Top U.S. Homeland Security Official Visits Mosque

July 15, 2007

Author: Alex Dziadosz

Source: Press & Guide Newspapers

http://www.pressandguide.com/stories/071507/loc_20070715003.shtml

The head of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff called on Dearborn to set an example of religious and ethnic tolerance last Tuesday, following a meeting with area Muslim, Jewish and Christian leaders at the Karbalaa Islamic Education Center.

"This is a very good place to represent the best of America," Chertoff said, citing Dearborn's religious diversity. "If we could convey this image to the world, it would have resonance with the vast majority of people."

Chertoff took great pains to denounce the recent rash of hateful graffiti in the area. The Center, a mostly-Shi'ite mosque, has been vandalized three times since late 2006, including last May when the phrase "Center of the Party of Satan" was painted in Arabic on its walls.