A group known as the American Muslim Political Action Committee (AMPAC) has been making headlines with its attempt to organize a “Million Muslim March” on Washington, D.C. on the 12th anniversary of 9/11. Predictably, a statement released by the group explaining the event offers a disturbing welter of demands, anti-Americanism and victimhood:

We at AMPAC are planning an historic event for 9.11.13 where one million Muslims will march to Washington D.C. and demand that our civil rights be protected by our government.

We are demanding that laws be enacted protecting our 1st amendment. We are asking President Obama to fulfill his promise from his first campaign for Presidency of a transparent government. Lastly we are asking for the release of the 9/11 commission report to the American people.

On 9.11.01 our country was forever changed by the horrific events in New York. The entire country was victimized by the acts done on that day. Muslim and Non Muslim alike were traumatized but we as Muslims continue 12 years later to be victimized by being made the villains. To this day every media outlet and anti Islamic organization has committed slanderous and libel statements against us as Muslims and our religion of Islam.

Yet our Government either sits idly by and does nothing to protect our freedoms or it exacerbates the problem with its constant war on terrorism in Islamic countries, congressional hearings on Islam in America, and its changes to the NDAA [National Defense Authorization Act] law.

These lies told to the American population has made it impossible for us to do true Dawa. Why do we have to defend our religion while doing Dawa? Why can’t we just share the perfection of the Quran and the beauty of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (SWS)?

The media firestorm generated by the announcement precipitated a change in the event’s name. The new name temporarily became the "Million American March Against Fear,“ AMPAC spokesman Isa Hodge told U.S. News and World Report during an interview last Friday. In an earlier interview last July, Hodge insisted the march will be a protest against "FBI traps,” the “illegal tapping and surveilling of Muslim Americans,” and the “media propaganda making the word terrorist synonymous with Muslim.”

Last week, Hodge claimed the name change was made in order to accommodate the addition of other groups who question the “official version” of the 2001 attacks. He further insisted that the group’s initial National Mall permit application, which called for only 1,000 likely participants, is no longer sufficient due to the increased media focus. “I expect the numbers to be astronomical… I expect many anti-protesters, but they’re going to be pleasantly surprised, I think,” he contended. “We’re not going to be up there whining about civil rights violations of Muslims. There’s going to be a presentation on rights and events that affect the liberties of all Americans.”

Hodges’ enthusiasm may be premature. Fox News reports that the name change “did not seem to gain much traction,” and that the group has reverted to its original title. Furthermore, the Missouri-based group’s Facebook page has only 57 supporters signed up for the event, which they first announced in January, when they promised to “challenge AIPAC’s [American Israel Public Affairs Committee] stranglehold on American political life.” What 9/11 Muslim march would be complete without a jab at the all-powerful Jewish lobby?

As even the Washington Post acknowledges, AMPAC’s leader, M.D. Rabbi Alam, has “pushed controversial anti-Semitic conspiracy theories about the attacks.” That’s putting it mildly. Alam is also a Democratic Party operative who sought to become Missouri’s secretary of state and is chairman of the National Democratic Party Asian American Caucus (NDPAAC), which is sponsored by the DNC. He is also  a former “satellite campaign manager” for Barack Obama’s 2008 election effort, who was subsequently rewarded with an invitation to the White House in 2011.

In addition, Alam is a 9/11 “truther” who believes that Jews, in a grand conspiracy, perpetrated one of the worst domestic attacks in the nation’s history. He also participated in an event with a Muslim cleric who characterized the Israelis as terrorists, and accused the United States of inventing HIV. Alam offered his particular brand of “wisdom" on February 19, 2009 at an Internet discussion titled "Was 9/11 a conspiracy??" The grammar and spelling mistakes are all his:

Now, I can say this much which is a big yes from my own understanding and own judgement. But there is always other side of the coin. Few question to my readers,

Why 9/11 was a official holidy for all jewish people worked in the the WTC [World Trade Center]?

Who can tell me how many of the Jewish people died on the 9/11 tragedy?

Finally, who can tell me why there was a closed-end security and dog squad was implaced at the lower level of the WTC just a block before the 9/11?

In a 2012 interview with the Washington Free Beacon, Alam upped the anti-Semitic ante. "My question was, ‘What’s the reason not a single Jew was killed on that day.' Was there a single Jew killed on that day?" Alam wondered aloud, even as he spent 20 minutes explaining how it was impossible that jetliners careening into the World Trade Center could have brought the towers down. "I have 100 percent doubts. It doesn’t add up,” he insisted. “My bottom line is the plane is not solely responsible for destroying the whole building.”

The State Department has completely debunked Alam’s assertion, estimating that between 200 and 400 Jews, including five Israeli citizens, perished in the attack on the World Trade Center. Alam subsequently apologized for his comments in 2012, but as his latest effort indicates, such an apology rings exceedingly hollow.

Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, president of the Islamic Forum for Democracy, explains why. "They’re basically a bunch of 'truthers’ who think that America’s to blame for everything,“ he said in an interview with Fox News last Friday. Jasser offered some additional and much needed perspective. "If they were truly patriotic Americans and moderates, they’d be marching on the courthouse steps of the Fort Hood trial that’s happening this week to tell Americans that we want the death penalty for Nidal Hissan rather than this circus that they’re doing in exploiting the murders and horrific acts of 9/11.”

AMPAC remains undaunted. They have extended an invitation to Nation of Islam leader Minister Louis Farrakhan, as well as Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX). Neither man has responded to their invitation, but the group claims “lower level” members of the Nation of Islam have expressed interest, as well as other groups that support conspiracy theories about 9/11, or oppose the National Defense Authorization Act, because it authorizes the Commander-in-Chief to approve indefinite suspensions of terror suspects.

Sadly, a Pennsylvania-based faction of the Tea Party is also indicating support for the event. "Depending on my work schedule, I will be attending the event,“ Nick Defonte of the Williamsport Tea Party told U.S. News and World Report. "We all deserve to be judged on our own merits, and that is precisely why I will show my solidarity with peaceful, Constitution-loving citizens." Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) spokesman Corey Saylor said his group would not participate, though he expressed theoretical support for the march.

Can such an effort succeed? AMPAC has promised to make this an annual event, and, as the Daily Mail notes, the "Million Man” name evokes powerful imagery “reminiscent of the Million Man March in 1995 and the 1963 March on Washington, which drew hundreds of thousands of blacks to Washington to protest for civil rights.” Moreover, the group seems to be banking on Americans’ ire over leaked information on classified NSA programs, along with the well-chronicled contempt for the law demonstrated by the Obama administration, to gain public sympathy.

The publicity given to this event has been unfortunate, but, if there is one positive aspect to this story, it is that yet another vicious anti-Semite has been outed in the Democratic Party. Here’s hoping that those sounding the alarm about Alam will prevent Americans from joining his cause, though don’t expect the Democratic Party to disassociate from him any time soon.

Arnold Ahlert is a columnist for FrontPage Magazine.