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| notable_works =''The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America'', with [[Robert Spencer (author)|Robert Spencer]]<ref name = Obamabook/> |
| notable_works =''The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America'', with [[Robert Spencer (author)|Robert Spencer]]<ref name = Obamabook/> |
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| influences =[[Ayn Rand]], [[Bat Ye’or]], and [[Ibn Warraq]]<ref name="nytimes1"/> |
| influences =[[Ayn Rand]], [[Bat Ye’or]], and [[Ibn Warraq]]<ref name="nytimes1"/> |
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| influenced =[[Anders Behring Breivik]] |
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| occupation = [[Blog]]ger, [[author]], [[political activist]], [[Pundit (expert)|commentator]], former newspaper editor |
| occupation = [[Blog]]ger, [[author]], [[political activist]], [[Pundit (expert)|commentator]], former newspaper editor |
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Revision as of 14:33, 4 August 2011
Pamela Geller | |
---|---|
Born | 1958 (age 65–66)[1] Long Island, New York, U.S.[2] |
Other names | Pamela Oshry |
Citizenship | United States |
Alma mater | Hofstra University; left before completing degree[1] |
Occupation(s) | Blogger, author, political activist, commentator, former newspaper editor |
Organization(s) | co–founder of Freedom Defense Initiative, and Stop Islamization of America |
Known for | opposition to Park51 community center and mosque |
Notable work | The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America, with Robert Spencer[3] |
Board member of | Executive Director of the Freedom Defense Initiative (FDI) and Stop Islamization of America (SIOA)[4] |
Spouse | Michael Oshry (divorced)[1] |
Children | 4 |
Parent(s) | Reuben ("Ruby") and Lillian Geller[1] |
Website | Atlas Shrugs |
Pamela Geller (born 1958), also known while married as Pamela Oshry, is an American blogger, author, political activist, and commentator.[1] She is known primarily for her criticisms of Islam and opposition to Muslim activities and causes, such as the proposed construction of an Islamic community center near the former site of the World Trade Center. She has described her blogging and campaigns in the United States as being against what she terms "creeping Sharia" in the country.
Geller and Robert Spencer co-founded the Freedom Defense Initiative and Stop Islamization of America,[5] and co-authored the book The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America.[3]
Her weblog, "Atlas Shrugs", has been criticized by progressive Media Matters for America,[6][7] and called "extreme" by Chris McGreal of The Guardian.[8] Caroline Glick, of The Jerusalem Post, has praised the blog's coverage of Muslim "honor killings".[9]
Early and personal life
Geller, born to Jewish parents Reuben ("Ruby") and Lillian Geller, is the third of four sisters.[10][11][1] Growing up in Hewlett Harbor, Long Island, New York, she assisted in her father's business, where she learned to speak fluent Spanish.[10][1] Two of her sisters became doctors, and the third became a teacher.[1]
Geller attended Lynbrook High School and Hofstra University, though she left before completing her degree.[1] She was married to Michael Oshry from 1990 until the couple divorced in 2007, and is the single mother of four children.[1]
Career
Geller spent most of the 1980s working at the New York Daily News, first as a financial analyst and then in the advertising and marketing areas.[12] She then became the associate publisher and top-ranking business executive of The New York Observer for five years, from 1989 through 1994, when she quit to stay home with her four daughters.[13][14][1]
In January 2010 she co-founded the Freedom Defense Initiative organization (FDI) with Robert Spencer.[15][16][17] Spencer is a blogger and author of articles and books relating to Islam and Islamic terrorism, and the founder of Jihad Watch.[1]
Geller denies accusations of being anti-Muslim, saying that it is "a slanderous slur and it's unfair".[8][18][19] She said:
the ground zero mosque ... To me it was an outrage, to me it was deeply offensive, to me it was indicative that interfaith dialogue and mutual respect and mutual understanding is a one-way street with Islamic supremacists, not Muslims. I believe that Muslims are more victimized by Islamic supremacists than even non-Muslims.[20]
In an interview, Geller said "I have no problem with Islam. I have a problem with political Islam".[20]
Geller has also lent her support to a number of other political causes. She has strongly defended former Serbian president Slobodan Milošević, denied the existence of Serbian concentration camps in the 1990s,[21] said that black South Africans are engaging in a "genocide" against whites,[22] and expressed support for the far right English Defence League.[23][8]
In 2008, Geller co-wrote an editorial for Arutz Sheva expressing her distaste for fellow Jews who are not politically conservative:
It galls me that the Jews I fight for are self-destructive, suicidal even. Here in America (and the world over), Israel's real friends are in the Republican Party and yet over 80% of American Jews are Democrats. I don't get it. The conventional wisdom on the Left is that Israel is an oppressor and her actions are worse than the world's most depraved and dangerous regimes. Chomsky, Finkelstein, Soros–these men are the killers.[24]
She encouraged Israel to "stand loud and proud. Give up nothing. Turn over not a pebble. For every rocket fired, drop a MOAB. Take back Gaza. Secure Judea and Samaria. Stop buying Haaretz. Throw leftists bums out."[24]
She was an official blogger at the Republican National Convention of 2008.[25]
She co-authored a book with Spencer, The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America, with a foreword by former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John R. Bolton, which was published in July 2010.[3] The book criticizes the Obama administration's treatment of the free-market system, freedom of speech, and foreign policy.
