[The following letter was published in a recent issue of "The New Yorker" magazine with regard to its recent cover depicting Sen. Barak Obama in Muslim garb and the political value of "accusing" Obama of being a Muslim.]

Regardless of the artist's intent to produce satirical commentary, it is possible that the imagery [of the cartoon] may reinforce the fears and prejudices that it was meant to critique.

But we should look past the noise about whether or not the [magazine] cover is offensive, a red-herring issue with fairly predictable responses on all sides, to the deeper questions: Why is the label "Muslim" such a powerful and popular weapon against Obama. And what should the Obama camp be doing, instead of denouncing a magazine cover?

What needs to be challenged at full volume is the association between a man in Muslim clothing and terrorism, and the underlying assumptions that being a Muslim is the same as being un-American, that being Muslim is the same thing as being violent, that being a Muslim is the same thing as being Osama bin Laden.

Let us also remember that, while the issue of the cartoon's possible offensiveness is worth considering, it pales in comparison with issues of foreign policy, hate crimes, racial profiling, civil liberties, warrantless surveillance, the economy, gas prices, health care, the environment, and religious intolerance that we all must weigh very carefully in the coming months.

Kareem Shora
National Executive Director
Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee
Washington, D.C.