Ban on Sharia law
Encyclopedia
A ban on sharia law is legislation that would ban the application or implementation of Islamic law (sharia
) in courts in any secular jurisdiction.
considered a ballot measure to amend the state constitution to ban sharia from state courts. The measure was overwhelmingly approved by voters, then updated to include all foreign or religious laws. The ban was later blocked by a federal judge who ruled it to be unconstitutional.
The sixth article
of the U.S. Constitution, and the establishment clause of the Constitution's 1st Amendment
already forbid the government from establishing a preference for one religion. Official government endorsement of sharia law is thus already prohibited.
More than two dozen U.S. states have considered measures intended to restrict judges from consulting sharia law. According to David Yerushalmi, one of the leading advocates of such legislation in the U.S., the purpose of the anti-sharia movement is not the legislation which bans consideration of sharia law in the courts, but to attract the attention to sharia in general.
Some Republican
members of the United States Congress
endorsed a new memorandum, based on a Center for Security Policy
(CSP) report, "Shariah: The Threat to America", at a press conference in the U.S. Capitol.
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
) in courts in any secular jurisdiction.
United States
In November 2010, voters in OklahomaOklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
considered a ballot measure to amend the state constitution to ban sharia from state courts. The measure was overwhelmingly approved by voters, then updated to include all foreign or religious laws. The ban was later blocked by a federal judge who ruled it to be unconstitutional.
The sixth article
Article Six of the United States Constitution
Article Six of the United States Constitution establishes the Constitution and the laws and treaties of the United States made in accordance with it as the supreme law of the land, forbids a religious test as a requirement for holding a governmental position and holds the United States under the...
of the U.S. Constitution, and the establishment clause of the Constitution's 1st Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
already forbid the government from establishing a preference for one religion. Official government endorsement of sharia law is thus already prohibited.
More than two dozen U.S. states have considered measures intended to restrict judges from consulting sharia law. According to David Yerushalmi, one of the leading advocates of such legislation in the U.S., the purpose of the anti-sharia movement is not the legislation which bans consideration of sharia law in the courts, but to attract the attention to sharia in general.
Some Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
members of the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
endorsed a new memorandum, based on a Center for Security Policy
Center for Security Policy
The Center for Security Policy is a Washington, D.C. think tank that focuses on national security issues. The Center was founded in 1988 by Frank Gaffney, Jr....
(CSP) report, "Shariah: The Threat to America", at a press conference in the U.S. Capitol.