Stop Islamization of America and Park51
Geller and Robert Spencer co-founded Stop Islamization of America.[5] In May 2010, they began a strong campaign against the proposed Park51 Islamic community center and mosque, which Geller has referred to as the "Ground Zero Mega Mosque".[26][27] She claims that Park51 is viewed by Muslims as a "triumphal" monument built on "conquered land". She also appeared on a number of cable news shows speaking out against the proposed Islamic community center and mosque.[12]
Geller has also advocated against Islam elsewhere. She argued that the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, one of Islam's holiest sites, should be removed because it was built on the same site as Judaism's former First and Second Temples.[28] Geller also published an article defending Radovan Karadžic, indicted for genocide and other war crimes against Bosnian Muslims and Croats during the Siege of Sarajevo and Srebrenica Massacre; the article argued that the Muslims were not murdered but committed suicide to embarrass their enemies.[29] In addition, Stop Islamization of America has sponsored ads which carry messages such as "Fatwa on Your Head?" and "Leaving Islam?" in several cities including New York City and Miami, pointing readers to a website called RefugefromIslam.com.[12][30] Geller said the ads were meant to provide resources for Muslims who were afraid to leave the religion.[30]
Geller first blogged in Atlas Shrugs about the proposed New York mosque in reaction to coverage in The New York Times on December 8, 2009.[31][32] On December 21, she again blogged on the subject, referring to it as "Mosque at Ground Zero" and calling it "a stab in the eye".[33] Geller next blogged about the building on May 24, 2010, when she reported on a self-selected reader poll connected with a report in the New York Daily News, urging her readers to vote in it. This is when she first used the phrase "Mega Mosque at Ground Zero".[34][35]
Commenting on the controversy, Geller said,
I'm not leading the charge against the Islamic center near Ground Zero. The majority of Americans – 70% – find this deeply insulting, offensive. To call it anti-Muslim is a gross misrepresentation and to say that I'm responsible for all this emotion, again a gross misrepresentation.[8]
When asked in an August 17, 2010, interview on CNN whether she agreed "that the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11 were practicing a perverted form of Islam, and that is not what is going to be practiced at this mosque", she responded "I will say that the Muslim terrorists were practicing pure Islam, original Islam."[36]
Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, criticized Geller, stating:
People say don't give her too much credit, she's a fringe character, but she is a fringe character who every day is on CNN, Fox, The Washington Post, and The New York Times. She is the driving force behind the Islamic center campaign. I would say that she is the queen of the Muslim bashers, I see her rise and the rise of these anti-Islam hate groups going hand in hand.[12]
Eric Boehlert, a senior fellow at liberal watchdog group Media Matters for America, concurred with Hooper, remarking that "she's been instrumental, she has whipped up hatred in the right-wing blogosphere and now that's spilled out into the wider community"[12] while Andrew C. McCarthy, writing in the conservative[37] magazine the National Review criticized Hooper's opinion on the matter, citing his controversial comments about Islamism and the United States.[38] Media Matters further suggested that "Geller's history of outrageous, inflammatory and false claims, particularly when it comes to issues related to Islam, demonstrate that she cannot be expected to make accurate statements and should not be rewarded with a platform on national television."[6]
In February 2011, the Southern Poverty Law Center labeled Stop Islamization of America as a hate group. Geller dismissed the SPLC as an "uber left" organization.[39]
Atlas Shrugs blog
The name of Geller's website and blog Atlas Shrugs is a reference to novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged.[8][1] Geller calls Rand "the greatest philosopher in human history". She says her blog and its purpose are "clearly defined by Rand's philosophy."[40] The blog concentrates on what Geller perceives to be a violent threat to the United States by Islamist extremists and liberal politicians.[41]
As of October 2010, the blog was receiving one million unique visitors a month.[1]
In 2006, when Muslims rioted over cartoons of Muhammad printed in a Danish newspaper, Atlas Shrugs posted the cartoons (unlike much of the news media), and its hits increased dramatically to tens of thousands.[1]
NPR reported that in 2008, for Atlas Shrugs, she examined lists of contributions given to Barack Obama's campaign. Others, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, then did the same.[42] Contributors with the names "Es Ech", "Doodad Pro", and similar names turned up, and a conservative activist said he donated to Barack Obama using the name Osama bin Laden.[42]
