The Global Intelligence Files

On Monday February 27th, 2012, WikiLeaks began publishing The Global Intelligence Files, over five million e-mails from the Texas headquartered "global intelligence" company Stratfor. The e-mails date between July 2004 and late December 2011. They reveal the inner workings of a company that fronts as an intelligence publisher, but provides confidential intelligence services to large corporations, such as Bhopal's Dow Chemical Co., Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and government agencies, including the US Department of Homeland Security, the US Marines and the US Defence Intelligence Agency. The emails show Stratfor's web of informers, pay-off structure, payment laundering techniques and psychological methods.

[OS] US/ECON - Backlash for Lowe's as Ads Pulled from Muslim Show

Released on 2012-10-11 16:00 GMT

Email-ID 102850 Date 2011-12-13 23:33:03 From colleen.farish@stratfor.com To os@stratfor.com

[OS] US/ECON - Backlash for Lowe's as Ads Pulled from Muslim Show





Backlash for Lowe's as Ads Pulled from Muslim Show



Monday, 12 Dec 2011 07:24 AM



http://www.newsmax.com/US/Lowe-s-Muslims/2011/12/12/id/420630



LOS ANGELES (AP) - Lowe's Home Improvement has found itself facing a

backlash after the retail giant pulled ads from a reality show about

American Muslims.



The retail giant stopped advertising on TLC's "All-American Muslim" after

a conservative group known as the Florida Family Association complained,

saying the program was "propaganda that riskily hides the Islamic agenda's

clear and present danger to American liberties and traditional values."



The show premiered last month and chronicles the lives of five families

from Dearborn, Mich., a Detroit suburb with a large Muslim and

Arab-American population.



A state senator from Southern California said Sunday he was considering

calling for a boycott.



Calling the Lowe's decision "un-American" and "naked religious bigotry,"

Sen. Ted Lieu, D-Torrance, told The Associated Press he would also

consider legislative action if Lowe's doesn't apologize to Muslims and

reinstate its ads. The senator sent a letter outlining his complaints to

Lowe's Chief Executive Officer Robert A. Niblock.



"The show is about what it's like to be a Muslim in America, and it

touches on the discrimination they sometimes face. And that kind of

discrimination is exactly what's happening here with Lowe's," Lieu said.



The Florida group sent three emails to its members, asking them to

petition Lowe's to pull its advertising. Its website was updated to say

that "supporters' emails to advertisers make a difference."



The North Carolina-based Lowe's issued a statement apologizing for having

"managed to make some people very unhappy."



"Individuals and groups have strong political and societal views on this

topic, and this program became a lightning rod for many of those views,"

the statement said. "As a result we did pull our advertising on this

program. We believe it is best to respectfully defer to communities,

individuals and groups to discuss and consider such issues of importance."



The apology doesn't go far enough, Lieu said. The senator vowed to look

into whether Lowe's violated any California laws and said he would also

consider drafting a senate resolution condemning the company's actions.



"We want to raise awareness so that consumers will know during this

holiday shopping season that Lowe's is engaging in religious

discrimination," Lieu said.



Besides an apology and reinstatement of the ads, Lieu said he hoped Lowe's

would make an outreach to the community about bias and bigotry.



Lieu's office said a decision was expected Wednesday or Thursday on

whether to proceed with the boycott.



Lowe's said company officials are trying to make arrangements to talk

directly to Lieu about his concerns and clarify the company's position.



Suehaila Amen, whose family is featured on "All-American Muslim," said she

was disappointed by the Lowe's decision.



"I'm saddened that any place of business would succumb to bigots and

people trying to perpetuate their negative views on an entire community,"

Amen, 32, told The Detroit News on Sunday.



Dawud Walid, Michigan director of the Council on American-Islamic

Relations, said his group felt "extreme disappointment" at Lowe's

"capitulation to bigotry."



Walid said he has heard expressions of anger and calls for a boycott by

Muslims but said a key to resolving the Lowe's advertising controversy

will be how non-Muslim religious leaders and others react to Lowe's

decision.



"I will be picking up the phone tomorrow to some of our friends and allies

to explain the situation to them," Walid said Sunday.



__



Associated Press Writer David N. Goodman in Detroit contributed to this

story.



(c) Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This

material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.



Read more on Newsmax.com: Backlash for Lowe's as Ads Pulled from Muslim

Show

Important: Do You Support Pres. Obama's Re-Election? Vote Here Now!



--

Colleen Farish

Research Intern

STRATFOR

221 W. 6th Street, Suite 400

Austin, TX 78701

T: +1 512 744 4076 | F: +1 918 408 2186

www.STRATFOR.com









