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CAIR
Reports MUSLIM STUDENT BEATEN BY MEN IN CAMPUSTOWN CHAMPAIGN - A Muslim student was beaten by a Campustown mob Sunday morning in what he described as a racially motivated attack. Saleem Mahjub, a senior in mechanical engineering at the University of Illinois, was attacked shortly before 3 a.m. Sunday outside an apartment building near the intersection of Fifth and John streets, in Champaign. While his brother and friends were held back by several men, Mahjub was beaten by at least six men, one of whom hit his nose with a blunt object. Mahjub was taken by ambulance to Carle Foundation Hospital, where he received stitches and was treated for a broken nose. He is recovering in Barrington, a Chicago suburb where his parents live. Mahjub said Wednesday that the men who attacked him blamed him for the Sept. 11 attacks on America. His family is originally from Tunisia. The student had left a celebration with his brother, also an engineering student, and a couple of Muslim friends. "These people attacked us because we are Muslim/Arabs," said Mahjub, 24, in an e-mail to the News-Gazette. "(We) are 100 percent American..." CRIMES AGAINST MUSLIMS MULTIPLY Middle Easterners and Muslims will probably
top the list of groups targeted for hate crimes in Orange County for the
first time this year, authorities In the three weeks after the Sept. 11
terrorist attacks, 37 hate crimes were reported against those groups or
people perceived to be members of That's six times the number reported against the group in all of 2000, and the most since 1991, when 14 attacks against Middle Easterners were reported against the backdrop of the Gulf War. "There's been an unprecedented number of hate-related incidents in such a short period of time," said Rusty Kennedy, the commission's executive director. "We're probably only seeing the tip of the iceberg." The surge comes as the number of hate crimes in Orange County has steadily declined since 1998. Since 1994, Jews have been the most targeted group in Orange County; last year, they were victims of 31 of the county's 122 hate crimes. Kennedy said that while a full report for 2001 won't be available until March, it appears that the Sept. 11 backlash against Middle Easterners and Muslims will push them to the top of this year's list. The one piece of good news: The surge in attacks dropped off quickly since early October, with only a couple since then, Kennedy said. He did not have a number. That falloff, however, hasn't fully dampened the unease among Orange County's Muslims, said Ra'id Faraj, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Anaheim. "The community is very intimidated," he said. "The fear is still very much out there. People still don't know what could happen next..." CONTACT ATTORNEY GENERAL ASHCROFT TO DEMAND DUE PROCESS OF LAW (WASHINGTON, DC - 12/16/2001) - At this time of Eid ul-Fitr, CAIR is calling on Muslims nationwide to contact Attorney General John Ashcroft and demand that we receive the same civil, religious and legal rights as any other Americans. Within the last week, three of the largest
Muslim charities (Holy Land Foundation, Global Relief Foundation and
Benevolence International Foundation) have been shut down without any
judge making a ruling or any jury hearing evidence of criminal behavior.
These actions against American institutions were taken through
administrative procedures that would Our community's zakat and sadaqah are now being held by the government, instead of going to poor and hungry Muslims in Palestine, Kosova, Afghanistan, and other areas afflicted by deprivation. In the past three months, American Muslims have been subjected to secret detentions without legal recourse, denial of basic due process of law and widespread racial and religious profiling. More than 1,000 people were detained in
sometimes humiliating circumstances. Little information has been revealed
about these detentions. To date, only one detainee has been charged with
any crime related to the terrorist attacks. Some 5,000 legal Muslim
visitors to this country are currently being singled out for questioning
based on their religion and Many Muslims have been thrown off airplanes merely because they had an Islamic name or appeared "Middle Eastern." CAIR also recorded more than 1400 incidents of anti-Muslim backlash since September 11, including several murders. American Muslims are now under a cloud of suspicion produced by a drumbeat of anti-Muslim rhetoric from those who are taking advantage of the 9-11 tragedy to carry out their agenda of silencing our community and its leadership once and for all. (President Bush has set a tone of respect for Muslims and Islam, but his call for tolerance is being overshadowed by virulent attacks from extremist Islamophobic groups and individuals.) While we have been patient, knowing that the crime that prompted these abuses was so horrific and understanding that the war against terrorism will require sacrifices by all Americans, we are now coming to a time when we must again assert out full legal and civil rights. ACTION REQUESTED: (As always, be POLITE and RESPECTFUL.) Contact Attorney General John Ashcroft to demand that we receive the same rights as any other Americans. We will not stay silent as we are relegated to second class status in this society. We will speak up in defense of our rights and in defense of the Constitution on which they are based. Ask that he: 1) Allow those Muslims charities who have been shut down to immediately have their day in court before a judge and jury who can hear evidence and determine whether any laws have been broken. 