A meeting in Spotsylvania County in Virginia aimed at discussing a plan to build a new mosque turned ugly when two men started hurling racist remarks like "Every Muslim is a terrorist!"
The board of the Islamic Center of Fredericksburg in Virginia held a community meeting on Nov. 17 to present plans for a new mosque on the group's property at Old Plank Road and Andora Drive, a few days after the Paris attacks.
Samer Shalaby, a member of the group, was presenting the plans when he was interrupted by two men.
In a video taken by WUSA9, one of the men shouted at Shalaby, saying, "Every one of you are terrorists! I don't care what you say. Every Muslim is a terrorist!"
He added, "Shut your mouth! I don't want to hear your mouth. I will do everything that I can do to keep you from doing what you're doing. It will happen. That will happen," according to Raw Story.
The other man pointed at Shalaby and said, "This is evil."
Shalaby said the situation got worse as "people were pointing fingers and waiving arms."
Some people at the meeting were concerned that the mosque would take in Syrian refugees.
In a statement, the Islamic Center of Fredericksburg said the "meeting degenerated into a terrible incident involving personal threats, racism and anti-Muslim rhetoric."
It said the center has existed in Fredericksburg for 27 years.
"We have been at our current location on Harrison Road for the last 15 years, but we have badly outgrown the facility, and the site is not big enough to allow expansion," it said.
It added, "Let us be clear: We, the Board and the Members of the Islamic Center of Fredericksburg, condemn and deplore the violent actions across the globe that have inspired such local hatred. We understand the fear, because extremists do not discriminate: many of their victims have been Muslims, whether in the Middle East, Africa, New York, Beirut or Paris. These extremists do not represent, nor even respect, our faith."
The center added that it "will move forward with plans for our new mosque, so we can continue to provide a spiritual home while being active in the Fredericksburg community."
"We trust that the citizens and officials of Spotsylvania County will follow the legal process as it would be applied to any similar project. As part of that process, we promise to listen to and address legitimate concerns regarding the impact our facility might have on affected property owners identified by the County," it said.
It thanked supporters "from the Fredericksburg community and beyond—friends and strangers alike, who were horrified and offended by the behavior of those at the Community Meeting."
