A photo illustration depicts the debate between American constitutional law and Sharia during a July 18 open house at the Islamic Association of Collin County in Plano. | Photo illustration by The Dallas Express; original photo by Carlos Turcios/The Dallas Express

A Muslim outreach leader told visitors at a Plano mosque Saturday that Sharia is “already here,” describing it as a religious framework Muslims follow through charity, family obligations and personal conduct.

Outside the Islamic Association of Collin County, an Iran-born Christian who said he lived under Sharia offered a starkly different warning. He argued that Islamic law becomes dangerous when it gains political power and is enforced by the state.

The competing messages unfolded during an open house billed as “Understanding Islam & Shariah: Myths vs Facts.” About 100 people attended the event at the mosque.

The DX Brief

The event: WhyIslam Dallas organized a July 18 open house at the Islamic Association of Collin County in Plano with mosque tours, food, a presentation and questions from visitors.

What was said: GainPeace Director Dr. Sabeel Ahmed said Sharia is already practiced in the United States through Muslims’ personal religious conduct. His remarks presented it as personal religious guidance, not a replacement for American civil law.

The dispute: A Christian attendee questioned the treatment of women in some Muslim-majority countries. Outside, Edwin Isagholi, who said he was born in Iran and lived under Sharia, warned about blasphemy and apostasy laws.

Why it matters: The exchange placed two different meanings of Sharia in direct conflict: a personal code of faith and an enforceable political or legal system.

‘The Reason It Is Not Coming Is Because It Is Already Here’

The free event ran from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Islamic Association of Collin County, also known as Plano Masjid. The Eventbrite listing described it as an opportunity to learn about Islam, ask questions and engage in “respectful, meaningful conversations.”

The event materials listed the mosque, GainPeace, WhyIslam and ICNA Dallas as partners. GainPeace describes Ahmed as its director.

Ahmed told attendees not to reduce Sharia to criminal punishments or to the conduct of governments and groups that invoke it. He described it as guidance governing how Muslims worship and live.

“To take care of the neighbors, it’s part of the Sharia. To take care of your parents, to take care of the children, it’s part of the Sharia,” Ahmed said. “To have strong families, it is part of the Sharia. It is part of the Sharia to fight immoralities. It is part of the Sharia to fight for equality.”

“Sharia is a beautiful guidance Allah has given,” he added. “Just because some people misuse it, we blame those people, but not the concept of Sharia.”

Ahmed then addressed a concern that has become central to political debate in Texas.

“Some people may fear Sharia is coming to the U.S.,” he said. “Do not fear. Sharia is not coming to the U.S. And the reason it is not coming to the U.S. is because it is already here.”

Ahmed immediately explained what he meant. Serving lunch to neighbors, giving to the poor and following personal religious duties were examples of Muslims practicing Sharia, he said.

“Right now, as you eat your lunch, you are part of the practice of Sharia by Muslims,” Ahmed told the audience.

He also argued that Sharia and the U.S. Constitution share principles, including equality among races. He presented Sharia as voluntary religious observance, not as a replacement for federal or state law.

A Christian Visitor Questions the Treatment of Women

The discussion grew more pointed when a visitor who identified himself as Gary said the event had been enlightening and that he saw similarities between Islam and Christianity. He also questioned the treatment of women he had observed while traveling overseas.

“If I was a woman, I might wonder, what’s in this for me?” Gary said.

He described seeing women carrying luggage for men, standing outside cafes and wearing heavy clothing in extreme heat. He also questioned whether some Muslim immigrants were resisting assimilation.

Ahmed responded that American law gives women the freedom to choose what they wear. He distinguished religious teachings from cultural practices and said Islam calls both men and women to modesty.

“Islam is big on morality. Islam is big on decency, and Islam is big on chastity,” Ahmed said. “According to Islamic faith, both men and women should be wearing modest clothes.”

The exchange echoed a February candidate forum at the East Plano Islamic Center, where Iranian-born congressional candidate Abteen Vaziri challenged the audience over his interpretation of women’s status under Sharia.

“As someone whose entire family is Muslim, I’m not down with Sharia law,” Vaziri said at the forum, as previously reported by The Dallas Express. “Sharia law says that women on that side of the room are worth half as much as men. Do you all agree with that?”

Audience members disputed Vaziri’s characterization. His comments drew audible reactions, and one attendee was physically restrained.

Europe Shows Why the Distinction Matters

Gary’s broader concerns about women’s treatment, assimilation and religious influence reflect several distinct controversies that have emerged in Europe. Those controversies include informal Sharia councils, self-appointed religious patrols and institutional failures involving the sexual exploitation of children.

They are not identical issues, but each has contributed to Europe’s debate over integration, religious authority and the willingness of public institutions to confront culturally sensitive problems.

In England and Wales, Sharia councils provide religious rulings but possess no authority to replace British law. A British government review reported estimates ranging from 30 to 85 councils operating in England and Wales and found that more than 90% of their users were women seeking Islamic divorces.

Under the practices examined, men could generally declare a unilateral divorce through talaq, while women typically needed a council to grant a khula or faskh.

Britain has also confronted extensive grooming-gang scandals. An independent inquiry found that at least 1,400 children suffered sexual exploitation in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013. Baroness Louise Casey’s 2025 national audit described repeated sexual assaults, beatings and gang rapes of children.

