Category Archives: Dearborn Arab International Festival

Posts relating to the Arabic Festival which takes place in Dearborn, Michigan

Sep 25

“Bittersweet” Victory for the Dearborn Four

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From the Left: Paul Rezkalla, David Wood, Negeen Mayel, Dr. Nabeel Qureshi, Tom McMillin and Robert Muise

Nabeel’s post on Answering Muslims says it all. I mean, I said it in June. They said it in June. Once the police gave back the video footage everyone on YouTube saw it (although some were unwilling to accept the fact that Acts 17 did nothing wrong).

Also read Acts 17 [Mostly] Vindicated in Court by Jason Smathers

Aug 13

VIDEO: Roger Williams and Acts 17 Apologetics in Dearborn, MI

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In the police report from June 18th, a Christian volunteer at the Dearborn International Arab Festival named Roger Williams made a criminal complaint against 4 other Christians. He claimed that (see the PDF above, page 10 and 11):

  • he had been harassed by a film crew
  • he advised the subjects (David, Nabeel, Negeen and Paul) that
    • he did not want to be filmed
    • he wanted them to stop filming
  • they surrounded him and continued to film despite his request
  • he attempted to leave several times
  • they continued to pester and badger him with questions while filming him
  • after pestering and badgering he again asked them to stop filming
  • after all this (harassment, pestering, badgering, surrounding, questioning, filming) David, Nabeel, and Paul stopped filming but Negeen continued to film from further away
    • Negeen filmed within hearing distance

The police report includes a record of the conversation between the officer (Brian Kapanowski) and David, Nabeel and Paul held en route to the police station (this report is not entirely accurate according to Nabeel, more to come on that later).

En Route to the station, Qureshi, Wood, and Rezkalla asked me about the allegations. I explained they were under arrest for Breach of Peace and explained the allegations against them. Without questioning, they stated that they never “surrounded” Williams. Qureshi and Wood added they did film him speaking with another individual who supposedly was distributing pamphlets against City Ordinance. When they began confronting Williams about the conversation, Qureshi and Wood stated he did ask them to stop filming but they continued and repeated the questions. After being asked by Williams again, Qureshi lowered the microphone and instructed Wood to stop filming. Wood stated he stopped filming Williams but did not shut the camcorder off in order to catch the conversation on film. After brief conversation with Williams, they stated Williams radioed for security and they continued to ask him questions including why he needed to call for security. They later left and saw a female taking pictures of them so they filmed her doing same. Qureshi, Wood, and Rezkalla stated the reason they were filming at ArabFest in the first place was in response to an incident last year involving security assaulting them. They wanted everyone at the festival to know of “the injustice and brutality”.

If you watch this video and can see the obvious (that Roger Williams was not harassed, pestered or badgered by Acts 17, and that he was able to walk away at any time) then you must consider the following.

The Dearborn Police have had this footage in their possession for over 7 weeks. They know that Williams was not honest or accurate when he made his complaint on June 18th. Why then haven’t they dropped the court case? Why did Dearborn Mayor John O’Reilly write an open letter to everyone who emailed him knowing that their charges were based on mis-information?

Why did the Dearborn Police withhold the video footage (along with thousands of dollars worth of audio/video equipment) for 25 days? Was this so that the mayor could go on television and lie about Acts 17? So he could send out his letter and make all kinds of false claims without that annoying footage available online which would contradict him?

Since there is an obvious discrepancy from a key individual who initiated the false arrests why not drop everything and apologize? I propose that there is more going on here than an honest concern for justice and American Law. It may be the Dearborn City government catering to a voting Arab population. It could be retaliation over the embarrassing video of Acts 17 being harassed in Dearborn last year (in which the police bought into more lies from festival workers, btw)? Without stating for sure what the motive is for this illegal denial of 1st amendment rights it is clear that it was based on Williams false testimony from the start and it has been going because of a bias in the Dearborn government since Williams gave them an opportunity to act.

