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Metro Detroit Arab-American Leaders Line Up Behind Ron Paul
Several Arab-American leaders in metro Detroit lined up today behind Ron Paul, saying his views on foreign policy and civil liberties make him the best Republican candidate for president.
The Dearborn-based Arab-American News, the largest Arab newspaper in Michigan, endorsed Paul, praising what it called his “refreshing, forthright foreign policy philosophy as one of his greatest strengths at a time when the specter of a potentially catastrophic war looms.”
And two noted Arab-American leaders said today they’re also backing Paul. Tonight, Paul will speak at a rally for Paul in Dearborn that is co-sponsored by the Arab Student Union at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.
“I am honored and delighted to receive the endorsement of the leadership of Michigan’s Arab American Republicans, as well as the editorial board of the Arab American News,” Paul said today in a statement. “I am a firm believer that freedom brings people together, which is why my standing up for individual freedom, constitutional government and fiscal responsibility draws so much support from Americans from all walks of life.”
On the campaign trail, Paul has repeatedly said the U.S. should not support military efforts in Iran, Syria, and elsewhere. He also has attacked what he sees as the erosion of civil liberties over the past decade. Both messages resonate with many Arab-Americans and Muslim-Americans. Paul’s conservative social views also are supported by some in Muslim and Arab communities. On Friday, fliers in Arabic and English supporting Paul were handed out at the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, the region’s biggest mosque.
Michigan has the highest concentration of Arab-Americans in the U.S. and they have been courted by the Republicans in past elections. In 2000, George W. Bush met with Arab-Americans in Dearborn and during one of his debate with Al Gore, Bush said he was concerned that Arab-Americans were being racially profiled. Bush was endorsed that year by several Arab-American and Muslim groups.
Osama Siblani, publisher of the Arab-American News, said his paper endorsed Paul because of his consistent message and because he has been reaching out, unlike other candidates. Siblani remembers meeting with Bush and Gore in 2000, but has seen candidates increasingly avoid Arab-Americans and Muslims.
Siblani said Republicans “have been moving further and further apart from this community.”
Nasser Beydoun, former executive director of the Dearborn-based American-Arab Chamber of Commerce, said today that “Ron Paul is fighting for the soul of our party and we are standing with him.”
Dr. Yahya Basha said Paul’s “views on individual liberty, small government and free enterprise have never wavered. His campaign has engaged with us, showing that he values our participation in the process.”
Santorum has attacked Islam on the campaign trail and Gingrich recently said that the Palestinians were an invented people. In contrast, Romney has praised metro Detroit’s Muslim communities. In response to a question in December in Iowa from a voter with anti-Muslim views, Romney said the Muslims he knew in metro Detroit, where he grew up, are not Islamic extremists.
”They are peace-loving and America-loving individuals,” Romney said of metro Detroit’s Muslim population, according to a report in the Des Moines Register. “I believe that very sincerely. I believe people of the Islamic faith do not have to subscribe to the idea of radical, violent jihadism.”
Niraj Warikoo
Detroit Free Press