Activist challenges Terry Kemple on anti-CAIR campaign

He went on to read provocative quotes from current or former members of CAIR, trying to illustrate how the group is out of the mainstream.

Abdelaziz is a member of Emerge U.S.A, an activist group trying to get people from Muslim, Arab and Southeast Asian groups more involved in the political process. She immediately responded to Kemple, reciting quotes that she said Kemple made in the past, such as that CAIR is a terrorist organization.

Kemple denied some of the quotes, emphasizing that he would condemn bigotry against anybody from any community.

Kurdell, who sat next to Kemple, said she's never been about bigotry, but she understands "some of the reservations" about the controversy, referring to family members who have served in the military. But she said it hasn't been hard to resist Kemple's demand.

"If I said no to one organization, I'd have to save no to all organizations," she said, including the PTA in the list of such groups

Kemple's battle against the school board climaxed last week on the 11th anniversary of 9/11, when he hosted a raucous news conference that featured noted Islamic critics from around the country, including Frank Gaffney.

After the debate, Abdelaziz told CL that those out of town speakers, "aren't going to feel the pain of the repercussions of their language." She said people reading about the issue might be able to brush it off as not affecting them, but she hopes they care about what unrelenting hatred does to members of her community.

"Whether I was a Muslim-American or not, I believe that would really mean a lot to me. Since I do work in the Muslim-American community, I feel the pain of people who are affecting by this kind of language, and I just think it's enough," she said.