The declaration of a "Muslim-free" gun shop by its Florida owner caused the Council of American-Islamic Relations to call for a Department of Justice investigation into a possible civil rights violation.
Andy Hallinan, owner of Inverness-based Florida Gun Supply, announced in a
Facebook post-cum-video on July 17 that his business is a “Muslim-free Zone” in the wake of Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez’s attack on two military recruitment centers in Chattanooga on Thursday.
Abdulazeez, who is Muslim, killed four Marines and one U.S. Navy sailor and the Tennessee shootings are being investigated as a terrorist act,
according to The New York Daily News.
In his video announcement, Hallinan is sitting in front of a Confederate flag, which he refers to as representing “nothing but the rich heritage of the south and the willingness of patriots to stand up against tyranny of all sorts,”
according to WFLA.
Hallinan says in the video that the U.S. government is lying when it says that Islam is a peaceful and harmless religion.
“We are in battle, patriots, but not only with Islamic extremism,” says Hallinan. “We are also in battle against extreme political correctness that threatens our lives because if we can’t call evil ‘evil’ for fear of offending people, then we can’t defeat our enemies.”
In response to the Chattanooga shootings, Hallinan declares in the video, his establishment will not serve or welcome Muslim customers, although he does not plan to directly ask customers to reveal their religious affiliation.
“I will not arm and train those who wish to do harm to my fellow patriots,” says Hallinan, referring to "patriots" he wants to “get armed, get trained and carry daily…in case we are ever called upon to defend our lives or our community.”
Hallinan’s video has already been viewed almost 116,000 times, and it has garnered both strong support and vehement criticism,
according to USA Today.
“These bigoted declarations are no different than ‘whites only’ signs posted in businesses during a period of our nation’s history that we had hoped was over,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, according to WFLA. “The Department of Justice must investigate these hate-filled and un-American business practices to determine whether federal civil rights laws are being violated.”
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