Last Friday after prayers, outside a blue-tiled mosque in spacious southwest-suburban Orland Park, dozens gathered in the cold around Reverend Jesse Jackson.
To stereotype Muslims based on terrorist acts, Jackson said, is like stereotyping Christians based on the Ku Klux Clan. Most of the thousands lynchings in the United States, he said, happened outside of churches on Sunday.
“When you start running, there is no end,” he said. “Stand your ground. Look your enemy in the eyes. Be peaceful. Try always to protect your human rights, your civil rights.”
Established Syrian immigrants like himself are eager to welcome recent Syrian refugees, he said, especially because they understand that many of the refugees in the camps do not have a strong network that can support them. Most of the Syrians who had family support or other resources, he said, escaped the country earlier.
