CLEVELAND -- Thousands of Muslims from around the country are in Cleveland this weekend, gathering for a Muslim conference where Imam Fawaz Damra is one the conference's many speakers, reported NewsChannel5's Angie Lau.

This sparks controversy at the 29th annual National Conference for Muslims because Damra was just convicted last month of lying about terrorist ties on his citizenship application.

There are many in the community who have felt that official eyes have been trained on them for the simple fact that they are Muslim, and in the case of Damra, many feel he is a man who was unfairly targeted for comments for which he has since apologized, reported Lau.

Many Muslims feel misjudged and stereotyped as terrorists by groups who don't understand their religion.

"For 36 years, we have served the community... served this nation. Why in the world would we be blamed for something handful of people may have done?" said Dr. Talat Sultan, president of the Islamic Circle of North America.

Conference organizers say they do not know when Damra will speak.

Damra told organizers he preferred to speak spontaneously instead of a scheduled time because he didn't want the convention to focus entirely on him.

This is a convention of more than 4,000 Muslims and also non-Muslims, gathering to renew faith, and also to share with the community what their faith is all about -- peace.

The convention is also timely because of all the unrest in the Middle East and the world.

"The problem in the world today is too many good people are not willing to rise up to answer the bad ... we gather to have a renewed commitment to inspire world peace," said convention co-chair Imam F. Gasim Khan.

veryone is invited to come down to the convention center, whether Muslim or not. The convention lasts through Sunday.