Excerpt:
Mosques in up to 20 US cities prepared for the arrival of armed "anti-mosque and pro-America" protesters on Saturday, raising concerns about potential violence amid heightened tensions over the growth of Islam in the US.
But at least one US Muslim saw the planned protests – dubbed the Global Rally for Humanity – as a "big opportunity" to build solidarity with Americans who have legitimate questions about Islam and Muslim culture.
Instead of "hiding," US Muslims should openly engage with protesters at the mosques, even serve them water and "kosher hot dogs," writes Mike Ghouse, a well-known moderate Muslim thinker and writer, in the Illinois-based The Arab Daily News.