Just in time for Martin Luther King Day, the openly racist organization “Society of Americans for National Existence” – SANE – apparently has the ear of at least one elected official – Rep. Paul Broun of Georgia, according to CAIR. Their press release reports that SANE head David Yerushalmi will be attending a congressional briefing on Islamic finance:

Broun recently circulated a “Dear Colleague” letter inviting fellow representatives and their staff to attend the briefing, titled “The Truth Behind Sharia/Islamic Finance,” on Thursday in the Rayburn House Office Building.

Rep. Broun’s invitation letter claims Islamic finance “violates U.S. laws” and “has supported Islamist extremists and sponsors of terrorism.” The afternoon briefing features two individuals known for their hostility to Islam and Muslims.

One of the presenters, David Yerushalmi, is the president and founder of the Society of Americans for National Existence (SANE), a group that has advocated imposing prison terms for “adherence to Islam” and questions whether women and African-Americans should be allowed to vote.

It saddens me more than it angers me that a man who is openly racist is taken seriously enough to be considered a source of credible knowledge by a US congressman. Have the noble efforts of Dr. King and his followers left no legacy?