Fact Check

'Advancement of Islamic Agenda for America' Sign

A photograph seemingly captures a sign bearing an ominous threat from an Islamic group.

Published Aug. 21, 2014

Claim:
A photograph shows a sign bearing an ominous threat from the group "Advancement of Islamic Agenda for America."

A photograph of an outdoor sign has been identified in social media postings as belonging to a mosque (or some other Islam-associated administrative building) with the cumbersome title of "Advancement of Islamic Agenda for America." The sign advertises to viewers that organization's ominous threat "AMERICA WE WILL KILL YOU ALL AND NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO STOP IT," bracketed by invocations of the exaltation "ALLAH BE PRAISED":

This photo was posted on Facebook, with a description saying it was a sign outside of a Dearborn Michigan Mosque. I suspect it is a case of hateful photoshopping! Can you verify if this photo is legit?

Neither the sign nor the organization is real, however. The photograph was a fake created using the Church Sign Maker, a web site that allowed users to create realistic-looking images of church signs bearing messages of their choosing:

Ever seen those signs in front of churches with the moveable letters? Ever wanted to rearrange the letters to make your own church sign? Well, now you can. Choose a design below, add your text, and a personalized church sign photo will be created for you! Save it, send it to a friend, put on your website, or use it however you like. Enjoy!

Note: these church signs aren't real, they don't exist in the real world. You'll be making a fake photo of a church sign.

In this case the "Advancement of Islamic Agenda for America" sign was clearly an altered version of the Church Sign Maker's "Classic Design #5" offering (as indicated by the identical nature of the two signs' sizes, shapes, and background objects in their photos):

David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994.

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