D I S C R I M I N A T I O N    &    N A T I O N A L    S E C U R I T Y    I N I T I A T I V E    --    B L O G
  DNSI Home - http://pluralism.org/affiliates/kaur_sidhu/
  Pluralism Project - http://www.pluralism.org
  Harvard University - http://www.harvard.edu


Wednesday, May 09, 2007

FBI: Muslim Mother Target of Hate Crime

She is a mother of two, a Muslim Arab American, and a manager at a Sheraton Suites Hotel in Philadelphia. What could she possibly have to do with the 9/11 attacks more than five years ago?

Nothing, of course. But that didn't stop one of her employees from allegedly leaving her an ominous threatening note filled with venomous words and phrases such as "REMEMBER 9/11" … "You and your kids will pay" … and "death."

After getting the threat letter, the woman did the right thing: she contacted us for help. We were able to investigate the incident as a civil rights violation because the note involved a federally protected right of employment in a private business; the threat of force; and apparent bias involving race, religion, or ethnicity.

"Initially I was very hesitant about approaching the FBI," the victim said in an interview with the Muslim Public Affairs Council, or MPAC, which joined our Philadelphia office and the local U.S. Attorney's Office at a press conference Wednesday in announcing the indictment of a 36-year-old Philadelphia woman in the case earlier this week. "But along the way I found good people investigating my case."

That included an FBI agent from our Philadelphia office, who did some basic detective work to find the alleged culprit. The cryptic note, left in the victim's office last October, contained a series of threatening phrases cut from publications and attached to a partial sheet of lined paper. The agent discovered that the clippings appeared to come from brochures at the hotel, which led him to the suspect.

Brian Lynch, assistant special agent in charge of our Philadelphia office, noted that hate crimes targeting Arab, Muslim, and Sikh communities spiked after the 9/11 attacks, leading to more than 500 investigations and more than 100 local and federal convictions. Our latest stats show that 11 percent of the 1,314 hate crimes motivated by religious bias—128 in all—targeted Muslims. More than 30 percent of all reported hate crime offenses in 2005 involved intimidation similar to this case.

"Incidents of hate are under-reported out of fear of the FBI and government in general," said Salam Al-Marayati, executive director of MPAC, which works to protect the civil rights of Muslims. "In this case, the victim acquired the confidence in government as she interacted with law enforcement…. Our partnership with the FBI and with the Department of Justice, something we've worked on before 9/11, has helped support more government engagement from Muslim Americans."

With the success of this case and the positive interaction between this mother and FBI agents, we only hope that more Muslim and Arab Americans will have the confidence to step forward and report attacks against them based on hatred and discrimination. Our commitment to protecting their rights—and the rights of all Americans—remains strong. [Link]

Labels: , , ,


DNSI     direct link     0 comments   Email post: 



0 Comments:
Post a Comment

<< Home



About DNSI

The Discrimination & National Security Initiative (DNSI) is a research entity that examines the mistreatment of minority communities during times of military action or national crisis.

More Info:
DNSI Home Page




The Blog

Why a Blog?
The purpose of this web-log is to offer news and commentary in a fluid, dynamic format while our more substantive reports are forthcoming.

Recent Posts
Arabs aren't singled out, Gonzales says
Muslims fear backlash
Canada hotel denies Sikh entry; Badal protests
Getting tough in battle on hate
Years after 9-11, American Muslims increasingly ta...
Short-tempered auto-body painter wins settlement a...
Flying while Muslim
Welcome: Hardeep Singh
Sweden: Muslim woman wins headdress battle
Restaurant sorry for 'alleged' turban ban

Archives
04/01/2005 - 05/01/2005
05/01/2005 - 06/01/2005
06/01/2005 - 07/01/2005
07/01/2005 - 08/01/2005
08/01/2005 - 09/01/2005
09/01/2005 - 10/01/2005
10/01/2005 - 11/01/2005
11/01/2005 - 12/01/2005
12/01/2005 - 01/01/2006
01/01/2006 - 02/01/2006
02/01/2006 - 03/01/2006
03/01/2006 - 04/01/2006
04/01/2006 - 05/01/2006
05/01/2006 - 06/01/2006
06/01/2006 - 07/01/2006
07/01/2006 - 08/01/2006
08/01/2006 - 09/01/2006
09/01/2006 - 10/01/2006
10/01/2006 - 11/01/2006
11/01/2006 - 12/01/2006
12/01/2006 - 01/01/2007
01/01/2007 - 02/01/2007
02/01/2007 - 03/01/2007
03/01/2007 - 04/01/2007
04/01/2007 - 05/01/2007
05/01/2007 - 06/01/2007
06/01/2007 - 07/01/2007
07/01/2007 - 08/01/2007
08/01/2007 - 09/01/2007
09/01/2007 - 10/01/2007
10/01/2007 - 11/01/2007
11/01/2007 - 12/01/2007
12/01/2007 - 01/01/2008
01/01/2008 - 02/01/2008
02/01/2008 - 03/01/2008
03/01/2008 - 04/01/2008
04/01/2008 - 05/01/2008
05/01/2008 - 06/01/2008
06/01/2008 - 07/01/2008
07/01/2008 - 08/01/2008
08/01/2008 - 09/01/2008
09/01/2008 - 10/01/2008
10/01/2008 - 11/01/2008
11/01/2008 - 12/01/2008
12/01/2008 - 01/01/2009
01/01/2009 - 02/01/2009


Etc...

Religious Diversity News-Pluralism Project









Blogroll
Into the Whirlwind
Human Rights in India
IntentBlog
Ethnic Confusion Britain
MrSikhNet
Anil Kalhan
Islamicate
Ultrabrown
Sepia Mutiny

Feeds, etc.











(c) 2005 Discrimination & National Security Initiative 1531 Cambridge Street Cambridge, MA 02138