‘Pamphlets About Sharia Law and Other Islamic Things’ in Texas High School
Image: Wikimedia Commons (Deceased Chief Commander of Hizbul Mujahideen and Others)
High school students at Wylie East High School in Wylie, Texas, were recently offered religious materials by representatives of an Islamic outreach organization known as Why Islam during the school lunch period.
On February 2, a video posted on X by Sara Gonzales showed the president of the school’s High School Republicans club stating that members of Why Islam were distributing hijabs to female students along with Qurans and pamphlets discussing Sharia law. The student said the materials were handed out during lunch on school grounds.
Subsequent media coverage of the incident did not explore the background of Why Islam or its organizational affiliations. Why Islam is a project of the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), a national Muslim organization involved in community outreach and religious education.
According to research published by the Investigative Project on Terrorism and other watchdog groups, ICNA has historical ties to Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), a South Asian Islamist movement. JeI’s militant wing, Hizbul Mujahideen, has been designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government since 2017. Past reports from these groups have also noted that ICNA-affiliated websites previously linked to organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah, as well as groups active in Afghanistan and Kashmir. ICNA has disputed or distanced itself from some of these characterizations over time.
Focus on Western Islamism has reported that ICNA operates several religious outreach, or da’wah, initiatives, the most active of which is Why Islam.
The Gateway Pundit interviewed Melanie Kurdys, a board member of United States Parents Involved in Education (USPIE), regarding the incident. When informed of Why Islam’s organizational background, Kurdys said she was concerned and compared the situation to what she views as foreign ideological influence in American schools, referencing past concerns about Confucius Classrooms and Confucius Institutes associated with China.
“I think people have opened their eyes to this,” Kurdys said. “We went through a period of not paying attention, and now we’re more aware of how outside groups can gain influence.”
Kurdys suggested that individuals distributing the materials may not have been aware of the broader controversies surrounding the organizations involved. However, she also said that if religious materials are allowed to be distributed on campus, other faith or community groups should be given equal opportunity.
The student in the original video claimed that no other religious organizations had previously been invited to distribute materials at the school, stating, “We’ve never had a faith group, to my understanding.”
Kurdys also questioned whether pamphlets discussing Sharia law were appropriate for distribution in a public school setting, noting that some Americans view Sharia law as incompatible with U.S. constitutional principles. At the same time, she said she supports students learning about different faiths when done in a balanced and transparent manner.
She expressed broader concerns about what she sees as increasing outside influence in public schools and suggested that parents who are uncomfortable with such situations consider alternatives such as homeschooling or private education.
School district officials have not publicly commented on whether other groups are permitted to distribute materials on campus or what policies govern such activities.
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