CAIRO,
September 4 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – The Council on
American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has called on Republican and
Democratic leaders to condemn recent growing attacks against the
Muslim community.
In
a statement, a copy of which was sent to IslamOnline.net, CAIR
Executive Director Nehad Awad urged the condemnation be announced
during campaigns of the two parties vying for the November
presidential elections.
Awad
said, before the Republican National Convention, which ended on
September 2, that the event offered an "excellent opportunity for
GOP leaders to speak out against anti-Muslim prejudice and
stereotyping."
CAIR
called on law enforcement officials in Arizona and the FBI to
investigate a vandalism attack on a Muslim-owned car as a possible
hate crime late in August.
The
victim, who is a US resident of Jordanian descent, said his tires were
slashed, windshield smashed and a racist note was taped to the car.
The note read, "You are not welcome here. Go back home you stupid
f****ers."
String
of Vandalism
CAIR
expressed concern about a string of other vandalism incidents reported
by Muslims nationwide.
Awad
pointed to other similar incidents of vandalism in New York, Virginia
and New Jersey, adding that other such incidents targeting Muslims and
Islamic institutions have taken place recently nationwide.
In
August, CAIR expressed concern that the police officer investigating
the assault allegedly defended the assailant's right to utter racial
slurs.
The
victim was driving with his elderly mother through Edison township in
New Jersey when a white male in another car attacked him.
The
assailant allegedly followed the victim for ten blocks before getting
out of his vehicle and punching the victim in the face when he stopped
at a traffic light. When the victim attempted to call 911 on his cell
phone, the assailant allegedly grabbed the instrument and smashed it
on the ground.
During
the incident, the attacker reportedly called the victim a
"terrorist" and a "sand nigger", and told the
victim to "go back to whatever Arab country you came from".
The
victim said that a police officer called to the scene of attack was
reluctant to address the possible bias motive of the perpetrator and
in fact defended the assailant's "free speech" rights.
"We
are concerned that the officer on the scene apparently viewed the
racial slurs used during the assault as constitutionally-protected
speech and not as evidence that a hate crime had occurred," CAIR
civil rights director Engy Abdelkader, had said.
Disturbing
Awad
said such incidents amount to a disturbing example of growing racial
profiling and discrimination, which officials and law-enforcement
bodies should be aware of, Awad said.
CAIR
published a "Muslim Community Safety Kit," in response to
what the group called "anti-Muslim incidents."
