Vice President Kamala Harris further escalated tensions with Muslim Americans earlier this week after her campaign kicked the prominent doctor and former Democratic House candidate out of a Detroit-area event.
On Monday afternoon, Dr. Ahmed Ghanim and about 200 other guests arrived at the Harris rally at the Royal Oak Music Theater in Royal Oak, Michigan, a trendy suburb about 25 miles north of Detroit.
Ghanim, 49, from Egypt, who received an invitation to the event, claimed he entered the facility, passed through security and arrived at his seat without incident. About 10 minutes later, someone from the venue approached him and asked him to follow her.
“I followed her,” Ganim said. fox 2. “I thought you were changing seats or something.”
The venue did not change his seat. Instead, the woman led Ganim to the theater lobby. Members of the Royal Oak Police Department and the U.S. Secret Intelligence Service stood there. A group of officials then asked him to leave the premises or risk being detained in the back of a police car.
Ganim filmed conversations with venue staff and members of law enforcement. According to the footage, one of the police officers said, “We weren't kicking them out. The venue was kicking us out.''
When pressed further to know why Ganim was excluding him, one woman said, “Unfortunately, this is no longer a conversation.”
“This is my city,” Ganim explained. WXYZ. “So if this happened to me in my supposedly safe city… how do you think it would make me feel other than being an outcast?”
When asked by FOX 2 if she thought her Islamic faith played a role in the incident, Ganim said, “I think so.”
“They kicked me out without offering anything. [a reason]” he said. detroit news. “I didn't have anything. There was no provocation. I didn't have any Palestinian kaffiyeh, signs, banners, anything. None of that is allowed inside.”
A ROPD spokesperson confirmed to WXYZ that theater representatives issued the order to remove Ganim. The Secret Service confirmed in response to the report that none of the attendees, including Ganim, were considered a security threat.
The Harris campaign realized that perhaps someone had botched the situation and quickly issued an apology.
“Our campaign deplores this action and the impact it has had on Dr. Ganim and the community, and we will not include him at future events,” Naomi Sabin, deputy director of communications for the Michigan Harris team, told FOX 2. We welcome everyone to participate.” Muslim American community. ”
“If you were kicked out of her campaign, would you vote for her?”
So far, the apology has apparently done little to quell the anger of Muslim communities who remain dissatisfied with the Biden-Harris administration's response to the Gaza war. Some were perplexed that no one spoke on behalf of Palestinians on the main stage at the Democratic convention in August.
“We've seen this recurring pattern of disregard and disrespect for Muslims and Arab Americans before,” Lex Nazarko of the American Muslim Engagement and Empowerment Network said, according to FOX 2. .
Basim Elkala, president of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in other states, called for an investigation into the Royal Oak incident.
In addition to his work in health care administration, Dr. Ganim recently tried to unseat Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) in the 2024 Democratic primary. Mr. Stevens won by a landslide with 74% of the vote.
Ganim, who was described by the Detroit News as a Democratic “activist,” now says he likely won't vote for Harris in the 2024 presidential election. “If you were kicked out of her campaign, would you vote for her?” he asked FOX 2 rhetorically.
“I guess that's how the Democratic Party deals with Muslims. Muslims don't matter to Muslims. … Maybe the Democrats want to bring me and people like me into the party,” he told the Detroit News. Maybe you don't want it,” he added.
Fellow Muslim Democrat Ameer Gharib, the mayor of Hamtramck, Michigan, has already endorsed former President Donald Trump, calling him “the right choice at this critical time.”
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