The anti-Muslim activist whose Muhammad cartoon contest in Texas was attacked by two gunmen on Sunday said the shooting shows the importance of her message. Pamela Geller, American Freedom Defense Initiative president and sponsor of the "Draw Muhammad" contest in Garland, Texas, defended her event to CNN's Alisyn Camerota on Monday.
"This terrible incident reflects the need for such conferences," Geller said. "It's illustrative of the violent assault on the freedom of speech." Later, she added, "There is a problem in Islam, as illustrated last night, that anyone who addresses it gets attacked."
Two gunmen opened fire outside Geller's exhibit, hitting a security guard in the leg. Police shot both men to death. Texas officials have declined to name the suspects, but CNN and ABC identified one of them as Elton Simpson. The shooters' motive wasn't immediately clear.
Geller, whose organization drew ire foranti-Islam ads featuring Hitler on San Francisco buses and a burning World Trade Center in New York City subways, told Camerota in a heated discussion that she is not against Islam.
Source: reuters.com
