Appointment of Muslim judge in tiny Mississippi town draws social media attacks
- Assma Ali was appointed last week as municipal judge for Benoit, a town of fewer than 400 people in Mississippi's Bolivar County.
- Her appointment drew online backlash from trolls and some Mississippi politicians, with posts targeting her because she is Muslim and wearing a hijab.
- Some social media posts falsely claimed she was appointed in other Mississippi towns and alleged, without evidence, that she would impose Islamic law.
- Ali is an American citizen of Yemeni descent, practices immigration law, and has nearly 10 years of legal experience.
- Ali said she will uphold the U.S. Constitution and Mississippi law, and posted her oath of office and the town meeting agenda showing her appointment.
Assma Ali's appointment as municipal judge in Benoit, Mississippi, has prompted social media attacks from people who targeted her Muslim faith and hijab. Some posts falsely described the appointment and accused her, without evidence, of intending to impose Islamic law.
People who know Ali, including Mississippi Christian University School of Law professor Frank Rosenblatt, said she is qualified and respected in the state's legal community. Rosenblatt said the attacks were about her religion and noted that the U.S. and Mississippi constitutions prohibit disqualifying someone from public office because of religion.
Ali is an American citizen of Yemeni descent who runs an immigration law practice in Ridgeland. She earned her law degree in 2017 from Mississippi College School of Law and was admitted to the Mississippi bar that same year.
Ali said in a statement that she will uphold the U.S. Constitution and Mississippi law, and later posted her oath of office and the Benoit meeting agenda showing the appointment. Mississippi law allows municipal judges in small towns to be appointed by local governing bodies and to continue private practice in some cases.
密西西比州小镇一名穆斯林法官任命引发社交媒体攻击
阿斯玛·阿里被任命为密西西比州贝努瓦特镇市政法官后，社交媒体上出现了针对她穆斯林身份和头巾的攻击。一些帖文还错误描述她的任命，并在没有证据的情况下指称她意图实施伊斯兰法。
认识阿里的人，包括密西西比基督教大学法学院教授弗兰克·罗森布拉特，都表示她具备资格，并且在该州法律界受到尊重。罗森布拉特说，这些攻击针对的是她的宗教信仰，并指出美国宪法和密西西比州宪法都禁止因宗教而取消某人担任公职的资格。
阿里是美国公民，具有也门裔背景，在里奇兰经营移民法律业务。她于2017年获得密西西比学院法学院法学学位，并在同年获得密西西比州律师资格。
阿里在声明中表示，她将遵守美国宪法和密西西比州法律，之后又发布了自己的就职誓言以及显示该任命的贝努瓦特镇会议议程。密西西比州法律规定，在小城镇里，市政法官可由地方治理机构任命，某些情况下还可继续私人执业。