Palestinian American Farouk Shami is a self-made man. Fifty years ago, he emigrated to America with only seventy dollars in his pocket, and would go on to build one of the largest hair care enterprises in the country – Farouk Systems. His products have been featured on Donald Trump’s television shows and sponsored Trump’s talent shows – Miss Teen USA, Miss USA and Miss Universe.
Needless to say, through the years Mr. Shami has been a close business associate of Mr. Trump (and yes, he is a Muslim). Mr. Shami tells Al Jazeera that he suspects if Trump were to become president, he would moderate what many consider his anti-Muslim views.
Though Mr. Shami took a stand last year and withdrew his sponsorship when Trump made anti-Mexican comments, he is reconsidering things. “As Trump becomes the Republican candidate, I plan to connect with him and donate to his campaign and try to get him Muslim votes,” says Mr. Shami. “If we do that, he will be open for us and soften his talks about immigrants and Muslims.”