2) Provide information about the number of Muslims detained, the conditions under which they are held and the status of their future release. 3) Put an end to the widespread use of racial, religious and ethnic profiling. CONTACT: (Letters are best, followed by calls and then e-mails.) Attorney General John Ashcroft TEL: 202-353-1555 (Public Comment Line),
202-514-2001 (Attorney General's Office) URL: http://www.usdoj.gov/ PALESTINIAN MEN FIND SUSPICION TRANSCENDS
CONSTITUTION LABELLE, Fla. (AP) - LaBelle is an unlikely place to find a family of Palestinian heritage. It seems a man with a prayer rug and whose wife wears traditional Middle East garb would be out of place in a place where the big deal of the year is the crowning of the Swamp Cabbage Festival queen in February. But Fathi Mustafa, 66, has never tried to draw attention to himself and knows how to keep a low profile, how to fit in. When Mustafa took the pledge of allegiance in becoming a U.S. citizen, nothing prepared him for what he and his oldest son went through in Texas after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The father spent 11 days in federal detention in Houston, his son 67 days. It appears their mistake was straying from home at the wrong time and having the last name Mustafa... ..Mustafa had been thinking about retiring, and for the first time took the oldest of his five sons, 29-year-old Nacer Mustafa, with him to Mexico on an annual trip to buy goods for the shop. The father has a heart problem, had prostate surgery for cancer two years ago and wears a hearing aid. They left for Mexico on Sept. 9 and came back through the Bush International Airport in Houston on Sept. 15. It couldn't have been a worse time. Federal authorities accused them of having put an extra layer of lamination on their passports, raising suspicion that they had altered them. "My dad and I were taken to separate rooms and questioned about why we had altered our passports," Nacer Mustafa said. "The worst part was when I heard my dad pleading, crying in the next room. The poor guy has never had so much as a parking ticket. I was scared he was going to have a heart attack. "Some anti-terrorist task force guy tried to get me to admit I had laminated my passport. He said that in case I was deported, he wanted to know what country I would want to go to. I told him I was a U.S. citizen, but that didn't faze him. "Dad and I were put in the same cell together, just us in there for one night. I thought it would be a one-day investigation. But then they put us in separate cells in isolation for four nights and then we were back together again. "For a week we didn't see anyone else, just the hands of someone sliding food through a space in the door," he said... "...I'll never forget how they humiliated my dad. They took us to court twice. Each time we had to undress before we went into the court and when we got out before they took us back to our cells." All four times there was a body cavity search, Nacer Mustafa said... ...The father has difficulty talking about the experience without his eyes getting moist and his voice choking. He says they gave him an extra jail shirt to use to put on the floor for his prayers, so when he touched his head and the palms of his hands to the floor he wouldn't get dirty. They also gave him a copy of the Quran, the Muslim holy book. And he was grateful they did not serve him pork, an unclean food for Muslims... ...Charges against both were dropped... FBI INVESTIGATES INCIDENTS AT MOSQUE The Associated Press, 12/13/2001 MERRILLVILLE, Ind. - The FBI is investigating the firing of shots at the Northwest Indiana Islamic Center as a possible hate crime. Members discovered two bullet holes in a window of the center last week. It was the third threatening incident reported by the center since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The incidents are being investigated under federal civil rights laws, Special agent Charles Porucznik at the FBI's Merrillville office said Wednesday. Police recovered two bullets last week after someone shot at windows in the basement while people were praying upstairs... Minnesota Not
Immune To Backlash Against Muslims Columnist Says
Air-lift Pigs Into Mosques Carpet Store
