WASHINGTON, D.C. / November 20, 2006 — The Board of the Asian American Action Fund (AAA-Fund) strongly condemns the prejudiced remarks recently made by CNN television personality Glenn Beck to Congressman-elect Keith Ellison of Minnesota. In an interview on the November 14 edition of his talk show, Beck told Ellison, the first Muslim to be elected to U.S. Congress, "what I feel like saying is, 'Sir, prove to me that you are not working with our enemies.'"

"The AAA-Fund strongly condemns these outrageous and bigoted remarks," said Gautam Dutta, Board Member of the Asian American Action Fund. "No American should be presumed to be a traitor to his country because of his religious affiliation. And no American, much less a duly-elected U.S. Congressman, should have to prove his loyalty to the United States simply because he is a Muslim."

In response to Beck's comment, Ellison explained that "the people of the Fifth Congressional District know that I have a deep love and affection for my country. There's no one who is more patriotic than I am. And so, you know, I don't need to . . . prove my patriotic stripes."

An attorney who previously served in the state legislature, Ellison was elected this month to represent Minnesota's Fifth Congressional District. He received 56 percent of the district's vote, roughly 35 percent more than the second-place candidate. The Fifth District is Minnesota's most racially diverse and is home to over 30,000 Asian Americans.

During his campaign, Ellison received the endorsement of the Minneapolis publication American Jewish World, which hailed him as a candidate who "would bring a singular passion and intelligence" to the U.S. Congress. On his campaign website, Ellison states that "Terrorism is the greatest impediment to peace. . . . The United States cannot support any government that condones or embraces terrorism."

The AAA-Fund is a Democratic political action committee whose goal is to increase the voice of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders on every level of local, state and federal government in America. To achieve this goal, we address the chronic under-representation of Asian Pacific Americans (APAs) as campaign volunteers, campaign contributors, and candidates for political office.