Fethullah Gulen Should Not Be Operating American Charter Schools.
According to Reuters on July 17, 2016, the mysterious Turkish imam who has been a Pennsylvania resident since 1999, Fethullah Gulen, has said that his followers are not responsible for the failed coup to overthrow the Turkish government and that he would abide by any US decision to extradite him. Turkey is apparently planning to formally request Gulen’s extradition.
However, Gulen added that he is “not really worried” about being extradited.
On Friday night, July 15, 2016, “a faction of Turkey’s armed forces tried to seize power”; to date, almost 300 died, including 100 involved in the putsch. Gulen’s involvement was quickly questioned.
In the United States, Gulen runs a growing network of charter schools, which his followers apparently use to gain entrance into the United States. I wrote about Gulen, his schools, and his influence in Turkey from his comfortable base on US soil in my book, Schools Choice: The End of Public Education?, which was just published on July 8th. Below is an excerpt from the chapter on Gulen, entitled, “Gulen Charters: A Powerful Turkish Cleric’s Followers Find a Cozy Home in the American Taxpayer Pocket” (reference citations deleted here for ease of reading):
On May 13, 2012, 60 Minutes journalist Leslie Stahl reported on American charter schools run by “mysterious Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen,” an acknowledged cult leader in Turkey who lives in the Poconos in Pennsylvania in a gated community.THE STAHL TREATMENT OF GULENHere is how Stahl opens her 13-minute segment:Over the last decade, scores of charter schools have popped up all over the U.S., all sharing some common features. Most of them are highFethullah Gulen Should Not Be Operating American Charter Schools. | deutsch29:
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Big Education Ape: US would consider extradition request for exiled cleric -http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/07/us-would-consider-extradition-request.html
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Big Education Ape: Coup in Turkey: Is Fetullah Gulen Behind It? | Diane Ravitch's blog - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/07/coup-in-turkey-is-fetullah-gulen-behind.html
Big Education Ape: Update: Gulen Harmony charter school network accused of bias and self-dealing Dallas Morning News - http://go.shr.lc/1qV85Hm
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