the necessity to wage war against unbelievers, and that "we are really not disagreeing that much ... terrorism, Islamic terrorism, really does have roots in actual parts of the tradition of Islam."

Criticism

Spencer's work has been criticized as showing "entrenched hostility" towards Islam, and condemned as hate speech by a number of Muslim-American and civil rights groups.

Karen Armstrong criticized Spencer's citations of Islamic scripture as cherry-picked, stating among other examples that "Spencer never cites the Koran's condemnation of all warfare as an 'awesome evil', its prohibition of aggression or its insistence that only self-defence justifies armed conflict..." She concludes that "His book is a gift to extremists who can use it to 'prove' ... that the west is incurably hostile to their faith."

Benazir Bhutto accused Spencer of "falsely constructing a divide between Islam and West". She said he was using the Internet to spread hatred of Islam by presenting a "skewed, one-sided, and inflammatory story that only helps to sow the seed of civilizational conflict".

Dinesh D'Souza, of the Hoover Institution, wrote that Spencer downplays the passages of the Quran that urge peace and goodwill to reach one-sided opinions. He contends that Spencer applies a moral standard to Muslim empires that could not have been met by any European empire.

In an article discussing Bat Ye'or's 2005 book Eurabia: The Euro-Arab Axis, French academic historian Ivan Jablonka refers to Spencer, saying he has made a specialty of denouncing Islamist threats and quoting Spencer's own review of Eurabia as criticizing Europe for "selling its soul to the devil 'in exchange for markets'".

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has named Spencer and SIOA co-founder Pamela Geller as the founders of an anti-Muslim hate group. In the Summer 2011 issue of Intelligence Report, published by the SPLC, Robert Steinback listed Spencer as a member of the "anti-Muslim inner circle", noting that "Spencer has been known to fraternize with European racists and neo-fascists, though he says such contacts were merely incidental." Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) listed Spencer as a "Smearcaster", and stated that "by selectively ignoring inconvenient Islamic texts and commentaries, Spencer concludes that Islam is innately extremist and violent".

Controversies

On December 20, 2006, the government of Pakistan announced a ban on Spencer's book, The Truth About Muhammad, citing "objectionable material" as the cause. Former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto was likewise highly critical of Spencer's work. In his response to Bhutto's criticism, Spencer notes that the passage she cites was in fact written by Ibn Warraq.

In 2009, Spencer was asked to participate in an information session about Islam and Muslims designed for ethnic and multicultural librarians entitled "Perspectives on Islam: Beyond the Stereotyping", at the 2009 annual meeting of the American Library Association, which was sponsored by the ALA's Ethnic & Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table (EMIERT). After objections were raised by ALA members and the general public, the three other panelists withdrew in protest and the session was ultimately canceled.

In March 2010, Spencer endorsed the English Defence League (EDL) saying that "The EDL is standing up to violent thugs from both the Left and the increasingly assertive Islamic communities in Britain, and they deserve the support of all free people." The EDL has been described as a hate group by various British organizations, such as Searchlight Magazine and the Jewish Community Security Trust.

In August 2010 The Washington Post cited Spencer, along with Pamela Geller as conservative bloggers who have been influential in challenging the construction of the Park51 project, which he calls the "Ground Zero mosque". Spencer and Geller's organization Stop Islamization of America launched their first public protest outside of the Park51 location on June 6, 2010.

Adam Serwer, writing in The American Prospect countered that Spencer's evidence for this accusation was insufficient, and criticized Spencer's conclusions regarding Rauf's comments on the practice of Shariah by American Muslims. Serwer asked Rauf to clarify, and the latter responded that "...there are aspects of Sharia law that we are allowed to practice. Like Jews practice their dietary laws, we practice them without contradiction." The non-partisan FactCheck also found no evidence of Rauf's supposed radicalism, stating that "Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf has a long history of cooperation with the U.S. government, beginning during the Bush administration", and that supposedly anti-American comments made by him were "...taken out of context".

In an October 2010 news article, an investigative report by The Tennessean found that the "leaders of the anti-Muslim movement" earn millions in their "crusades". Concerning Spencer, the newspaper noted that "IRS filings from 2008 show that Robert Spencer earned $132,537 from the David Horowitz Freedom Center, and Horowitz pocketed over $400,000 for himself in just one year".

In September 2010, on ABC's This Week show, Reza Aslan said that SIOA is an offshoot of SIOE, which he said had been referred to as a neo-Nazi organization by the European Union. Spencer later challenged Aslan to produce any evidence of his claim.

