Dobkowski Quoted in Terrorism Article
6 August 2004 Dobkowski Quoted in Terrorism Article
According to an Aug. 6 article in the Post-Standard, Syracuse, N.Y., three Upstate New York communitiesLackawanna, Syracuse, and Albanyhave had three different, high-profile federal cases that involved the arrests of Muslims. But why Upstate New York?
Michael Dobkowski, professor of religious studies, said there is a link between the high concentration of Muslims in some Upstate communities and the arrests.
I don't think there's anything particular about Upstate New York that accounts for the fact that there have been these high profile cases, other than the fact that there is a higher concentration of Muslims in certain communities in Upstate New York than certain places in the country, Dobkowski said.
He said it makes sense that when there is a large number of Muslims, there will be a few who are extremists.
Islam is a great religion, but it has extremists, Dobkowski said. But he said most religions do. I think that's just the nature of religion. It always harbors within its communities people of extreme sentiments and ideas.