Protest Hits Lowe's After Chain Pulls Ads From Muslim Show
Protesters descended on a Lowe’s store in one of the country’s largest Arab American communities on Saturday, calling for a boycott after the home improvement chain pulled its ads from a reality television show about five Muslim families living in Michigan.
About 100 people gathered outside the store in Allen Park, a Detroit suburb adjacent to the city where “All-American Muslim” is filmed. Lowe’s said this week that the TLC show had become a “lightning rod” for complaints after an email campaign by a conservative Christian group.
Protesters including Christian clergy and lawmakers called for unity, held signs that read “Boycott bigotry” and chanted “God bless America; shame on Lowe’s” during the rally, which was organized by a coalition of Christian, Muslim and civil rights groups.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Detroit Democrat and the first Muslim woman elected to the Michigan Legislature, said it was “disgusting” for Lowe’s to stop supporting a show that reflects America — the conservatives, liberals and even “the Kim Kardashians” in the Muslim community, she said.
Lowe’s spokeswoman Karen Cobb said Saturday that the company respected the protesters’ opinions.
The show, which premiered last month, chronicles the lives of families living in and around Dearborn, a suburb of Detroit at the heart of one of the largest Arab American populations outside the Middle East.
Los Angeles Times