Limits of free speech tested as anti-Islam pastor is coming back to Dearborn

By Niraj Warikoo ("Detroit Free Press," October 10, 2012)

Extracted from http://wwrn.org/articles/38274/

As Quran-burning pastor Terry Jones returns to Dearborn today for another rally against Islam, the issue of free speech is back under the spotlight in metro Detroit.

Jones, who sparked international protests from Muslims over the burning of Islam's holy book, intends to protest outside Edsel Ford High School, claiming that Muslim students are bullying non-Muslim students. David Mustonen, spokesman for the Dearborn Public Schools, characterized Joneses' assertions as "not accurate."

Even so, Dearborn's police chief and mayor say they will allow the Gainesville, Fla., preacher to speak on a sidewalk outside the school this afternoon and will guarantee his civil liberties while ensuring an orderly day for students.

"We ... know that free speech is so treasured" in America, said Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly Jr. "It can be offensive. It can hurt us emotionally, but until it causes physical harm or a true physical threat, it is a permissible activity. And so we respect that."

In the last year, free speech has become contentious in Dearborn, which has the highest concentration of Arab Americans in the nation. Several incidents led to legal cases.

Among them:

• Christian missionaries trying to convert Muslims at the annual Arab International Festival in June sued the city over their right to preach to Muslims.

• Last month, the Christian group Bible Believers sued the Wayne County Sheriff's Office in federal court for allegedly failing to protect its members after young Muslims threw water bottles at them because they were angry about a pig's head and anti-Islam signs the Christians brought to the festival.

• Jones sued the city in April, saying officials wrongly barred him from protesting outside the Islamic Center of America mosque.

• In June, Mike Mohamad Agemy, 47, of Dearborn was accused of trying to use his SUV to run over members of the Bible Believers outside the Islamic Center.

The release of the anti-Islam film "Innocence of Muslims" last month added to the debate about free speech. At four local protests, some called for restrictions on free speech that offends a religion. A fifth rally is planned for later this month.

At a Sept. 29 rally in Canton, speakers called for laws that would criminalize attacking religion.

"Freedom of speech should not hurt the feelings of others," said Faisal Saeed, 43, of Canton. "Take legal action against those spreading hate. ...We like freedom of speech, but it should not really cross the limits."

Robert Sedler, professor of constitutional law at Wayne State University, notes that "in the United States, we give more protection to free speech than ... in other democratic countries. We protect hate speech."

In addition, law enforcement has an obligation to protect unpopular speakers.

"The police have a duty to protect the speaker from a hostile crowd," Sedler said. Speakers like Jones or the Christian activists with the pig's head must be allowed to have their say, he said.

As an Arab-American Muslim, Rana Elmir understands the concerns local Muslims have about the growing attacks on the faith.

But as the spokeswoman for the Michigan branch of the American Civil Liberties Union, she says: "As reprehensible as Rev. Jones and the Christian activists' speech may be, the government cannot silence them ...even if there have been violent reactions in the past or in other places.

"We cannot uphold the rights of one group and ignore the rights of others," Elmir said.