After the Middle East Forum charged that the Fort Lauderdale Marriott Coral Springs Hotel & Convention Center was to host a Jan. 12-13 event of the “region’s most extreme alliance of Islamist organizations,” the hotel canceled its contract with the South Florida Muslim Federation.
The decision “was a tragic result of fear and misinformation,” the South Florida Muslim Federation stated. “History will show this was a sad day when Muslim Americans were prevented to assemble in some neighborhoods, leaving a stain on our collective conscience.”
The hotel “caved into this assault on the men, women and children in the Muslim American community, dehumanizing all of us as terrorists,” the group added. It noted the hotel said it was “canceling because of the ‘significant undesirable interest.’”
Middle East Forum stated that its article “galvanized residents in Parkland and Coral Springs to take a stand and launch a petition.”
“Business leaders and public officials threatened to terminate their relationships with the Marriott if the event proceeded as scheduled,” it said. “These pressures convinced the hotel to rescind its contract.”
The group’s “leaders and speakers responded to the Oct. 7 massacre of Israeli civilians by voicing support for Hamas and promoting ‘resistance in all its forms’ against Israel,” per the Middle East Forum.
“The event was to feature a ‘Gaza’ poetry contest and a youth seminar titled ‘Finding Hope from Our Past,’ which focused on the Islamic ‘conquests ... of Jerusalem,’” it added.
