Muslim CNN Guest: We ‘Could Care Less’ About ‘Draw Muhammad’ Contests

Dean Obeidallah, host of the Dean Obeidallah Sirius XM radio show and columnist for the The Daily Beast, said on Friday that Muslim Americans have no problem with “draw Muhammad” contests.

Obeidallah, who is Muslim, made his comments during a live interview on CNN about a “draw Muhammad” cartoon contest set to take place on Friday in Phoenix.

The contest is being held in response to a May 3 Prophet Muhammad cartoon contest in Garland, Texas that was attacked by two alleged sympathizers of the Islamic State terrorist group who were killed by security outside the event.

Obeidallah defended the right of those wishing to draw the Prophet Muhammad during such contests and spoke about Pamela Geller, an anti-Muslim activist who hosted the Texas event.

“I’ve defended it, and every Muslim American organization I know without exception has defended it,” Obeidallah said. “Draw all you want, Pamela Geller. We don’t care. Honestly, let’s be brutally honest, we’re not offended by someone drawing the Prophet Muhmmad.”

Obeidallah said he had actually enjoyed sharing the cartoon on social media.

“In fact the winner of that contest she did, I tweeted the picture out,” Obeidallah said. “We’ve been making fun of it.”

CNN host Chris Cuomo asked Obeidallah about the Garland gunmen and pointed out they seemed to be bothered by the drawing contest. Obeidallah dismissed the gunmen, saying they “were radicalized.”

“Here was a guy who was looking for a chance to get media attention, to go out in some kind of blaze of glory, so that’s what it was about,” Obeidallah said. “In America, we don’t — we have enough problems in this world where someone drawing something is not really offensive.”

Obeidallah did express some concern about the Phoenix event.

“The man in Arizona,” Obeidallah said, “he is proudly an atheist. He’s against all faiths, Judaism and Christianity. He’s just really hostile towards Islam. So a special place in his mind. And that worries me.”

Obeidallah compared Jon Ritzheimer, the organizer of the Phoenix event, to Craig Hicks, the man who killed three Muslim students from the University of North Carolina on Feb. 10.

“Similar mindset,” Obeidallah said. “Hate all religions, especially hated Muslims.”

Obeidallah also reiterated that moderate Muslims don’t care about “draw Muhammad” cartoon contests.

“There’s not like moderate Muslims, there are mainstream Muslims and then there’s crazy, radical people,” Obeidallah said. “Mainstream Muslims have enough in their lives, they could care less, especially in America frankly and in the West.”