In November 2008, she captured a conversation by Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) on video, and posted it on YouTube.[43] In it, after prefacing his remarks by saying he had "no personal knowledge" of the matter and his statement was merely his "guess", he went on to say that Obama "didn’t have the political courage to want to make the statement of walking out" of Trinity United Church of Christ when he realized that Rev. Jeremiah Wright was "a nut" and "lunatic," because "you don’t walk out of a church with 8,000 members in your district."[44][43][45] After Geller released the video, Nadler said: "I made a thoughtless comment yesterday which does not reflect the way I feel about Barack Obama".[44][45]
The blog was among the first on November 5, 2009, to declare the belief that the Fort Hood shooting was a "Muslim terror attack."[41] Geller later noted that the recent Pentagon report into the Fort Hood shooting did not mention possible religious motivations behind the attack, and argued that self-imposed censorship is hurting U.S. understanding of the wars it is engaged in.[46] She said: "When nowhere in that document was Islam or Jihad mentioned, then Houston, we have a problem. People need to understand what is the motivation."[46]
Controversial postings on "Atlas Shrugs" have included a number of false claims,[47][48] including that Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan (who is Jewish) supports Nazi ideology (accompanied by a fake picture of her in a Nazi uniform),[49] a video suggesting that Muslims have sex with goats, a doctored photo showing President Obama urinating on an American flag[12] and false claims that Obama's mother was involved in pornography and that Obama "was involved with a crack whore in his youth".[50][51]
During an RT Television News interview, reporter Lauren Lister repeatedly questioned Geller's claim that she is not anti-Muslim, at one point calling attention to Geller's having posted a drawing of Muhammad on her blog with the face of a pig superimposed over his own. Geller responded by saying "I don't know where it is in America that you can't make jokes or make fun."[52] In the same video, Geller also incorrectly stated that the last chapter of the Qu'ran encouraged Muslims to attack nonbelievers.[53] Geller has written "that Islam is the most antisemitic, genocidal ideology in the world".[54]
The blog has been criticized by progressive Media Matters for America,[6][7] and called "extreme" by Chris McGreal of The Guardian.[8] Conversely, it has been praised by Caroline Glick, managing editor of The Jerusalem Post, who hailed the blog's coverage of Muslim "honor killings" and called her "an intrepid blogger."[55][56]
Birther views
Geller has made multiple postings on her blog promoting birtherism, the belief that Barack Obama is not a natural-born citizen of the United States, and that his birth certificate is a forgery.[57] Even after the president released his long form birth certificate, she continued to post that it was a forgery, despite objections from some of her own readers.[58] She then opined that, because his father was not divorced from his first wife when he married Stanley Ann Dunham, Obama is disqualified for the presidency, stating that "illegitimate children had different rights ... in 1789" and the Framers would not have intended for one to become president.[59] Geller has also posted writing by another writer who, inter alia, suggested without any evidence that the president is the "love child" of Malcolm X, though Geller herself says she does not believe that Obama is Malcolm X's love child, and never did.[12][60]
Other views
Geller was described by The Observer as the "darling of the Tea Party's growing anti-Islamic wing". She has advocated an alliance between the Tea Party Movement and the English Defence League (EDL), saying: "I share the EDL's goals... We need to encourage rational, reasonable groups that oppose the Islamisation of the west."[61]
American journalist Jeffrey Goldberg, who frequently writes about topics relating to Israel and the Middle East, has described Geller as a "bigoted blogger" and noted her support of South African white supremacist Eugène Terre'Blanche.[62]
Geller has also stated her belief that the Muslim Brotherhood has "corrupted and compromised" the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).[63]
Works
Books
- The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America, Pamela Geller with Robert Spencer, foreword by (former) Ambassador John R. Bolton, (Simon & Schuster, July 2010) ISBN 978-1-4391-8930-6
Articles
- "Why There Shouldn’t Be a Mosque at Ground Zero", Pamela Geller, Human Events, September 4, 2010
- "Ground Zero Imam is No Moderate", Pamela Geller, Human Events, August 24, 2010
- "Free Speech Wins A Narrow Victory In New York", Pamela Geller, Fox News, August 12, 2010
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Barnard, Anne; and Feuer, Alan. "Outraged, and Outrageous", The New York Times, 8 October 2010.
