The heat is on

Controversial event comes to Killeen

Posted: Nov 21, 2010 2:48 AM JST

Updated: Nov 21, 2010 6:42 AM JST

• ForumFor Middle East Understanding

To honor the Nov. 5th anniversary, one group will send out a heated message against Islam. Tomorrow, retired Army General Jerry Boykin and former terrorists like Walid Shoebat will speak on counter terrorism.

Shoebat is well-known for his stance against the Islamic religion. He converted to Christianity twenty years ago. To end terrorism, Shoebat says Muslims must do the same.

"When I used to be a terrorist, I was portrayed as a freedom fighter. The day that I decided to repent from terrorism, change my religion, that's when I became an Islamophobic, bigoted, racist. I committed the crime of become a Christian. That's becoming a crime these days," Walid says.

Sunday's event will begin at 2 p.m. with a memorial ceremony for the Fort Hood shooting victims. Shoebat says the shooting could've been prevented if the government wasn't so politically correct.

"It becomes a racist issue if you start searching Muslims or profiling. America is a country that talks about racism more than any other country in the world yet it practices the least racism than any other country in the world," he adds.

Local Islamic community leader and Army veteran Wagdi Mabrouk disagrees. He says it's unfair to link acts of terror like 9-11 and Nov. 5th to Islam as a whole.

"When all of these incidents happened, it makes folks like me want to work harder to spread the message and say 'hey, Islam is a religion of peace and by no way is this any part of worship,'" says Wagdi.

Keith Davies is with the Forum for Middle East Understanding and promoting the event. He calls Army psychiatrist, Major Nidal Hasan a terrorist.

"At psychology events that he was asked to speak at, he prophesied Islam and if you were a Christian and did that or a Jew and did that, then you'd be thrown out of the Army in two seconds. But because he is a Muslim we don't want to deal with this? This is ridiculous!"

Controversial words these speakers will share in a city affected by war and tragedy.

Reporter/photographer: Renee Cervantes

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