Please visit Answering Muslims: Axis of Deception at Arabfest: Roger Williams, Amal Alslami, and Dearborn Police

Aug 10

Stay Tuned: Video Footage of Roger Williams to be Posted by Acts 17

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The “criminal complaint” which initiated this whole debacle with Dearborn Police on June 18th was submitted by festival volunteer Roger Williams. It has been show that Mr. Williams (a member of Trinity Baptist Church and student at Trinity Baptist College) lied to police by claiming:

  • he had served at the festival for 10 years

And from a comment left by David Wood (who unlike me, was actually there!), we find that Mr. Williams lied about the following as well:

  • (a) He advised us that he didn’t want to be filmed and told us to stop.
  • (b) We refused to stop filming and instead surrounded him.
  • (c) He thought he could not leave even though he tried several times.
  • (d) We continued to pester him and badger him with questions.
  • (e) He again ordered us to stop filming.
  • (f) Negeen was filming within hearing distance, but she refused to stop filming even when the rest of us put our cameras down.
  • (g) Amal Alslami witnessed the incident.

Mr. Wood commented on Answering Muslims that they will post the footage in question either today or tomorrow. I’m sure it will be revealing to compare the video with the comments taken in the police report.

Aug 10

Witnesses Lie to Dearborn Police prior to False Arrests (Includes PDF of Police Report)

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From the Left: Paul Rezkalla, David Wood, Negeen Mayel, Dr. Nabeel Qureshi, Tom McMillin and Robert Muise

It’s been a while since I posted about the Dearborn Four. For those who are new to the blog, the Dearborn Four (or Freedom Four) are four Christians missionaries (David Wood, Nabeel Qureshi, Paul Rezkalla, and Negeen Mayel) who were falsely arrested on trumped up charges at an Arabic festival in Dearborn, MI. Dearborn is well known for having one of the largest Arabic/Muslim concentrations in America.

Witnesses Unto Me has posted the Police Report of this incident (I have also posted the same document). In addition to obtaining the report (pages 10-25 on the PDF), they also compiled other relevant documents. Related posts on Witnesses Unto Me include:

City of Dearborn Records Vs. Acts 17 Video Footage

Christian Man and Muslim Woman Lie to Police, Acts 17 Arrests Follow

The 2nd link was posted yesterday (Aug. 9th) and reveals that the man who initially complained to the Police about the Dearborn Four (Roger Williams) lied to the police:

Williams told Witnesses Unto Me that this was his second year at the Arab Festival, however, he told police this was his tenth year.

Amal Alslami, a Muslim and employee of the American Arab Chamber Of Commerce told the police she witnessed this event and affirmed Williams statement. However, the videos do not show Alslami anywhere in sight during the encounter, but she drives up on a golf cart approximately five minutes later, takes pictures of Acts 17, then leaves. Alslami later tells police that she did not witness the incident.

What is worse is that Roger Williams is a Christian (he is a member of Trinity Baptist Church). He disagrees with the ministry philosophy of Acts 17 yet insists that his disagreement is not related to his complaint (and subsequent lies).

Roger believes that Acts 17 misunderstands the very chapter of the Bible they are named for. Roger believes that the example of evangelism in Acts 17 shows a relationship being built before the Gospel is shared. This was the method used by Trinity Baptist Church, they came and served the Arab community by volunteering, built relationships with Arabs, then shared the Gospel with them as opportunities arose. Williams insisted that his difference of opinion on evangelistic methods had nothing to do with his filing a complaint with the police against Acts 17.

It is unclear the impact that this development will have on the case. It is a shameful thing when Christians speak dishonestly (even in seemingly minute details). Lies are lies, and Roger Williams has not served the cause of truth.

Jul 29

VIDEO: David and Nabeel Return To Dearborn

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Acts 17 Enters the Dearborn Arab Festival (PART ONE)


David and Nabeel discuss what happened last year (2009) and why they came back to Dearborn. This video was shot less than 3 hours before their false arrest by Dearborn Police.

Acts 17 Enters the Dearborn Arab Festival (PART TWO)


This video is a continuation of the first one.

