Protesters Armed With AR-15s Rally In Dearborn Against 'Radical Islam'

DEARBORN (WWJ) - A handful of protestors gathered in front of the Dearborn Public Library on Saturday with signs reading "No Radical Islam" and "Louis Farrakhan = Hate."

Unlike most protests, the attendees brandished guns -- mostly AR-15s strapped across their chests.

Dearborn police were standing by, but didn't have any problems as no arrests were made. However, some heated discussions popped up between the protesters and a group of people who were standing up on behalf of Muslims.

Ali Naji of Dearborn -- a Muslim -- was upset that the nine protestors drove in from other cities to protest.

"There's over a half a million Muslims, roughly, in the city of Dearborn and for him to come over here and inflate stuff and tell us 'Radical Islam,' of course we're going to be heated as Muslims," Naji said. "Again, all Muslims are not bad."

Naji had a conversation with one of the protestors named Brian and asked why they needed guns strapped over their shoulders to protest -- he didn't get an answer to that question. But Naji did ask Brian to change his sign to not only read, "No Radical Islam" but also read "No Radical Christianity," to make his sign fair.

The sign was changed and Naji walked away. The entire protest lasted only around 45 minutes.

Leaders of local Mosques told their congregations to steer clear of the event and to not engage the protesters.

The event was billed as a "Global Rally for Humanity" and was initially scheduled to be held outside the Islamic Center of America — North America's largest mosque — on Ford Road.

One organizer said before the protest "as this invasion of Muslim colonization continues unchecked on American soil, we can only expect the same suffering now endured by EUROPE…Now is the time to act."

Similar protests were planned for the same time outside mosques nationwide including Atlanta, Georgia; Huntsville, Alabama; and Murfreesboro, Tennessee.