Garwood man says home’s flag represents Islam, not ISIS, is not anti-American
GARWOOD — A photo of a Garwood home flying a black flag with an Islamic message has gone viral on Twitter after it was posted Tuesday morning, with commenters expressing concern the resident supports the ISIS jihadist group, with whom the flag is sometimes associated. The Winslow Place resident, Mark Dunaway, 44, told NJ.com he has flown the flag for at least 10 years during Ramadan and on Fridays when he goes to mosque without issue, until the photo of his home was posted on Twitter by @Marc_Leibowitz.
By Jessica Remo | NJ Advance Media, for NJ.com
on August 13, 2014 at 6:20 PM, updated August 14, 2014 at 2:16 PM
GARWOOD — A photo of a Garwood home flying a black flag with an Islamic message has gone viral on Twitter after it was posted Tuesday morning, with commenters expressing concern the resident supports the ISIS jihadist group, with whom the flag is sometimes associated.
The Winslow Place resident, Mark Dunaway, 44, told NJ.com he has flown the flag for at least 10 years during Ramadan and on Fridays when he goes to mosque without issue, until the photo of his home was posted on Twitter by @Marc_Leibowitz.
“I understand now that people turn on CNN and see the flag associated with jihad, but that’s not the intention of that flag at all,” Dunaway said. “It says ‘There is only one god, Allah, and the prophet Muhammad is his messenger.’ It’s not meant to be a symbol of hate. Islam is all about unity and peace. I am not a part of any group like that, and I’m not anti-American. I love my country, but I am a Muslim.”
Dunaway said when Garwood police spoke to him Tuesday, he had no idea a photo of his home was on Twitter and he removed the flag voluntarily given the public concern.
https://www.nj.com/union/index.ssf/2014/08/garwood_resident_removes_isis_flag.html
