Connections

Local Islamic leaders on the deadly San Diego mosque shooting

By Evan Dawson,

Megan Mack, Julie Williams

Published May 21, 2026 at 3:08 PM EDT

Two men wearing headphones and eyeglasses sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a bald man at left is wearing a bright blue long-sleeved shirt under a bright blue t-shirt with white lettering; a man at right has very short dark hair and is wearing a white button-down shirt.

1 of 2 — Abu Saeed Islam with host Evan Dawson on "Connections"

Abu Saeed Islam with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Thursday, May 21, 2026

Gary Pudup / WXXI News

A man with very short dark hair wears a blue plaid blazer, purple polka dot tie and white button-down shirt and leans against a white wall.

2 of 2 — Sareer Fazili

Sareer Fazili

Provided

A shooting at a mosque in San Diego has rocked the Islamic community.

We talk to local Islamic leaders about responding to violence.

Our guests:

Sareer Fazili, former president of the Islamic Center of Rochester
Abu Saeed Islam, former president of the Islamic Center of Rochester

Connections

Evan Dawson

Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.

See stories by Evan Dawson

Megan Mack

Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.

See stories by Megan Mack

Julie Williams

Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.

See stories by Julie Williams