Sun 06 October 2019:
ACT for America, an anti-Muslim group, plans to host an annual dinner at US President Donald Trump’s South Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, next month.
An invitation posted on the organisation’s website says that tickets for the event, due to be held on November 7, start at $1,500 (Dh5,510).
The website also offered “VIP” tickets, which include the opportunity to sit at head tables with ACT’s founder Birgitte Gabriel and speaker Michelle Malkin, a conservative blogger and columnist. The tickets, priced at $2,500, have already sold out, according to the website.
The move raises questions about anti-Muslim groups funding Mr Trump, who in many instances, has been accused of dog whistle Islamophobia.
In June, the US House of Representatives accused the president of racism, after he told four Democratic congresswomen of colour – Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib – to “go back to where they came from”.
Ms Omar and Ms Tlaib were the first two Muslim women to serve in US Congress.
Mr Trump has drawn controversy for hosting world leaders at Mar-a-Lago and doubled the price of the private club’s joining fee – raising concerns about conflicts of interest.
Ms Gabriel founded the ACT for America in 2007, which as well as being anti-Muslim, is pro-Trump and pro-Tea Party Republican. She has previously questioned whether Muslims could be “loyal” citizens of the United States and has pushed to advance anti-Muslim legislation at local and federal level.
ACT for America organised a ‘March Against Sharia” in May 2017, which was attended by far-right and white supremacist groups. Extremism watchdogs consider it the largest anti-Muslim group in the country.
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