Bibliography

Best sellers

Other books

See also

References

  1. ^ "Robert Spencer Jihad Watch, Director Q & A with Brian Lamb". CSpan. August 20, 2006. Retrieved October 31, 2010.
  2. "Why Jihad Watch?". Jihad Watch. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
  3. ^ Mark Jacobson (August 22, 2010). "Muhammad Comes to Manhattan". New York. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
  4. "About Robert Spencer". Jihad Watch. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
  5. Spencer, Robert (October 26, 2010). "Pope must condemn demonizing of Israel". Spero News.
  6. "The monophysite in the mirror, by Robert Bruce Spencer". Davis Library Thesis, Religion, 1986. UNC-CH Libraries.
  7. "Marines gather to honor, celebrate". Trib.com. 2005-10-26. Retrieved 2010-11-01.
  8. "About Robert Spencer". Jihad Watch. Retrieved 2010-11-25.
  9. ^ Robert Spencer (December 19, 2008). "A Tribute: Paul Weyrich Has Died". Catholic Online. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
  10. ^ "The Last Patriot: Worse than Spencer's books!". www.jihadwatch.org. July 7, 2008.
  11. ^ Robert Spencer (January 14, 2006). "What is a moderate Muslim?". Jihad Watch.
  12. "About Robert Spencer". Jihad Watch.
  13. ^ John Hawkins. "An Interview With Robert Spencer". Right Wing News.
  14. "CAIR "unindicted co-conspirator" in Hamas funding case". Jihad Watch. June 4, 2007.
  15. United States of America v. Randall Todd Royer, et al, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, June 2003
  16. Robert Spencer (May 27, 2008). "Cair's Continuing Mystery". Human Events.
  17. "Birds of a Feather". Ariwatch.com. Retrieved 2010-11-01.
  18. "In flap over mosque near Ground Zero, conservative bloggers gaining influence". Washingtonpost.com. 2010-08-18. Retrieved 2010-12-15.
  19. ^ The politically incorrect guide to ... - Google Books. Books.google.com. Retrieved 2010-11-01.
  20. Paula Zahn (July 31, 2007). "Koran in the Toilet: Hate Crime?; Political Bedtime Stories". CNN.
  21. "Islam: Threat or Not? - Part 4". JihadWatchVideo.
  22. "Islam: Threat or Not? - Part 5". JihadWatchVideo.
  23. Armstrong, Karen. "Balancing the Prophet", Financial Times, April 27, 2007
  24. Censored 2004: The Top 25 Censored Stories Peter Phillips page 244
  25. "Chicago Library Group Panelists Withdraw Over Role of Islam-Basher Robert Spencer". Al Jazeera. July 11, 2009. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
  26. Armstrong, Karen (April 27, 2007). "Balancing the Prophet". Financial Times.
  27. ^ Benazir Bhutto, Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy, and the West, Harper, 2008, pp. 245-6
  28. Dinesh D'Souza (January 17, 2009). "Letting Bin Laden Define Islam".
  29. Ivan Jablonka, "La peur de l’islam. Bat Ye'or et le spectre de l' 'Eurabie'", La Vie des idées, May 1, 2006. ISSN: 2105-3030. Template:Fr icon
  30. "Pamela Geller & Stop Islamization of America". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
  31. Steinback, Robert (2011). "Jihad Against Islam". Intelligence Report, Issue #142. Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved June 27, 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  32. Steinback, Robert (2011). "The Anti-Muslim Inner Circle". Intelligence Report, Issue #142. Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved June 27 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  33. "Smearcasters: Robert Spencer". Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. Retrieved June 27, 2011.
  34. "Pakistan bans Roberts' book about Prophet Muhammad".
  35. "Parting Words from Benazir Bhutto".
  36. Raya Kuzyk (July 11, 2009). "ALA Conference 2009: Panelists Quit Session Featuring 'Islam Basher'". Library Journal. Retrieved June 11, 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  37. Spencer, Robert (March 21, 2010). "UK: Fascist 'anti-fascists' attack anti-jihad demonstrators". Jihad Watch. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
  38. Lowles, Nick (2010). "The growing Islamophobic international". Searchlight Magazine. Retrieved June 26, 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  39. CST (November 30, 2009). "Don't be fooled by Islamophobia". Community Security Trust. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
  40. Michelle Boorstein (August 19, 2010). "In flap over mosque near Ground Zero, conservative bloggers gaining influence". The Washington Post.
  41. Sewer, Adam (June 14, 2010). "Spencer's (Still) Tenuous Evidence". Retrieved June 26, 2011.
  42. "Questions About the 'Ground Zero Mosque'". FactCheck.org. August 25, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2011.
  43. "Anti-Muslim crusaders make millions spreading fear". October 24, 2010. Retrieved November 4, 2010.
  44. "David Horowitz Freedom Center's IRS Form 990" (PDF). June 3, 2009. Retrieved April 24, 2011.
  45. "Should Americans Fear Islam? pt.3". Retrieved June 18, 2011.
  46. Spencer, Robert (October 4, 2010). "Why is Reza Aslan taken seriously?". Jihad Watch. Retrieved June 18, 2011.
  47. Best Sellers – Hardcover Nonfiction – NYT
  48. Paperback Nonfiction – NYT

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