Imam invites Trump to America’s Oldest Mosque

Trump invited to discuss his plans and philosophy at Mother Mosque of America.

Donald Trump was invited by Taha Tawil to, the Imam of Mother Mosque of America located in Cedar Rapids, to America’s Oldest Mosque. The Republican presidential candidate and business tycoon was asked by Tawil to sit among community members and urged to share a few of his ideas. Trump has previously marketed himself to voters as America's only savior against the scourge of “radical Islamic terrorism.”

Imam invites Trump to America’s Oldest Mosque[/tweetthis]

Tawil said that as an Imam and director of the first mosque in North America, he, along with other members of his community would love for Donald Trump to visit and interact with the fellow citizens who are born in the U.S., along with their parents. It would be wonderful if the candidate discussed his plans and expound on his philosophy. It would be excellent if Trump could explain how he could assist us American citizens.

The irony is not lost on anyone that Iowa, the place where Trump is drumming up anti-Muslim fervor so that he could mark up his presidential appeal, happens to be the place where one of oldest Muslims communities live. Tawil's Cedar Rapids is the location of the oldest functional mosque in the whole of North America. The community took root when a few Syrians settled in the latter part of 1800s and the Mother Mosque was finally opened in 1934- a time of raging depression. The Muslim National Cemetery is also present.

An imam at the oldest mosque in America, which happens to be in Iowa, invites Donald Trump to visit https://t.co/g2TYsYwhLL

— Lisa Feierman (@lisathefeierman) January 6, 2016

Cedar Rapids has three mosques. The principal and the oldest mosque- Mother Mosque- actually operates as a cultural center geared towards non-Muslims. The Islamic Center of Cedar Rapids is only a short distance away. The latter caters to religious services, including prayers to about 2,000 Muslim families residing in the Cedar Rapids area. The Pew Research Center has revealed that only one percent of Iowans follow Islam-mirroring the U.S. average.

According to Tawil, it is the discretion of Trump as to whether he will prefer an open, private meeting or public event with the members of the mosque. The decision is important as Donald Trump has taken a number of controversial positions towards Muslims after the San Bernardino and Paris terror attacks. He has recommended that authorities must increase surveillance of a few mosques and also members of the Islamic community. Trump has also recommended that Muslims must be temporarily banned from entering U.S. This ban should be kept in place until U.S. government officials understand the full extent of threat from Islamic State.

Resources

• Time
• International Business Times

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