Excerpt:
They're back. A radical Islamist group critics say has links to Al Qaeda is gearing up to host its second annual U.S. recruiting event.
The group, Hizb ut-Tahrir America, which is committed to establishing a caliphate, or international Islamic empire, kicked up controversy in Chicago last year with its first U.S. conference, "Fall of Capitalism & Rise of Islam."
Speakers at the conference blamed capitalism for everything from two World Wars to Michael Jackson's decision "to shed his black skin." It drew more than 500 attendees, dozens of protesters and a heavy police presence.
Now the group is coming back to the Windy City with its second conference, "Emerging World Order: How the Khilafah Will Shape the World," scheduled to begin July 11 at the Chicago Marriott Oak Brook. According to a video promoting the event, the goal is to persuade attendees to "answer the call" to "join the campaign" for a Khilafah, or global Islamic empire.