- ^ Doug Chandler (September 1, 2010). "The Passions (And Perils) Of Pamela Geller". The Jewish Week. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ a b c Geller, Pamela (2010). The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4391-8930-6.
{{cite book}}
: Unknown parameter|coauthors=
ignored (|author=
suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|month=
ignored (help) - ^ "Pamela Geller". Atlas Shrugs. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
- ^ a b "Contact | Stop Islamization of America". Sioaonline.com. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ a b c "Memo to media: Pamela Geller does not belong on national television". July 14, 2010. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
- ^ a b "Attention TV networks: Pam Geller is lying to your viewers". August 19, 2010. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f McGreal, Chris (August 20, 2010). "The US blogger on a mission to halt 'Islamic takeover'". The Guardian. Retrieved August 21, 2010.
- ^ "Our World: The feminist deception" Jerusalem Post. December 14, 2010.
- ^ a b "Papa". Atlas Shrugs. June 21, 2009. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
- ^ "Shout Out to the Moms!". Atlas Shrugs. May 10, 2009. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Pamela Geller, 'Queen Of Muslim Bashers,' At Center Of N.Y. 'Mosque' Debate". Huffington post. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "The Woman Behind The Anti-Ground Zero Mosque Bus Ads". The New York Observer. August 11, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "New Editor Named for Observer". The New York Times. May 10, 1994. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "Freedom Defense Initiative". Freedom Defense Initiative. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ Inaugural Event Jihad: The Political Third Rail, Freedom Defense Initiative, January 26, 2010
- ^ "Muslim American News Briefs". Al Jazeerah. June 28, 2010. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
- ^ "Prime Islam-Basher Pam Geller Outdone by Colleague | Hatewatch". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "White Supremacists Find Common Cause with Pam Geller's Anti-Islam Campaign | Hatewatch". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ a b Barnard, Anne; and Alan Feuer. "Pamela Geller: In Her Own Words", 28 September 2010 interview excerpts. The New York Times, 8 October 2010.
- ^ Geller, Pamela. "Canadian PM Steven Harper, Leader of the Free World, Vetoes Bosnian Lie Resolution", Atlas Shrugs, 11 August 2010.
- ^ Geller, Pamela. "Genocide in South Africa", The American Thinker, reprinted in Atlas Shrugs, 16 April 2010.
- ^ Geller, Pamela. "In England, A Victory for Freedom", The American Thinker, 5 May 2010.
- ^ a b "Indomitable Israel – Op-Eds". Israel National News. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "Keeping it real yeah baby". Atlas Shrugs. July 4, 2008. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
- ^ "How the "ground zero mosque" fear mongering began – Park51, Muslim Community Center in Lower Manhattan". Salon. August 16, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "The Seeker: Untold story behind the so-called 'Ground Zero mosque'". Chicago Tribune. August 20, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ Geller, Pamela (September 27, 2009). "Erev Yom: Muslims Riot, Attack Jews in Jerusalem – Policemen wounded in Temple Mt. riots". Atlas Shrugs. Retrieved August 22, 2010.
- ^ Geller, Pamela. "The Real Criminals Presiding over the International Criminal Court Part II of Nuremberg II". Atlas Shrugs. Retrieved October 30, 2010.
- ^ a b Mail Foreign Service. "'Fatwa on your head?' Controversial adverts that help Muslims abandon Islam appear on New York buses", Daily Mail, 27 May 2010.
- ^ "Giving Thanks". Atlas Shrugs. December 8, 20092. Retrieved 010-09-14.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
and|date=
(help) - ^ "Muslim Prayers and Renewal Near Ground Zero". The New York Times. December 9, 2009.
{{cite news}}
: Cite uses deprecated parameter|authors=
(help) - ^ "Mosque at Ground Zero: Adding Insult to Agony". Atlas Shrugs. December 21, 2009. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "Vote On Mega Mosque At Ground Zero". Atlas Shrugs. May 24, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ "Lower Manhattan board mixed on planned mosque and Islamic center at Ground Zero WTC site". NY Daily News. May 24, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ Kaye, Randi (August 17, 2010). "Firestorm Grows Over Islamic Center Near Ground Zero". Anderson Cooper 360°. CNN. Retrieved August 26, 2010.
- ^ Advertising Media Kit, National Review Online.
