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US Muslims launch campaign to spread Islam’s message of peace

In this Monday, August 31, 2015 photo, a billboard proclaims the teachings of Islam in Boston, Massachusetts.

A Muslim grassroots umbrella organization has launched a billboard campaign across the United States, spreading facts about Islam and the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

Organizers at the Islamic Circle of North America have erected 100 billboards over the summer to educate Americans that Islam is a religion of peace and justice, not extremism and violence.

The campaign by the New York-based group is intended to counter the widespread disinformation and confusion about Islam among people in the United States.

The billboards feature statements such as: "Muhammad believed in peace, social justice, women's rights" and "Muhammad always taught love, not hate; peace, not violence."

They are in states including California, Texas, Arizona, Tennessee, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, Wisconsin, as well as in the province of Alberta, Canada.

The group's president, Naeem Baig, told The Associated Press the idea for the campaign arose after the January attack in Paris, France, by extremists affiliated with the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group.

The perpetrators wrongfully understood the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, Baig said.

"As a Muslim, it hurts me when I see someone abusing my faith, abusing the teachings of the prophet," he said.

Wilherm Edward, a non-Muslim who works at an automobile parts store located near one of the three billboards in Boston, Massachusetts, said he thinks the campaign is a great idea.

Edward's occupation, he said, exposes him to people from all sectors of society, including Muslims. "All the ones I've seen, they're all good people," he said.


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