Rep. Andy Ogles Declares 'Muslims Don't Belong in American Society' and Urges Muslim Ban

Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) posted a series of explicit anti-Muslim remarks on social media.

He wrote "Muslims don’t belong in American society" and declared "pluralism is a lie."

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Several accounts report he urged that Muslim immigrants "must be banned" and even suggested the Department of Justice should deport New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a naturalized U.S. citizen.

The statements were posted around March 9 and have drawn wide attention for their absolute language and direct targeting of a religious group.

An anti-Islam protest outside Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s home was organized by pardoned Jan. 6 participant Jake Lang, according to sources, and it turned violent.

Police detained two men at the scene.

HuffPost

Investigators probed whether explosive materials were brought to the scene and whether suspects were influenced by extremist groups.

Mamdani, who is Muslim and became a U.S. citizen in 2018, condemned the protest and the violence.

Several reports tie Ogles’s social-posting to that incident and its aftermath.

Ogles’s comments prompted swift condemnation from Democrats, civil-rights groups and others.

“Ogles says Muslims 'don't belong' in American society, calls for ban - Tennessee U”

Nashville Tennessean

Democrats named in coverage who criticized the remarks include House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, Reps. Jimmy Gomez and Robin Kelly, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations described Ogles as an 'anti-Muslim extremist.'

Some Democrats urged formal censure, and outlets noted that Speaker Mike Johnson’s office and Ogles’ office did not respond to requests for comment in at least one report.

Reporting situates Ogles’s remarks within a broader pattern.

He said he will introduce a bill to halt entry from several predominantly Muslim countries.

News of the United States

He denounced burqas and hijabs as un-American.

He is identified as part of a growing faction of House Republicans making Islamophobic statements.

Coverage links his rhetoric to similar comments by other Republican figures.

Coverage notes the local context that his district includes Nashville, home to an estimated 40,000 Muslims and the city’s Little Kurdistan neighborhood.