Researcher Explains Why Islam Is Not Compatible with American Values To New California Convention Attendees

Simone Anderson instructs the attendees at the New California State convention.

May 14, 2026 – Roseville, CA

Simone Anderson, an independent researcher and digital commentator who has lived in Egypt, Turkey, and Bahrain and conducted business with Saudi partners, presented her findings on Islam to approximately 150 attendees at the fifth New California constitutional convention held on Thursday, May 14, 2026, at the Veterans Memorial Hall in Roseville.

Anderson urged the audience to question assumptions, think critically, and study history. She provided an overview of the origins of Islam, the life of its prophet Muhammad (c. 570–632 CE), and key doctrinal and historical elements that she argued are fundamentally at odds with American constitutional principles.

Historical Facts About Muhammad

Muhammad was born around 570 CE in Mecca. After his parents died, he was raised by relatives and worked as a shepherd. At age 25, he married Khadijah, a wealthy 40-year-old widow and his former employer. She remained his only wife until her death. Later, Muhammad married Aisha, who was betrothed to him at age six or seven, and the marriage was consummated when she was nine (according to the most authoritative hadith collections, including Sahih Bukhari). Child marriage was common in 7th-century Arabia, and it is still practiced today in some parts of the Islamic world. 

He also adopted a freed slave, Zayd ibn Harithah, as his son. After Zayd divorced his wife Zaynab bint Jahsh, Muhammad received a revelation permitting him to marry her (Quran 33:37). Islamic tradition records that Muhammad had a total of 11 or 13 wives, several of whom were widows or captives from military campaigns.

At approximately age 40, Muhammad reported receiving his first revelation in the Cave of Hira from the angel Gabriel (Jibril). Anderson stated it was Muhammad’s uncle who told him the dark figure he was seeing was the angel.  Muhammad was illiterate and initially feared the experience; his wife, Khadijah, and her cousin, Waraqa (a Christian), reassured him that it was divine. Early Islamic sources describe him experiencing intense physical episodes during revelations, which some modern observers have interpreted as possible seizures due to epilepsy.

Muslims regard Muhammad as the final prophet in a line that includes Jesus (whom they revere as a major prophet but not the Son of God). They believe the Christian and Jewish scriptures were corrupted over time. Muhammad believed himself to be and is described in Islamic texts as the “perfect example” for humanity (Quran 33:21). He died in Medina in 632 CE at about age 62, reportedly from a fever; some accounts mention earlier poisoning by a Jewish woman from the tribe of Khaybar.

Military and Political Context

Muhammad and his followers engaged in numerous military campaigns. Traditional Islamic sources (Sira and Hadith) record that he personally led or authorized approximately 27 major battles and dozens of smaller expeditions/raids. These were often defensive at first, but later included offensive actions to expand Muslim influence. Spoils of war were divided according to Quranic rules (typically 20% to the prophet and the community, 80% to the fighters). Captured enemy fighters were sometimes executed by beheading, and Muhammad placed bounties on certain opponents. Critics cite these episodes to argue that the faith was spread, in part, by the sword.

Core Teachings and Practices

Islam’s Five Pillars are: (1) declaration of faith (shahada), (2) five daily prayers, (3) fasting during Ramadan, (4) almsgiving (zakat), and (5) pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj) for those who are able. Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam, is governed by a strict interpretation of Sharia law, under which there are no secular individual rights as understood in the West, and women face significant legal restrictions.

Classical Islamic jurisprudence prescribes death for males who leave the faith and, in some interpretations, corporal punishment for women. A rape accusation traditionally requires four male witnesses — a rule derived from adultery (zina) statutes. Family law permits a husband to initiate divorce by pronouncing “I divorce you” three times (talaq), while a wife must usually seek judicial approval. Many scholars have historically interpreted Quran 4:34 as permitting a husband to discipline a disobedient wife in stages, including beating her.

Sharia Law and Compatibility with American Values

Sharia is the comprehensive Islamic legal and moral system derived from the Quran, the Hadith (sayings and actions of Muhammad), scholarly consensus, and analogical reasoning. It regulates every aspect of life — worship, criminal justice, family matters, inheritance, contracts, and governance. In its classical form, Sharia includes hudud punishments (fixed penalties such as amputation for theft, flogging for certain sexual offenses, and death for apostasy or blasphemy) and applies different legal rights and status to Muslims, non-Muslims (dhimmis), and women.

These elements are fundamentally incompatible with the U.S. Constitution. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of religion (including the right to change or abandon one’s faith) and prohibits government establishment of religion. The Fourteenth Amendment requires equal protection under the law, while the Eighth Amendment bans cruel and unusual punishment. Sharia’s prescribed penalties and its treatment of women and non-Muslims as having lesser legal standing directly conflict with these core American principles of individual liberty, religious freedom, and equality before the law.

Anderson concluded that Islam, as traditionally understood and practiced under Sharia, stands in complete contrast to the Judeo-Christian values and principles that shaped the United States. She noted numerous doctrinal contradictions with Christian teachings and argued that the faith’s foundational history and legal framework render it incompatible with a constitutional republic grounded in individual rights.