by Claire Harrington
The city of McKinney, Texas, recently approved the construction of a new five-acre mosque, despite outcry by residents, including one Iranian-American citizen.
Eddie Isa, a self-proclaimed “Sharia law survivor,” spoke to McKinney’s city council last week asking members not to allow the construction of the facility, which will include a sanctuary, classroom building and gymnasium.
“I’m here to tell you this is a dangerous ideology you’re allowing in your country,” he said. “Every country that is an Islamic country now used to be a Christian country,” he continued. “We were soft Christians and allowed them to come in, bring their Sharia law into our countries, and slowly kill us off left and right.”
The McKinney resident also cited the lack of separation between church and state within the Islamic faith as a reason for its incompatibility with the United States.
Today, there are 50 to 56 Muslim-majority countries in the world, 23-27 of which formally declare Islam as their official state religion in their constitutions.
“This is a bad idea, and you’re gonna regret listening to people like us who lived under Sharia law,” Isa warned.
Proponents of the facility, including the McKinney Islamic Association (MIA), labeled opposition as “anger,” “hate,” and “Islamophobia.”
The City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve the facility, which will be located at the corner of Virginia Parkway and Crutcher Crossing, roughly three miles from the group’s current mosque. Texas has been a particular hotspot for Islam in recent years.
In 2025, Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott signed House Bill 4211 to ban “Sharia compounds” following public concern over a 402-acre Muslim community project in North Texas called EPIC City, which would have included housing, a mosque, a K-12 Islamic school, and retail spaces.
“One of the issues at stake is the freedom of religion,” said Abbott. “Another issue at stake is what’s called the right to contract. The fact is, religious freedom is a central part of the Texas Constitution. But bad actors like EPIC and EPIC City tried to use religion as a form of segregation. We will ensure that we have the laws and law enforcement in place to prevent attempts to build such discriminatory compounds in the state of Texas.”
Abbott also ordered state and local agencies to investigate North Texas Islamic mediation groups, or “Sharia tribunals,” which he accused of attempting to override state and federal authority.
– – –
Claire Harrington is a reporter for Just the News. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
