Faith Leaders to Protest Against Hate Speakers at Dallas Rally

(DALLAS, TX, 5/16/14) -- On Saturday, May 17, the North Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NTX) will join a group of multiracial and interdenominational pastors who will protest the inclusion of anti-Muslim hate groups speaking at a Dallas rally.

WHAT: Faith Leaders to Protest Anti-Muslim Speakers
WHEN: Saturday, May 17, 2 p.m.
WHERE: City Hall Plaza in front of Dallas City Hall, 500 Marilla St., Dallas, TX 75201
CONTACT: CAIR-NTX Executive Director Alia Salem, 817-538-8269, asalem@cair.com Reverend Peter Johnson, 214-636-7267

[NOTE: CAIR-TX said local Muslims sought to join the rally in support of Christian rights, but only if the anti-Muslim speakers were dropped. Rally organizers refused that request.]

Reverend Diane Baker, minister of outreach for the First Community United Church of Christ, said in a statement: "I believe with my heart and faith that hatred cannot win. Only love, peace and justice. If people respond to problems with hatred they become like them, like those who hate."

Reverend Wes Magruder, senior pastor at Kessler Park United Methodist Church in Dallas, said: "The best way to protect the rights of a persecuted religious group is to protect the religious rights of all. Christians around the world will be safe when Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and others are also protected. I fear that this Dallas rally is a smokescreen for perpetuating a fear and hatred of Islam."

Organizers of the rally have invited Robert Spencer, David Gabautz and Walid Shoebat to speak.

Spencer is a co-founder of Stop Islamization of America (SIOA), which has been designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). Spencer's Jihad Watch blog is also designated as a hate group by the SPLC, which named Spencer as part of the nation's "Anti-Muslim Inner Circle." Norwegian mass murderer Anders Breivik cited Spencer's blog 162 times in his manifesto. The independent national media watch group Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) identified Spencer as one of "Islamophobia's Dirty Dozen" who systematically "spread fear, bigotry, and misinformation."

Backgrounder: CAIR Welcomes Catholic Group's Decision to Drop Islamophobic SpeakerSEE: The Radicalization of Anders Breivik

Dave Gaubatz has stated that "a 'radical Muslim' is a 'practicing' Muslim," "interfaith dialogue is very, very dangerous" and "every mosque throughout the world is a breeding ground for Islamic-based terrorism."

He has called for a "professional and legal backlash against the Muslim community" and for the destruction of the "Islamic ideology worldwide." Gaubatz once worked for an organization that advocated jail terms for "adherence to Islam." He also claims to have found Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq and that President Obama is a "crack-head."

Walid Shoebat, who has been exposed by CNN as an anti-Islam fraud, once told a Missouri newspaper that he sees "many parallels between the Antichrist and Islam" and that "Islam is not the religion of God -- Islam is the devil." (Springfield News-Leader, 9/24/07)

Video: CNN Exposes Walid Shoebat's Terror Training Scam -- Part 1 and Part 2

Shoebat claims that President Obama is a Muslim. In a YouTube video, Shoebat said, "[I]f Islam is not playing the major role in Antichrist spirit, why do you think the devil wants to appoint somebody connected to Islam in the White House?" He told radio host G. Gordon Liddy, "No one is called Hussein unless he is Muslim. So it is very clear that Barack Hussein Obama is definitely a Muslim."

Video: Shoebat Says Devil Wants Obama in White House
Walid Shoebat Falsely Claimed that Obama is "Definitely a Muslim"

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.