An extremist group in the United States, known for its support for President Donald Trump, has staged massive anti-Islam rallies across the country.

ACT for America on Saturday held rallies to denounce sharia law, the Islamic legal and moral code that organizers claim poses a threat to American freedoms, but critics believe anti-Muslim hatred is behind the condemnation.

ACT for America, a self-described grassroots organization focusing on national security, staged rallies in New York, Chicago, Boston, Denver and Seattle, as well as many smaller cities. Hundreds of people pledged on social media to attend an event that ACT billed as March against Sharia.

ACT for America, which has over 525,000 members and has boasted of its close ties to President Donald Trump, is organizing the marches. It has been considered a hate group by Southern Poverty Law Center for several years. The group campaigned hard for Donald Trump, and after he won the election, they boasted of having a “direct line” to the president. In front of the Trump building in downtown Chicago, about 30 protesters and President Donald Trump supporters shouted slogans and held a sign reading Ban Sharia

Leader of Anti-Islam Protests at the White House

In March 2017, ACT for America leader Brigitte Gabriel, a Lebanese American conservative was invited to the White House for a meeting with a member of the Trump administration’s “legislative staff.”

The SPLC has named Brigitte Gabriel as a member of the nation's Anti-Muslim Inner Circle.

The former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, who was forced to resign, has been on one of Act’s board of advisers, according to the group’s website.

The rallies are viewed as part of a wave of anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant sentiment fueled by President Donald Trump, who called for a ban on Muslims entering the country during his election campaign.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the country's largest Muslim advocacy group, urged Americans to participate in one of several local educational events being organized in a peaceful challenge to Saturday's hate rallies.

It also warned Muslims to take extra precautions against potential violence over the weekend.

Anti-Muslim incidents rose 57 percent last year, including a 44 percent jump in anti-Islamic hate crimes, CAIR said in a report released in early May.

In a report published last year, CAIR examined what it calls the Islamophobia industry.

Between 2008 and 2013, the report found, ACT for America was one of 33 anti-Muslim groups that had access to more than $204m in revenue.

Nathan Lean, author of The Islamophobia Industry, described ACT for America as part of a network of

bigots that has promoted anti-Muslim sentiment in recent years.

Countering Anti-Islam Rallies

The San Francisco Bay Area chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SFBA), Meet a Muslim, People Acting in Community Together, and Multifaith Voices for Peace & Justice on Saturday convened a Unity Rally hosted by 131 diverse organizations. Together they brought 1,000 attendees to rally in support of the Muslim community, showcasing a pluralistic alternative to the white supremacist and Islamophobic  March Against Sharia in Santa Clara.

The New York chapter of CAIR and the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) also partnered with other leading civil rights groups and grassroots activists to rally in support of the Muslim community, showcasing a pluralistic alternative to the white supremacist and Islamophobic, “March Against Sharia in Foley Square.

The anti-Islam protests organized by Trump’s supporters have vindicated critics who termed Trump’s speech during a recent visit to Saudi Arabia has hypocritical. During a summit of Muslim leaders in Riyadh, Trump unsuccessfully tried to clear his image as a person who hates Muslims and Islam but that was actually in collusion with Saudis to dupe world Muslims before signing a multi-billion arms deal.