Casey found that national ethnicity data remained too incomplete to support conclusions about offenders across the country. However, local police data from Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire showed disproportionate numbers of Asian men among suspects in group-based child sexual exploitation.

The audit also found that authorities had repeatedly avoided examining ethnicity and cultural factors, leaving victims without protection and the public without reliable answers.

Germany experienced a more direct attempt at religious enforcement in 2014, when Salafist activists wearing “Sharia Police” vests patrolled Wuppertal and entered nightlife and gambling establishments.

The men sought to discourage alcohol, gambling and other activities prohibited under their interpretation of Islam. German authorities rejected any suggestion that the group possessed legal enforcement power.

Texas has experienced a similar campaign. In September 2025, Houston Imam F. Qasim ibn Ali Khan organized what he called “Sharia patrols” targeting Muslim-owned convenience stores.

As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Khan gave store owners 30 days to stop selling alcohol, pork and lottery tickets or face demonstrations. Khan acknowledged that the businesses had a legal right to sell the products but argued that Muslims should not sell items prohibited by Islamic law.

These were not legally recognized “Sharia districts,” and civil law remained controlling. They nevertheless show why critics distinguish private religious observance from organized pressure, parallel dispute systems and attempts to regulate public conduct according to religious rules.

An Iran-Born Protester Warns About Political Power

Outside Saturday’s open house, Edwin Isagholi told The Dallas Express that hatred of Muslims did not motivate the protesters. He then warned about political and state-enforced Sharia.

“I’m here to tell you guys that none of these people are here because we hate Muslims,” Isagholi said.

Isagholi, a Rockwall resident who introduced himself to the reporter as Eddie, said he was born in Iran, later became a Christian and had spent 12 years as an atheist trying to disprove Christianity.

“I came from Iran. I lived under full force of Sharia law,” he said.

“Islam is about religion and state,” Isagholi said.

“Islam becomes offensive the minute it takes power,” Isagholi added. “That is when you see blasphemy laws kick in. That is when you see the apostasy laws, where they’re being killed for leaving their religion in my country, Iran.”

Isagholi made similar remarks at a June 15 Wylie ISD board meeting. The district’s official record quotes his self-description as an Iran-born “Sharia Law survivor” and notes that he spoke about religious extremism.

His appearance followed a separate WhyIslam-related incident at Wylie East High School in February. Wylie ISD said an outside organization distributed religious materials without required approval and failed to follow guest-speaker protocols.

The district called the episode a procedural failure, implemented corrective measures and rejected claims that it was part of a coordinated religious or political campaign.

Counterprotester Defends Private Religious Practice

The protest also drew counterprotesters, including Jacob Kennedy, who identified himself as being with Indivisible Frisco.

“Islam is about love,” Kennedy told The Dallas Express.

Asked about Sharia, Kennedy said he opposes any attempt to impose religious law in the United States but believes Muslims remain free to practice their faith privately.

He argued that imposing any religious legal system would violate the constitutional separation of church and state.

Islam, Islamism and the Meaning of Sharia

The central disagreement at the mosque was not whether Ahmed or Isagholi used the word Sharia. Both did. The disagreement was over what the word encompassed and what happens when religious guidance becomes political power.

Sam Westrop, director of Islamist Watch at the Middle East Forum, drew that distinction during an April episode of DX’s Let’s Talk Local podcast.

“What I do think is problematic is conflating Islam and Islamism,” Westrop said. He argued that doing so makes it harder to identify specific political networks and Muslim reformers who oppose extremism.

Westrop also said he did not see organized enforcement of Sharia punishments occurring in American communities at present.

“The organized community violence, implementing Sharia law and a punishment system, no. I don’t see that happening right now,” he said. Westrop nevertheless warned against dismissing the possibility and called for scrutiny of Islamist organizations, funding and political influence.

DX co-founder Sarah Zubiate-Bennett summarized the distinction in a related column: “True clarity requires precision: separating a religion from a political project, demanding transparency in funding and influence, and responding with wisdom, courage, and respect for the rule of law.”

Warnings From Guandolo and Gill

Other voices previously interviewed by DX have used far more urgent language.

John Guandolo, a former FBI special agent who now provides counterterrorism training, told DX in a written statement connected to the documentary “Remember The Alamo: Don’t Sharia My Texas” that Americans are failing to recognize an organized threat.

“We are losing a war our federal and state leaders refuse to acknowledge,” Guandolo said. “The Islamic Movement and its communist partners must be smashed before the flame of liberty dies in America. Give no quarter, expect none in return.”

U.S. Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas) also told DX in February that Texans were concerned about Islamic immigration and Sharia.

“They don’t want Sharia law in their communities, in their state, in this country, in any way whatsoever,” Gill said.

Saturday’s event showed why the word itself remains contested. Ahmed used Sharia to describe faith, charity, family and personal morality. Isagholi used it to describe the coercive system he said he escaped in Iran. Gary’s question placed women’s freedom and assimilation between those two definitions.

The public debate turns on whether Americans can protect private religious exercise while identifying and resisting efforts to impose religious authority through law or political power. At the Plano mosque, that distinction was not theoretical. It was the argument in the room and outside its doors.