At Dearborn, Michigan’s first city council meeting since his clash with a local Christian minister went viral after a heated exchange over a controversial honorary street sign naming, Mayor Abdullah Hammoud declined to apologize for his saying the minister was “not welcome here” and that he would “launch a parade” when he left town.
Ted Barham, the same Christian minister, opened his remarks at Tuesday’s meeting by repeating the words that went viral at the previous one on Sept. 9.
“The mayor, in a way, cursed me, as was seen around the world. And I would like to repeat what I said that day to you, Mr. Mayor: ‘God bless you,’” Barham said.
Barham said he had no plans to file a lawsuit despite pressure from supporters.
“People have been saying I should do that all over the world. I have no intention of doing that,” Barham said.
Instead, he urged the council to consider his larger message: “Bless those who curse you… love your haters. And I would say that in regard to Hezbollah as well. I would [say] that in regard to Mr. Siblani and I would [say] to Israel, too. ‘Love your haters.’”
He then made a new appeal.
“Would it be possible for you, Mayor Hammoud, in front of the world and council members to join me in saying we would like to put out a Christian call to prayer and a Christian call to faith in all the countries around the world where an Islamic call to prayer goes out?”
Others took the microphone to press the council more directly.
Anthony Deegan told the chamber, “We love you with the love of Christ. We want the blessings of God to be in your life… it’s not a matter of us versus them.” But he then asked pointedly: “Do you definitively, unequivocally, by name, denounce Hamas and Hezbollah? Or do you support them?”
Shane Rife of Garden City said he was “shocked” to learn that Hammoud had appeared at a rally where Arab American News publisher Osama Siblani praised Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as a “hero.”
“We have a mayor in the United States who is sharing a platform with somebody, with [a] terrorist!?” Rife asked. “Where is your allegiance? Is your allegiance to the United States or is your allegiance to Hezbollah?”
Pastor Jeff Davis of Dearborn Evangelical Covenant Church also voiced support for Barham, stressing his long service in the city.
Nagi Almudhegi, a Yemeni-American engineer and candidate for mayor, also weighed in during an interview with Fox News Digital.
“The United States of America is built on the principles of freedom of speech and freedom of religion. These two principles are sacrosanct,” Almudhegi said.
“If I were in Mayor Abdullah Hamoud’s spot at that time, I would have not said anything. The gentleman has a right, as an American citizen, to speak his mind. And he did it in a respectful, calm way. The mayor should have afforded him that opportunity instead of launching into that tirade.”
He warned that Hammoud’s “not welcome here” remark risked fueling a false impression that Christians are not accepted in Dearborn.
“People would get the impression, or it would feed into the paranoia that is very, very wrong, that Dearborn is a racist place, or there’s no place for Christians. And that is what I’m 100% against,” Almudhegi said.
Almudhegi had previously released an official statement condemning Hammoud’s remarks as “uncalled for, classless, unprofessional and just plain wrong,” and voiced support for Barham.
When Hammoud spoke later in the evening at the meeting, he did not answer the many calls for an apology or the demand for a specific denunciation.
Instead, he said, Dearborn “represents the best of America” where “people of all backgrounds, of all faiths, and of all beliefs can live peacefully and respectfully as neighbors.”
“For decades, people have been intent on dividing and disparaging our city,” Hammoud said. “Dearborn has never fallen for these divisive attempts. Back then and still now, Dearborn residents from every corner of this city have come together to shun hatred and to root it out of the place that we’re all proud to call home.”
The controversy continues to loom over Dearborn’s November mayoral election, where Hammoud faces Almudhegi.
With only two names on the ballot, the clash over religious freedom and free speech sparked by Barham’s remarks and the mayor’s response may become the defining issue for voters.
Hammoud’s office did not immediately return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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