Torched in Arson Attack List of Muslims Killed or Missing In WTC Attack The Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) is compiling a list of Muslims who were killed or injured in the World Trade Center attack. The list, which is updated daily, may be obtained by calling 718-658-7028 or by e-mailing tariqhelpinghand@yahoo.com. CAIR is compiling a similar list. Muslim Passengers Kicked Off Northwest Flight Islamic group condemns airline's action as "racial and religious profiling" (WASHINGTON-DC,
9/21/2001) - The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR),
a Washington-based Islamic advocacy group, today condemned an incident
on Thursday in Minneapolis, Minn., in which three Muslim passengers
were kicked off a Northwest airlines flight because other passengers
refused to fly with them. Media
reports indicate that the three men, who all live in Utah and were on
their way home from Philadelphia, were taken from a
connecting flight in Minneapolis. Northwest says
that security rules say the airline has to "re-accommodate"
passengers if their presence makes other passengers uncomfortable. SEE: http://www.startribune.com/stories/1576/704367.html "This is racial and religious profiling of the worst kind. Both the passengers and the airplane personnel should be ashamed of their actions," said CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad. Awad added that CAIR has received more than 500 reports of anti-Muslim discrimination, including three deaths, following the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. Killings May
Be Part of Anti-Muslim Backlash Muslims Call
For Protection In Wake of Hate Crimes Store Owner Killed in Spree Was racially motivated, brother says http://www.arizonarepublic.com/arizona/articles/0916shooting16.html A gunman shot at two Mesa gas stations and a house Saturday afternoon, killing the owner of one of the stores, police said. No one was injured in the last two shootings, and police say they don't have a motive for the attacks. But the family of Balbir Singh Sodhi, 49, the victim of the first shooting, believes he was killed because he looked Middle Eastern... Recent Threats Lead Police to Guard
City's Mosques www.seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/134341231_hatecrime14m.html Police in SeaTac last night arrested a
California man who attacked an Indian taxicab driver and tore out part of
the man's beard as he accused the driver of being a terrorist. A 53-year-old Snohomish County man was in
jail this morning after he poured gasoline on a Seattle mosque near
Northgate, pointed a gun at members of the mosque, then crashed his car as
he attempted to flee. And King County prosecutors are considering a hate-crime charge against a Seattle man who allegedly stormed into a South Seattle mosque Tuesday evening and threatened to burn it down because of the terrorist attacks on the East Coast... Crowd Protests at Illinois Mosque BRIDGEVIEW, Illinois - Arab Americans and
Muslims around the United States have been attacked, threatened and
harassed in a backlash over the terrorist bloodbath. Police turned back 300 marchers - some
waving American flags and shouting "USA!
USA!" - as they tried to march on a mosque in this Chicago suburb
late Wednesday. Three demonstrators were arrested. There were no injuries
and demonstrators were kept blocks from the closed Muslim house of
worship. "I'm proud to be American and I hate Arabs and I always
have," said 19-year-old Colin Zaremba who marched with the group from
Oak Lawn... San Francisco Police Investigate Hate
Crime The San Francisco Police Department
reported today that someone left a bag filled with a red substance thought
to be blood on the doorstep of the Islamic Community Center and
investigators are treating the incident as a hate crime. Lt. Morris Tabak said an unidentified
caller phoned the center at 3004 16th St. this afternoon and asked a
female employee if she worked at the Islamic Community Center. The woman
said yes and then the caller told her that they had left a message for
Osama bin Laden at the front door, according to Tabak. When the woman went to the front door, she
found a plastic bag partially filled with a red substance. It had the
words "Pig's Blood" written on it, and appeared to have been
thrown at the door, with the red liquid scattered around the entrance. "We're confirming all that,"
Tabak said at about 4 p.m. "The Hate Crimes unit is en route." While police are investigating this report
as a hate crime, Tabak said the number
of incidents called in to police has been lower than usual this week. Islamic Center spokeswoman Xequina Berber
said today's incident occurred at 2:35 p.m. She said the substance was
definitely blood and that it was splattered all over the sidewalk and the
front of the entrance. "It was a lot of blood," she
said. She said the center, which fields calls for
the Muslim community and processes immigration work, has never had
anything like this happen before. "There's been a lot of crank calls but
this is the first threat," she said. CONTACT: San
Francisco Police, Hate Crimes, (415) 553-1133 CAIR |