Hundreds Stand Together for Peace at Dearborn's Islamic Center

Hundreds of people from different faiths came together Thursday afternoon to take part in the opposition against Florida Pastor Terry Jones. The InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit organized the event, held at Dearborn's .

The ICA hosting committee greeted visitors at the door and provided head scarves for women upon entrance. Just before entering the main hall, a large white banner that covered a long table had a number of attendee signatures written on it. In the center of the hall laid a red carpet that led to center stage of the religious panelists.  

As people filed in to take their seats, smiles were exchanged and hugs were shared, giving the gathering a peaceful atmosphere. The attendees, though diverse in the faiths they practice, were unified in their message.

“Number one, this man (Jones) is wrong,” said Joyce Morey, who drove in from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Royal Oak. “When he burns the Quran, he burns our bible.

“Jesus is mentioned in the Quran and the mother (Mary) is mentioned in the Quran. The Quran is a holy book just like our holy book.”

People from outside the Islamic faith–including both Dearborn residents and religious leaders–stood in support for the Muslim community and their disapproval of Jones’ campaign to turn their holy book into ashes.

Rev. Charles E. Williams II from the King Solomon Baptist Church said that people like Terry Jones only speak for attention.

“I hope what we’ve done today is change the world,” Williams said after the program. “I hope that we’ve shown that we are about peace. Christian (or) Muslim, I hope that we have inspired some people to do some continued work in the Detroit metro area and that we’re able to fall though this type of conversation and this type of relationship across the world.”

A prayer was led by the Rt. Rev. Wendell Gibbs Jr., Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, and religious leaders then walked outside in front of the ICA in complete silence while attendees followed. For 10 minutes, people stood outside hand-in-hand and not saying a word insinuating that Islam is a religion of peace.

A number of public figures were in attendance, including Michigan Rep. John Dingell and Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly.

O’Reilly has paid close attention to Jones’ infamous tactics toward his city, but said he is pleased with the reaction of other communities.

“It’s a wonderful, great, diverse group that shows incredible community support,” O’Reilly said of the InterFaith Leadership Council. “It does send a message that people really do believe that we are a community of one and that we all come from the same source.

“It gives a contrast to the message that Terry Jones is going to bring,” he added. “You look at what happened here today and we’ve shown that in this community, our faith leaders are telling us that even if we we’ve lost our way, come together, respect each other and embrace religion.”

The ICA’s Imam Sayed Hassan Al-Qazwini urged the Muslim community to stay away from the mosque tomorrow where Jones plans to protest on Friday, and instead appear at the at 4 p.m. Qazwini said he wants to avoid any confrontation with Jones and would rather not give him the publicity he’s looking for.

“This is a hate crime,” Al-Qazwini said. “This is bigotry and we condemn his bigotry whether we are Christians or Muslims … if he’s (Jones) a true religious leader, then he should hold himself to higher standard by respecting other faiths and especially divine books including the Quran.”

Jones morning at Dearborn’s after refusing Judge Mark Somer’s offer to pay a peace bond and protest at one of the city’s free-speech zones. The jury will decide if the city’s decision of prohibiting Jones from demonstrating outside of the ICA is warranted, and if we will be required to pay a peace bond.

Jones told the court and media that he is not interested in using the free-speech zones provided, and hopes to have a favorable jury decision by 5 p.m. Friday in order to continue his protest as planned.