Local Arab Americans Show Support For Protests In Middle East and North Africa
DEARBORN (WWJ) - There is a show of support in Dearborn Sunday for those protesting for greater freedom in Middle Eastern and North African countries.
There's been violence against protestors with at least 200 people killed in Libya.
WWJ Newsradio 950's Beth Fisher spoke with the executive director of CAIR, the Council for American Islamic Relations, Dawud Walid, he says they're celebrating the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and discussing how people here can help others seeking freedom in the Middle East.
"Well, I think the most important thing is to organize our community to contact our congress people in the Obama administration & for him to place ,uh, more positive pressure upon some of these regimes in which we have influence over," Walid says.
Walid says the U.S. has influence in Bahrain and he hopes President Obama will exert pressure on the king there and in other countries to stop the violence against protestors.
A demonstration is being held in front of Dearborn City Hall Sunday afternoon in a show of support for the protests. The publisher of the Arab American News, Osama Siblani, says he doesn't think they will stop because of violence against the protestors.
"I don't believe the people are going to back off. The genie is out of the bottle and they will not put it back in and people are demanding freedom, respect for their human rights and democracy, so there's no return."
