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After two weeks of warning that Dearborn was edging closer to “Muslim infiltration” and “Sharia law,” Republican gubernatorial candidate Anthony Hudson walked into three mosques, met with residents, and realized none of it was true.
The face-to-face meetings prompted Hudson, a truck driver from Grand Blanc Township, to issue an apology after he scheduled an “American Crusade” march, which is still planned for Tuesday. Hudson initially urged “patriots” to join him for a prayer rally and march, saying he will “expose Dearborn for what it is” and that “CHRIST WILL NOT BE MOCKED.”
The about-face came after Hudson spent time in Dearborn and discovered that the city that he and other conservatives had demonized was not a dystopian nightmare after all.
“I can tell you in good faith right now today standing at a pulpit in a mosque that Sharia law does not exist in Dearborn, Michigan, nor do I believe it exists anywhere in the United States,” Hudson said in a video posted from a Dearborn mosque, a rare concession for an “America First” supporter for President Donald Trump.
He continued, “You have all been lied to with the propaganda that’s going on about Dearborn, Michigan. I can tell you with absolute faith that everything you’ve been told or taught about Dearborn is a complete fabrication of the truth. Dearborn is a very quiet community. There is a lot of hospitality. I’ve been extremely welcomed here.”
Hudson added that if anyone attempted to burn the Quran in front of him, “I’ll be the first to put out the fire.”
The reversal comes after Hudson spent days portraying Dearborn as dangerous and un-American. He had promoted the rally with Christian nationalist rhetoric, suggested Marines and National Guard members would join him, and insisted 5,000 “patriots” were ready to march. Only 42 people had marked themselves as attending on Facebook as of Monday morning.
In the new video, Hudson said his view changed after spending 72 hours meeting with residents, touring local businesses, and visiting three mosques where he said he was received with “a lot of hospitality.”
“We’ve seen no evidence of Sharia law taking place anywhere in this community — not in the businesses, not in the streets, not in people’s homes — so I would like to say I apologize,” he said. “I admit when I’m wrong.”
The apology is quite a turnaround for a candidate who had spent the week peddling anti-Muslim rhetoric, retweeting conspiracy theories, and drawing widespread criticism from civil rights advocates, including the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. In 2023, Dearborn became the first Arab-majority city in the U.S. and has faced repeated waves of Islamophobic misinformation in recent years. It is home to Christians, Muslims, and non-religious residents.
Hudson tells Metro Times he’s still doing the march, but it’s unclear what the purpose is.
“We’re still going to be there,” Hudson says. “I hope twice as many people show up.”
Hudson then called this reporter a “fucking lesbian” and used a homophobic slur.
