As faith and civic leaders committed to defending the First Amendment and modeling civility in public life, we write to respectfully condemn the recent political advertisement by Georgia State Senator Greg Dolezal in his campaign for Lieutenant Governor.
The advertisement’s depiction of a hypothetical “Sharia takeover” of the United States presents a broad-brush, offensive caricature of Islam and Muslims, built upon a series of falsehoods. It suggests that Muslims broadly desire U.S. law to be replaced by “Sharia law,” a claim that ignores the reality that the overwhelming majority of American Muslims support and participate fully in the constitutional system of the United States.
At a time when tensions across our nation are already high, messaging that frames a faith community as an existential threat places our Muslim friends, neighbors, and colleagues at increased risk.
First Five Freedoms was founded on a simple but urgent principle: we must protect the five freedoms of the First Amendment — including freedom of religion — while rejecting extremist rhetoric and political violence.
We fully understand that political differences can be intense. Candidates will — and should — debate policy vigorously. But there is a clear line between debating ideas and portraying entire religious communities in a manner that fuels fear and suspicion.
Every faith tradition, including our own, has fringe voices or zealots who do not represent the peaceful convictions of the overwhelming majority. To define millions of Americans by an extreme caricature of their faith undermines our shared commitment to religious liberty and mutual respect.
Freedom of religion means not only the right to worship freely, but the right to live without being publicly cast as a threat because of one’s faith. When political rhetoric blurs that distinction, it weakens the very constitutional protections it claims to defend.
We stand in solidarity with Georgia’s Muslim community and affirm their full and equal place in the civic life of our state and nation. Our Muslim neighbors are business leaders, educators, veterans, parents, public servants, and people of deep faith who contribute meaningfully to the strength of Georgia.
We call on all leaders — regardless of party — to elevate the tone of our public discourse. We can have robust disagreements about policy without dehumanizing one another. We can defend American values without portraying fellow Americans as enemies.
In this moment of deep division, faith leaders must insist on something better.
We remain committed to defending the First Amendment’s protections of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition — and to modeling the civility and shared humanity that make those freedoms worth protecting.