Jul 28

Venn Diagram: Acts 17 in the Dearborn Saga

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Let’s talk logic. I’m no logician but I’ve read a few books and taken a class here or there. The Dearborn Four were arrested at the Arabic Festival in Dearborn Michigan last month. It is true that there were other Christians at the festival. It is true that some of them were not harassed (Josh McDowell was happy to point this out). Pop quiz, does it logically follow that if some Christians were not harassed that all Christians were not harassed?  Answer: no

Well, does it follow that if some Christians were harassed that all Christians were harassed? Answer: no

Factor in to my colloquial musing the video cameras and willingness to demand the constitution be applied and you get the following:

David Wood was kind enough to use my diagram on Answering Muslims to help illustrate the point that one of the marks of injustice is not always the mis-treatment of an entire class or group; a sub-class being alienated and treated differently than their peers is also a violation of justice. No one is claiming that all Christians were harassed at the Dearborn Arab Festival. If you have heard that I would adjure you to watch the videos and read the blogs carefully. See if that claim is actually being made by the victims, or if it is being made up by their critics.

Jul 28

Photos from the Free Speech Rally in Dearborn, MI

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Niraj Warikoo of the Detroit Free Press talks to Majed A. Moughni on the steps of City Hall in Dearborn on Monday morning, July 26, 2010.

The Detroit Free Press has put some photos of their rally in Dearborn over the breach of the constitutional right of free speech which occurred last month.

The photos are available here.

Jul 26

David Wood and Dearborn Mayor John O’Reilly on The Bob Siegel Show

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Bob Siegel has uploaded yesterday’s hour long show to his ‘Radio Archives‘ section. To access the show you can listen on this page. Bob Siegel comments:

Mayor John B. O’Reilly of Dearborn, Michigan came on the radio program, along with Christian Apologist, David Wood, one of four Christians arrested while sharing the gospel with Muslims. They each offered contrasting interpretations of these events that are causing controversy all over the internet. This interview is rare and stimulating for two reasons:

1) It aired without commercial interruptions, non stop for about 45 minutes.

2) Both men talked respectfully and neither cut off the other. There was no cross talk. As a result, the audience is left with an excellent conversation with which to make up their own minds about the facts.

If you listen to the show on Mr. Siegel’s website, the actual interview starts about at about 12:55 in his recording. It turns out my recording from yesterday only missed a few minutes of the interview. Once the show has buffered on his site you can skip ahead to hear the interview. You can also download the MP3 directly

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

(right-click, hit ‘Save Link As…’).

David Wood has posted his reflections of the show on his blog Answering Muslims. He asks some questions which bear repeating:

(1) The mayor continues to refer to “free speech zones.” But as Nabeel pointed out, in the very cases the mayor appeals to, the courts ruled that people are free to walk around holding discussions (as we were doing). Does the mayor have a court case where a court ruled that people are not allowed to hold a dialogue in public?

(2) The mayor acknowledges that security last year was poorly trained, and that additional training was needed for this year. But the point of our video last year was that security was harassing Christians and attacking us for asking a question at a booth. If the mayor admits that they behaved poorly due to insufficient training, why demonize us for making this public? The fact is that the additional training was required specifically because we drew attention to injustice. Shouldn’t the mayor be thanking us for making the festival a better, safer place?
Continue reading →

Jul 25

MP3 of David Wood and John O’Reilly on The Bob Siegel Show

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I read on Answering Muslims that Dearborn Mayor John O’Reilly was going to be on the Bob Siegel show with David Wood from 3pm to 4pm at about 3:15pm. I raced there and recorded what I could. I got about 3/4 of the show. Download the mp3s below:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

A larger version (72MB) of the whole show is available here (Special thanks to “Haecceitas”)

If you want to download it via bittorrent please use the link below:

David Wood and John OReilly on the Bob Siegel Show.mp3.torrent

If you are new to bittorrent and want to download the file(s) please read: How to Download a File with Bittorrent (It’s easy, I promise)