Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
We're working to fix a technical issue causing problems with our broadcasts. We'll have it resolved as soon as possible. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Anti-Muslim Lecture Draws Bigger Crowd In Kalispell

Pastor Shahram Hadian addresses a packed house at an event in Kalispell hosted by ACT for America's Flathead County Chapter
Nicky Ouellet
Pastor Shahram Hadian addresses a packed house at an event in Kalispell hosted by ACT for America's Flathead County Chapter

Earlier this week, a group called ACT for America hosted a speaker in Missoula who drew more protesters than listeners. Last night he spoke in Kalispell to a very different crowd.

Pastor ShahramHadiandrew more than 150 people for a lecture sponsored by ACT’s Flathead Valley chapter about what he calls “the fallacies of a peaceful Islam.”

"I think it was received well," Hadian said. "The feedback I got was really positive and I hope it helped them open their eyes."

Hadian spoke for well over two hours, using quotes from the Bible and Quran to show the two religions do not share commonalities. He slipped in frequent plugs for his DVDs, on sale in the lobby. The Kalispell crowd nodded along, many of them taking notes throughout his speech.

Toward the end, Hadian’s arguments became more barbed. He said “Allah is satanic” and Muslims are working with Black Lives Matter and other groups to destroy the country.

Calvin Beringer is co-chair of ACT for America’s Flathead County chapter. Despite the opposition in Missoula, and human rights groups labeling ACT for America an anti-Muslim extremist group, Beringer was pleased with the events.

"Tonight I saw a ton of new faces, I would say a quarter of the people here tonight were new, so our organization is growing," Beringer said.

Beringer says his group’s goal is education. ACT brings in people like Hadian to open a dialoge, he said, and that’s what happened with the audience in Missoula on Tuesday.

"I visited with a couple of them during and after the event and they were taking copious notes and they went up and visited with Sharham afterward," he said, "and so that was phenomenal. Nobody was angry or anything like that. We had several of the protesters come in and visit."

Like the Missoula event, speaker Sharham Hadian asked the media not to record the event in Kalispell. ACT for America’s next event is November 2 in Polson, featuring Department of Homeland Security whistleblower Philip Haney.

Nicky is MTPR's Flathead-area reporter.
Become a sustaining member for as low as $5/month
Make an annual or one-time donation to support MTPR
Pay an existing pledge or update your payment information
Related Content