Assma Ali
SOURCE: Assma Ali
BENOIT, Miss. —
Officials in the small Mississippi Delta town of Benoit are standing behind their newly appointed municipal judge after viral social media posts questioned her appointment and targeted her Muslim faith.
The town's mayor and Board of Aldermen released a statement Wednesday defending Judge Assma Ali's qualifications and saying her religion is not a lawful reason to deny or terminate her appointment.
“Being Muslim is not a lawful basis for denying or terminating the appointment,” town officials said. “Based on such, she meets the qualifications to serve as a Municipal Court Judge in the State of Mississippi and for the City of Benoit ... and we are pleased to have her.”
The statement comes as the ACLU of Mississippi is also condemning what it calls threats and anti-Muslim attacks directed at Ali.
Ali, a Ridgeland attorney and practicing Muslim who wears a hijab, was sworn in Aug. 5 as a municipal judge in Benoit, a Bolivar County town of fewer than 400 people.
Her appointment quickly attracted attention on social media, where posts falsely claimed she had been appointed as a judge in Ridgeland or Lumberton. Officials connected to both cities disputed those claims.
Other posts focused on Ali's religion and described her as a “Sharia” judge, fueling claims that Islamic religious law could influence her decisions on the bench.
Ali has rejected that suggestion, saying she is committed to upholding the U.S. Constitution and Mississippi...
Assma Ali SOURCE: Assma Ali BENOIT, Miss. — Officials in the small Mississippi Delta town of Benoit are standing behind their newly appointed municipal judge after viral social media posts questio...