The threat of violence seems to be working just fine for the Islamists.

Anti-Shariah conference loses Nashville hotel home

Group claims free speech is threatened after Nashville hotel cancels contract

A Nashville hotel has canceled its contract with an anti-Shariah conference out of fear the event could attract protests and disruptbusiness.

Organizers of the Preserving Freedom conference, who include Lou Ann Zelenik of the Tennessee Freedom Coalition, had planned to meet Nov. 11 at the Hutton Hotel in Nashville.

Hotel management said they received complaints about the event from the public and from their clients. Steve Eckley, senior vice president of hotels for Amerimar Enterprises, which owns the Hutton, said he wasn’t aware of the details of the conference until recently.

“If this group had let us know what kind of program they were planning and who was involved, we wouldn’t have booked it,” Eckley said.

Zelenik said her group is being censored for opposing radical Islam, and the hotel’s action shows Shariah law is a threat to free speech.

“I feel the Hutton is now under Shariah law,” she said.

Among the event’s scheduled speakers are Atlas Shrugs blogger Pamela Geller; Murfreesboro mosque opponent and Center for Security Policy President Frank Gaffney; and former Republican Rep. Fred Grandy, who played the character Gopher on the popularTV series The Love Boat.

Last week, the Hyatt Hotel in Sugar Land, Texas, near Houston, backed out of an Oct. 18 event featuring Geller, executive director of Stop Islamization of America, an anti-Islam nonprofit. Hyatt issued a statement Monday: “In a recent phone conversation with the event organizer, we apologized for not working hard enough with the group to address concerns about potential business disruptions the way we should have to find a resolution.”

In 2009 the Loews Vanderbilt hotel in Nashville backed out of a conference for New English Review, an anti-Islam website.

'Blatant oppression'

William Murray, chairman of the Preserving Freedom conference, said the event is in jeopardy. He said organizers began looking for an alternate site last week after hearing what happened in Houston. So far they’ve had no luck.

The conference program included workshops on organizing opposition to mosques, on promoting anti-Shariah laws and criticizing the lack of women’s rights under Shariah. Tickets for the event were $75 and $125.

Murray said about 100 people had registered for the event, most of them from outside Nashville. He said an additional 200 locals were expected.

Among the sponsors for the event are the American Center for Law and Justice and the Liberty Counsel, two Christian legal groups and the conservative website WorldNetDaily.

“This is not some local anti-Muslim group,” Murray said. “This was a responsible organization of national organizations meeting to discuss the issue of Shariah law.”

He said the Hutton has offered to refund more than $7,000 in deposits. That’s not good enough, he said.

“This is blatant oppression of free speech,” he said.

The group’s website, www.shariafreeusa.com, accuses the Hutton of caving in to pressure from radical Muslims.

J. Lee Douglas, a member of the Nashville chapter of Act for America, said he’s planning to attend the conference no matter where it meets. He said Muslim organizations, including the Washington, D.C.-based Council on American Islamic Relations, have accused critics of Islam of promoting bigotry. He said that makes it difficult for hotels to allow anti-Islam groups to meet.

Lawsuit considered

Amir Arain, spokesman for the Islamic Center of Nashville, said the hotel made the right decision. He said the conference was promoting bigotry and had no place in Nashville.

“We can just hope they don’t keep spewing hatred against Muslims,” he said.

Organizers say they are considering suing the Hutton for breach of contract, said Mathew Staver, president of Liberty Counsel and one of the scheduled speakers at the conference. Staver also said any organization that issued threats or tried to disrupt the conference could be sued. He said the timing of the cancellation puts organizers in a bind.

Stephen Barth, founder of HospitalityLawyer.com and professor ofleadership and hospitality law at the University of Houston, said hotels must abide by anti-discrimination laws. They can’t, for example, refuse to rent space to a Christian or Muslim group based solely on their religion. But they do have leeway to protect their clients and staff from harm.

“You don’t have to disrupt your business to do business with a particular group,” he said.

Eckley said he made the right decision and won’t back down.

“I’d rather face a lawsuit than have one of my employees get hurt,” he said.

Do you wonder ifEric Holder will take up the free speech cause?