Anti-Islam pastor Terry Jones takes his show to Michigan…or at least attempts to. In a bid to become to Muslims what Fred Phelps has been to gays and the military, Jones announced that he and his church would be protesting at the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, the largest mosque in North America. But city officials in Dearborn are not keen to allow that:

Concerned about a potential outbreak of violence, Wayne County prosecutors have filed a complaint in court that seeks to compel Florida pastor Terry Jones — who oversaw the burning of a Quran last month — not to rally outside an Islamic center in Dearborn this week. . .
Filed Friday in 19th district court in Dearborn, prosecutors say that if Jones shows up outside the center, “the greatest danger is the likelihood of a riot ensuing complete with the discharge of firearms.”

Maybe they should have asked local Muslims first what they thought:

Not everyone shares the Wayne County Prosecutor’s concern that Dearborn will be unable to constrain its passions in the face of Terry Jones’ planned protest Friday.

Dawud Walid, Executive Director of the Council on American Islamic Relations – Michigan says he’s doesn’t support the legal effort to thwart Jones’ event.

He told the [Detroit] Free Press that “their action innocently played into Jones’ objectives, which is to paint Dearborn as a pro-sharia city that’s oppressing Christians, which is, of course, not true.”

Walid also said the court filing inaccurately tries to “equate the actions of zealots in Afghanistan with Muslim Americans in Dearborn.” He described the Dearborn community as a peaceful one that would not harm Jones.

If you’re going to let the KKK march in Skokie, you have to let Islamophobes with odd mustaches demonstrate in Dearborn. In addition to it being a violation of the First Amendment to prevent Jones’ demonstration, it is also–as Walid points out–a kind of slap in the face to American Muslims to assume that they will be provoked to violence. Normal, sane people will not interpret banning the protest as having pro-sharia motivations, but extreme right-wingers who like to talk about “creeping sharia” and have successfully (and redundantly) banned its implementation in Oklahoma will. In reality, it is a well-intentioned but deeply misguided violation of a bigoted group’s right to freedom of speech. Jones’ demonstration permit has been denied pending a court appearance:

Jones is due in 19th District Court in Dearborn on Thursday to answer prosecutors’ claims that his demonstration could cause a riot and demands he post a “peace bond” to cover police costs.

Update:

Terry Jones is on trial this morning (Friday) by a Michigan jury which is going to decide whether or not he can protest at the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn without having paid a $100,000 “peace bond.” If that makes you do a double-take and say “Whaa?” I’m right there with you.

If it doesn’t, here’s why it should: the content of Jones’ speech is irrelevant to the matter of whether he should be allowed to protest. The Supreme Court has determined this time and time again. So long as his protest is peaceful he has a right to do it, and you cannot attempt to prevent someone from exercising their rights by charging them an enormous amount of money to do so.  Ed at Dispatches From the Culture Wars writes:

All of this is blatantly unconstitutional. The boundaries of the First Amendment are not determined by juries. And the practice of requiring those who wish to protest to put up bonds before holding controversial protests was declared unconstitutional decades ago by federal courts.

This principle goes back to the civil rights era, when cities run by racist leaders who wanted to prevent legitimate civil rights marches would try to charge those who organized those protests for the extra police protection needed to keep them safe from the KKK and others who might react violently to them.

That it now involves someone who preaches against civil rights for Muslims is not a legally relevant difference; the government must protect the right to protest and protect those who engage in protest from violent reaction no matter how heinous the message of the protest may be. . .

No matter what the jury decides tomorrow, the state court’s ruling is baffling and almost certain to be struck down by a higher court if challenged.

The ACLU supports Jones’ right to protest, and so do more Dearbon Muslims:

Majed Moughni, a Dearborn attorney, agrees that Jones has the right to protest. Moughni is not a fan of Jones, having burned him in effigy last year outside his Dearborn home because he had threatened to burn the Quran. Jones later oversaw the burning of a Quran last month.

But Moughni says it’s wrong for the city and county to try to hinder Jones’ rights. Moughni added that this is turning Jones into a hero.

“Instead of him being the bad guy, now he’s the hero,” Moughni said. “They’ve turned him into a hero of the First Amendment.”
“The prosecutors should withdraw their demands and let him speak as he wishes, which is his right under the Constitution.”