Bill Donohue wrote to every New York City Council member on September 19 asking for an investigation into a coalition backing the Khalil Gibran International Academy (KGIA), a New York City public school billed as an “Arabic-themed” institution. The coalition, “Communities in Support of KGIA,” formed following the August 10 resignation of the school’s first principal, Debbie Almontaser. She was pressured to quit following her refusal to condemn a T-shirt that read “Intifada NYC.” The term “intifada” is widely understood today to mean a terrorist “uprising.”
Donohue called for the probe due to a link on the coalition’s website,kgia.wordpress.com. The “Pages” section links to “Mumia on KGIA,” which runs an endorsing statement by Mumia Abu-Jamal (along with a link to his FreeMumia.org website). Abu-Jamal is the convicted cop-killer and hero to anti-American left-wing extremists, who still rally to his side even though his appeals have been heard and rejected by over a dozen judges.
As we expected, extremists have been backing this so-called Arab school. What perked our interest initially was the stonewalling we got this past summer when we asked routine questions regarding the KGIA. Where was the curriculum? What textbooks would be used? Why were imams serving on an advisory board—some of whom are militants—if this wasn’t an Islamist school? Why is the Association of Muslim American Lawyers playing an integral role in the school? Why have the Arab Women Active in the Arts and Media, who made the “Intifada NYC” T-shirt, been a sponsor to the coalition supporting the KGIA? Most important, why has this coalition embraced a cop-killing thug?
