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EL conference explores links connecting Muslims, mental health, violence

By Mark Bashore, WKAR

EAST LANSING, MI –

A conference at Michigan State Univeristy Saturday will look at critical issues facing Muslim-Americans. David Schanzer is a co-Director of the Institute for Homeland Security Solutions in Durham, North Carolina and the event's key-note speaker. He says Muslim-Americans channel their responses to cultural conflicts in very different ways.

"Most of them are channeling them through normal political activity," he says. "I'm also fearful that it can manifest itself in people becoming isolated, people becoming frustrated, and that can actually make individuals more vulnerable to, kind of, the radical message."

Organizers say the event's aim is to improve relations between Muslim-Americans and other ethnic groups. Schanzer will be joined by 10 other guest speakers for "Addressing the Myths and Realities among Mental Health, Violence and Muslims." The day-long conference starts Saturday morning at 8:30 at the MSU Union.

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