On Tuesday, September 8th, the North Carolina office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, and interfaith leaders from Iredell County, plan to hold a press conference in Mooresville, North Carolina, to announce their unified interfaith response to a hate campaign targeting the Islamic Center of Lake Norman (ICLN), the Muslim community in Mooresville at large, and the recently approved construction project of the ICLN’s new mosque building in town.
SEE: CAIR Supports NC Mosque After Town Council Meeting Includes Conspiratorial Anti-Muslim Rhetoric
This press conference is scheduled prior to the same day as the expected town hall in Mooresville, which is set for 6:30 pm at town hall.
WHEN: Tuesday, September 8, 3:15 PM EST
WHERE: Islamic Center of Lake Norman, 120 S Park Dr #405, Mooresville, NC 28117
CONTACT: Al Rieder, NC Manager, CAIR National, [email protected]; Edward Ahmed Mitchell, CAIR National Deputy Director, [email protected], 404-285-9530; Ibrahim Hooper, CAIR National Communications Director, 202-744-7726, [email protected]; Ismail Allison, CAIR National Communications Manager, 202-770-6280, [email protected]
Speakers at the press conference will include representatives from CAIR, the Islamic Center of Lake Norman, and multiple interfaith leaders from the Jewish, Presbyterian, Unitarian Universalist, and other local faith communities.
BACKGROUNDER:
On August 4th, CAIR condemned hateful speech that was espoused by some speakers at a Mooresville, North Carolina town council meeting from August 3rd. The comments made at the town council were regarding the construction of the new mosque building that the Islamic Center of Lake Norman has ongoing and already approved in the town of Mooresville.
Since then, interfaith support for the mosque, as well as anti-Muslim/anti-Islam camps, have both grown in size significantly.
Earlier this year, the town of Mooresville approved the construction project by the Islamic Center of Lake Norman. The mosque has been in operation in a smaller rented facility for 15 years, and has since outgrown the facility, along with the growth in population the greater Charlotte Metro Region (in which Mooresville is a suburb of) has received in recent years. Muslims have been living in Mooresville for at least 30 years, with an older mosque in Statesville dating back to around the 1970’s, and numerous historic mosques from nearby Charlotte as well.
CAIR recently said it has documented 17 incidents targeting Islamic places of worship in May, June, and July to date. The 17 incidents represent 51 percent of the previous year’s total and a 183 percent increase over the same three-month period last year, during which CAIR documented six such incidents.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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CONTACT: Al Rieder, NC Manager, CAIR National, [email protected]; Edward Ahmed Mitchell, CAIR National Deputy Director, [email protected], 404-285-9530; Ibrahim Hooper, CAIR National Communications Director, 202-744-7726, [email protected]; Ismail Allison, CAIR National Communications Manager, 202-770-6280, [email protected]