Why Rep. Dave Agema wants to stop Sharia by banning ‘foreign laws’ in Michigan courts

For those who believe State Rep. David Agema is over-reaching or preying on unfounded fears with his bill to ban “foreign laws” in U.S. Courts, the conservative Grandville Republican has this response.

“The people who are angry about this bill obviously have ulterior motives,” says Agema, who is considering a run for Congressafter he is term-limited next year.

The greatest ulterior motive, Agema says, is a campaign by Muslims to impose “Sharia Law” in American courts.

“Sharia” is an Islamic code of conduct which governs personal conduct and marital law. In some European and Middle Eastern nations, it is allowed to govern personal and marital disputes.

Many of the immigrants he hears from came to the U.S. to get away from Sharia, said Agema, who also has fought for tougher immigration laws, cancelingfood cards for college students and reduced funding for mass transit systems.

Agema is at the forefront of conservative groups who say they want to make sure Sharia Law never supersedes the protections afforded in the U.S. Constitution. They point to some 50 court cases in which they claim Sharia law was brought to bear or created conflicts with U.S. laws.

“They want specific laws applied to their specific groups. They do not want to be under our law,” said Agema, a retired airline pilot and former fighter pilot in the U.S. Air Force. “But when you live in the U.S., you live under our laws.”

In Michigan, Agema points to a 2009 Oakland County court ruling in which the judge recognized the divorce of a Muslim couple in which the husband traveled home to India and orally pronounced the divorce three times under Sharia law.

The ruling was over-turned by the state Court of Appeals, which ruled the husband’s “triple talaq” divorce violated his Michigan wife’s right to due process and was “contrary to public policy.”

Though he uses Sharia law as examples, Agema argues his bill is not anti-Muslim and does not target Sharia law specifically. “It will prevent any religious or foreign law from taking precedence,” he said. Twenty-five other states have introduced similar legislation.

Nonetheless, Agema’s bill has drawn fire from legislators and community leaders in Southeast Michigan, where there is a large Muslim community in Dearborn and other Detroit suburbs.

At a press conference in Detroit last month, the bill was condemned by State Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the legislature’s only Muslim, and leaders of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR).

“If this bill is passed... it could perhaps place into jeopardy mediation between couples going through divorce, how religious law can be seen in terms of children’s rights – if children can be allowed to go to a private school,” said Dawud Walid, executive director of CAIR.

“If someone wants to file a legal challenge because Dearborn offers halel meat to its students because a majority of its student population is Muslim, they could say that the Dearborn schools are under a foreign type of system,” Walid said. Halel meat is prepared according to Muslim standards.

Walid called Agema’s bill “a reflection of a segment of the GOP that is openly xenophobic and Islamophobic.”

Whether Agema’s bill will get a hearing remains to be seen. After its introduction on June 16, it was referred to the House Judiciary Committee. So far, no hearing or other action has been scheduled.

Bill Ballenger, editor of Inside Michigan Politics, said he believes the bill will die in committee.

“He has probably the most conservative voting record in the House and he’s pretty much in lockstep with a lot of groups that push this kind of thing,” Ballenger said.

“I haven’t seen any serious attention being paid to this from what I see,” Ballenger said. “If he can get one committee hearing out of this, I think he would consider it a triumph.”

Ballenger speculated the issue will help Agema if he decides to make a run for the congressional seat held by U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Zeeland. Agema said he has been urged to consider a run after Huizenga disappointed tea party conservatives by voting to increase the federal debt ceiling.

“That’s going to help him politically and at this point, I think that’s all he’s hoping for,” Ballenger said.

Agema said he’s not using the issue to stoke his political future. The bill was introduced in the House before Huizenga voted on the debt ceiling, he said.

Whether he runs or not will depend on fund-raising and Huizenga, Agema said.

“I’m still going to watch and see how he votes.”

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