Radical Muslims Held Paintings of Decapitated Jesus in Dearborn-Fiction!
Summary of eRumor:
A viral video has sparked rumors that group of “radical Muslims” took to the streets of Dearborn, Michigan, with paintings of Jesus’ decapitated head.
The Truth:
Photos of this event in Dearborn are real — but they don’t show radical Muslims marching, or paintings of Jesus’ decapitated head.
That rumor started with video of a Muslim rally in Dearborn that Michael Chitwood, a preacher from Tennessee, posted on his Facebook page.
Chitwood commented that the video shows a “mass gathering of radical Islamist in Dearborn, Michigan” chanting and holding a painting of Jesus’ decapitated head.
In reality, the video was captured in February 2009 and shows Shi’ite Muslims marching to commemorate the death of Imam Hussain, the grandson of Muhammad, in 7th century Iraq.
The Detroit Free Press reports:
The 2-mile procession featured colorful flags in honor of Imam Hussain, the grandson of Islam’s prophet, religious songs, and cries of “We support you, Oh Hussain.”
The worshippers started at the Karbalaa Islamic Education Center on Warren Ave., the main commercial strip of Dearborn, and then walked to nearby Hemlock Park. There, they recited poetry and tapped their chests in mourning rituals known as latmiya.
Those marching held several images of a decapitated head that bared similarities to artistic renderings of Jesus. Here’s a screen grab of one of them:
However, confusion over whose head was depicted stem from the fact that artistic renderings of Imam Hussain and Jesus are very similar. Both men are portrayed has having a full beard, long hair and fair skin. Here’s a rendering of Imam Hussain:
And the reason Imam Hassain’s decapitated head in the rally marks the retellings of his death, having been decapitated after rebelling against Yazid leaders in Syria in the 7th century, according to the book “Islamic Unity and Happiness.”
Each year, Shiite Muslims around the world commemorate Imam Hassain’s death in February — and that’s what the marchers shown in the 2009 video from Dearborn were doing.
That’s why we’re calling claims that radical Muslims were marching in the streets of Dearborn with paintings of Jesus’ decapitated head fiction.