Anti-Trump Billboard Along I-94 In Dearborn Sends Message In Arabic

DEARBORN (WWJ) - An anti-Trump billboard is drawing a lot of eyes along I-94 in Dearborn.

The sign, near the Ford Road exit, is almost entirely in Arabic — with the exception of "Donald Trump" typed in English and the web address: trumpisscared.org.

Melissa Harris, spokeswoman for the super PAC "Nuisance Committee" which posted the billboard told WWJ Newsradio 950 the Arabic message translates to: "Donald Trump doesn't know what this means, but he's scared of it anyway."

She said her group chose Dearborn because of its large Arab-American population.

"We intentionally did not put the translation on the board," Harris explained, in an interview with WWJ's Zahra Huber, "because I like the idea of people who do not speak Arabic have to ask their friends who do speak Arabic for them to translate the board for them."

"And I personally hope this also will generate some dialogue between Arabic speaking people and non-Arabic speaking people in Detroit and across the country."

The Nuisance Committee is a political action committee founded by the creators of the popular party game Cards Against Humanity with the mission, Harris said, "to annoy Donald Trump."

Harris said her group hopes to motivate the Arab-American community to have their voices heard — especially in Michigan, which is a swing state.

"The primary purpose is to turn out the vote; and I think the secondary purpose is to have a conversation about Donald Trump's positions on immigration," Harris said.

"We're not name-calling, we're not insulting...We're simply pointing out that his fear, Donald Trump's fear of Muslims and of immigrants is wholly irrational," she added. "It is not based in fact; and we hope this exposes, you know, what we feel is the true motivation behind his hateful rhetoric, which is fear — irrational fear."

Trump caused a stir among some Arab-Americans back in September when he called for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until, he said, our country's representatives "can figure out what is going on."

In last week's town hall-style presidential debate, Trump was asked by a Muslim audience member: "How will you help people like me deal with the consequences of being labeled as a threat to the country after the election is over?"

"You're right about Islamophobia and that's a shame," he replied, adding: "Muslims have to report the problems when they see them. And you know there's always a reason for everything. If they don't do that, it's a very difficult situation for our country."

Photos of the billboard are making the rounds on social media; one having been retweeted more than 5,000 times as of Monday.

Member of the American Middle East Coalition for Trump and former Farmington Hills city councilman John Akouri issued a response to the idea that Arabic people don't like the Republican nominee.

"Contrary to the false mainstream media narrative, many members of the Middle Eastern Community -- such as myself -- fully support Donald Trump for President because we know he is the only candidate who can bring the necessary change needed to unleash our economy and make the world a safer and more peaceful place," Akouri said in a statement. "Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama's poor judgment in the Middle East has already cost us too much – we simply cannot afford what would be nothing more than a third Obama term."