When Mohamed Abdelati addressed those gathered at the New Haven Islamic Center, 254 Bull Hill Lane, Orange, on Jan. 11 he talked about the dangers of extremism. As their religious leader he condemned ISIS. But the Syrian terror organization is not the only place Abdelati sees dangerous extremism.
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“Donald Trump is giving false information about what and who Muslims are,” said Mohamed Abdelati, the religious leader at the New Haven Islamic Center, 254 Bull Hill Lane, Orange. “Muslims came to this country very early in history and we have been living here in peace.”
Trump, already considered by many to be a xenophobic bigot, shocked the international community when he suggested the United States stop allowing Muslims to enter the country.
Within the regional Muslim community there are people of all walks of life according to Abdelati, who himself holds a Ph.D from the the Al-Azhar University in Egypt. Many were born here and many are naturalized citizens.
“We have many doctors and engineers,” he said.
Abdelati said views like Trump’s only serve to deepen tensions and make the situation worse. He claimed the presidential hopeful is using religion-based fears to further his own political gains.
Some people, particularly potential Presidential opponents for the Republican front-runner, claim Trump’s comments disqualify him from seeking the Oval Office.
Abdelati noted that those who fear ISIS terrorists should remember that the organization is holding ground in countries that are largely Muslim.
“Islam is fighting ISIS,” Abdelati said. “The largest number of people killed by ISIS, are Muslim.”
He added that extremism will not be tolerated at the New Haven Islamic Center and those expressing sympathy for ISIS will not be welcome.
“If we cannot respect one another as humans, we cannot hope to have a peaceful life,” Abdelati said. “We have to protect this country from these people,” he said, referencing all forms of extremism while calling for people to be moderate in their thoughts and actions and show thought and restraint.
“Judge me not by my religion,” Abdelati said. “Judge me according to my actions, what I am doing.”