- ^ McCarthy, Andrew C. "Re:SPLC on Geller". National Review.
- ^ Siemaszko, Corky (February 25, 2011). "Southern Poverty Law Center lists anti-Islamic NYC blogger Pamela Geller, followers a hate group". Daily News. New York. Retrieved February 25, 2011.
- ^ McCain, Robert Stacy (October 5, 2007). "'Atlas,' at last, on map; Rand's novel set for 50th fete, film adaptation". Washington Times. p. A.2.
- ^ a b "Muslim Terror Attack: 'Twelve shot dead'
1230 Wounded, Mass Shooting at Fort Hood, US Army Base". Atlas Shrugs. November 5, 2009. Retrieved September 14, 2010. - ^ a b "Illegal Campaign Donations Spur Calls For Change". NPR. October 31, 2008. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ a b "Nadler Questions Obama's Courage". The Weekly Standard. November 3, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2011.
- ^ a b November 3, 2008 (November 3, 2008). "RJC robo-call highlights Nadler's Obama statement". JTA. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "NY Rep. backtracks from Obama comments". FOX News. November 3, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2011.
- ^ a b Berger, Judson (April 7, 2010). "CPAC Session on Jihad, Free Speech Attracts Complaints". Fox News. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
- ^ Dimiero, Ben (July 2, 2010). "Geller illustrates ridiculous attack on Kagan with image of Kagan in a Nazi uniform". Media Matters. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
- ^ "Attention TV networks: Pam Geller is lying to your viewers". Media Matters. August 19, 2010. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
- ^ Geller, Pamela (July 2, 2010). "Shocking: Kagan's Princeton Thesis Cited German Socialist Who Endorsed Nazis". Atlas Shrugs. Retrieved August 22, 2010.
- ^ Geller, Pamela (August 1, 2009). "CNN Tells, Sells More Lies About Palin – it's Time to Expose the truth about Obama". Atlas Shrugs. Retrieved August 22, 2010.
- ^ "Ann Dunham Soetoro". snopes.com. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
- ^ Lauren Lister, guest host and interviewer (August 3, 2010). "The Alyona Show". 26:10 minutes in. RT Television News.
RT News: Why would you have a picture of the prophet Mohammad, which I have right here, with his face replaced with that of a pig, on your blog if you don't have a problem with Islam? Geller: First of all, I don't know where it is in America that you can't make jokes or make fun. I mean you had Robert Mapplethorpe put a cross in a glass of a, a .. RT News: So you think it's funny to have the prophet Mohammad as a pig? Geller: Who cares?! What difference does it make? I mean, this is America!
{{cite episode}}
: Missing or empty|series=
(help); Unknown parameter|city=
ignored (|location=
suggested) (help) The Geller interview segment of the hour-long Alyona Show is also available on youtube, where the exchange occurs at 5:48 into the video. - ^ Youtube.com
- ^ Geller, Pamela. "NY Times Con Job: Daisy Khan had never seen so many Jews in her life". Atlas Shrugs. Retrieved November 15, 2010.
- ^ "Political Messiah in the Holy Land". National Review. July 25, 2008.
{{cite web}}
: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=
(help) - ^ "Our World: The feminist deception" Jerusalem Post. December 14, 2010.
- ^ "Atlas Exclusive: Final Report on Obama Birth Certificate Forgery Change You Can Believe In". Atlas Shrugs2000. July 20, 2008. Retrieved July 23, 2011.
- ^ "Layering: Obama's New COLB Raises More Questions than it Answers". Atlas Shrugs2000. April 27, 2011. Retrieved July 23, 2011.
- ^ "An Illegitimate Child, An Illegitimate President: Despite Multiple Attempts, 'No Comment' from the White House". Atlas Shrugs2000. April 30, 2011. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
- ^ "How could Stanley Ann Dunham have delivered Barack Hussein Obama Jr. in August of 1961 in Honolulu, when official University of Washington Records show her 2680 miles away in Seattle attending classes that same month?". Atlas Shrugs2000. October 24, 2008. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
- ^ Townsend, Mark (October 10, 2010). "English Defence League forges links with America's Tea Party", The Observer.
- ^ Goldberg, Jeffrey (October 18, 2010). "Pamela Geller Supports English Pogromists, South African Fascists". The Atlantic. Retrieved October 28, 2010.
- ^ "(At least) Two approaches to Islam at CPAC".
External links
- Atlas Shrugs official blog
- Column archive at The American Thinker
- Column archive at Andrew Breitbart's BigGovernment.com
- Freedom Defense Initiative
- Stop Islamization of America
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Template:Worldcat id