Thousands of protesters and counter-protesters held American flags and signs outside of a Muslim conference in Garland, Texas on Saturday night.

"We're here to stand up for the American way of life from a faction of people who are trying to destroy us," a man protesting the conference said.

The demonstrations began hours before the start of the program at the Curtis Culwell Center, which is operated by the Garland Independent School District.

The conference is titled “Stand With the Prophet Against Terror and Hate” and bills itself as a fundraiser to build a center dedicated to teaching Muslims how to combat negative depictions of their faith.

"They want for people to see that we are kind, peaceful people," a Muslim woman at the conference said. "We're not here to fight, we're not here to argue. We're just here to show that we're Americans too."

Because of safety and protest concerns, the organizers asked for extra security.

“This is one of several cultural and religious-based groups and events that we have there at the center,” Chris Moore, Garland ISD spokesperson told NBC DFW on Friday. “And we’re going to keep that open to them. This is a non-discriminatory facility.”

The conference and protests come a little over a week after Islamic militants stormed the offices of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, killing 12 people, including the magazine's top editor.

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Edited by HenryKrinkle (Jan. 18, 2015 15:20:36)

getfiscal posted:

Those people are nuts, Islam sucks but it will die out soon enough, being afraid of it is like being afraid of tube televisions

so edgy donald that you cut me

guidoanselmi posted:

i dunno i occassionally feel compelled to post to maintain some relevance on this forum so i can keep the flame old LF memories alive. i am typically left with nothing to say because there's little content here/i'm functionally illiterate, so consider it my way of reaching out and saying hi.

hello friend

EmanuelaBrolandi posted:

donny is badass

yeah if i visit new york i would definitely hang out with you and we could wear light clothing and tell people winter is cancelled this year.

EmanuelaBrolandi posted:

having hung out with several rhizzone people irl i can say that guidoanselmi is the only rhizzone poster i would have any interest in hanging out with irl (besides donny donny is badass)

lol i think the midwestern austerity thats been bred into me would make me too lame to keep up with your cool ways.

TheIneff posted:

SubhanAllah today while I was grocery shopping at Whole Foods, as I was reaching for a carton of eggs I felt a tap on my shoulder as I look over she says, "Do you really hate me because I am an infidel?" I put the carton of eggs back on the shelf and turned to her, I was caught completely off guard. I looked at her with a smile and said, "excuse me?" She replied, "I am so sorry to approach you like this but you looked like such a sweet girl, and this is my first time seeing a real life Muslim, I live in a very small town west of Dallas. I just need to know, do you hate me?" I smiled at her and said, "ma'am why would you think that I don't even know you." She replied, "on the news, they are always saying that you Muslims hate us, so I really want to know do you hate me?" We talked for about 20 minutes and at the end of our conversation she gave me a hug and said, "I wish the news would show us people like you, anyways honey if you are ever in west Texas please come visit me I would love to have you."
I remembered the time the Prophet PBUH was in the market and noticed an older women having trouble putting all her things on her camel. When the Prophet pbuh saw her he immediately went to help her. He put her things on the camel and he didn’t stop there he accompanied her, kept her company, dragged her camel until she reached her destination he then took her things off the camel and assisted her to her home. The old women said to him, o young man I thank you for this company how can I ever repay you? I don’t have any wealth but I can give you some advice. There is a man his name is Muhammad he is a very bad man. He has disunited the people and disunited the families. He teaches people sorcery, and he leads them astray from the ancestral beliefs. Keep away from him I don’t want you to be destroyed. You are such a good person. As the prophet pbuh was walking away, she finally asked for his name. He said my name is Muhammad. She then said shahada and said only a Messenger could have such beautiful character. #WhoisMuhammad
While I know a lot of Muslims are frustrated because of recent events, know that there are so many good people in this world. This conversation really made me think, what if I wasn't a Muslim and never met a Muslim and all I know about Islam and Muslims is what I see on TV -how would I feel? We really need to show the world what Islam is. We really must emulate the Prophet pbuh, let the world know #whoisMuhammad through our actions.

this is screaming for a marine Todd mashup