Social media users misleadingly shared videos of Muslims marching in Dearborn, Michigan

After Dr. Abdul El-Sayed’s win in the Michigan Democratic Senate primary, social media users shared videos of what they described as an alarming scene in Dearborn, Michigan: Muslims wearing head and face coverings walking down a sidewalk and waving banners.

One post said it showed “horror movie scenes” and others expressed disbelief that this was happening in America. 

“OUTRAGEOUS: Dearborn, Michigan has been completely conquered by radical Muslims who just installed Abdul El-Sayed as the Democratic U.S. Senate nominee,” read an Aug. 5 X post.

One X post linked it to El-Sayed’s victory more directly: “Congratulations to these Abdul El-Sayed voters in Michigan on their victory in the Democratic primary.”

Other posts misrepresented the nature of the procession.

“45,000 ‘SOLDIERS’ JUST TOOK OVER THE STREETS OF DEARBORN,” an Aug. 2 X post read, featuring a different video. “Tens of thousands flooded Michigan this weekend in a massive Islamic procession — black flags, Arabic chants, Hezbollah-linked imagery — a scene ripped straight out of the Middle East.” That claim of 45,000 “soldiers” marching on Dearborn streets was repeated in Aug. 5 posts.

Muslim “soldiers” have not taken over Dearborn; the posts mislead by omitting context. The procession is held annually to commemorate Arbaeen, a holiday that is the culmination of 40 days of mourning in honor of Husayn ibn Ali, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, who was killed in a battle in 680 CE.

The tradition in Dearborn, a predominantly Arab community, dates back to 2004. It is also commemorated in other areas in the U.S., such as a city in Los Angeles County.

Dearborn’s procession this year, held on Aug. 2, drew thousands. One donor to the celebration described the tradition to The Detroit News as “honoring freedom and kindness.”

The first video was uploaded Aug. 3 by the Instagram account “tears_of_rukaya”; that username is also seen in a banner in the video. “Thousands gathered in Dearborn, Michigan to commemorate Arbaeen,” the caption read. 

Voting in the Michigan primary ended Aug. 4, and the race was called for El-Sayed on Aug. 5. He won nearly 80% of the vote in Dearborn.