Growing bigotry against US Muslims

Over 800 incidents of vandalism,violence and arson recorded since 9/11.

WASHINGTON:

American Muslims face a rising tide of discrimination in US communities, workplaces and schools, a senior Justice Department official  said on Tuesday.

Evidence of growing anti-Muslim bigotry, aired at a Senate Judiciary hearing, poses a challenge for President Barack Obama as his administration works to foster good relations with American Muslims at a time when the United States is threatened by home-grown terrorism.

“We should all agree that it’s wrong to blame an entire community for the wrongdoing of a few. Guilt by association is not the American way,” said Senator Dick Durbin.

He said Muslims account for less than 1 per cent of the US population but more than 14 per cent of religious discrimination cases investigated by the federal government and 25 per cent of religious discrimination cases involving workplaces.

The Justice Department has investigated over 800 incidents of violence, vandalism and arson against people believed to be Muslim, Arab or South Asian, since the Sept 11 attacks.

The hearing quickly took on a partisan edge when Durbin responded to criticism from Republican Peter King, who had said on Monday that the civil rights discussion would “perpetuate the myth that there is a serious anti-Islam issue in this country.”

At the session, Durbin shot back: “Inflammatory speech from prominent public leaders creates a fertile climate for discrimination.”

“All of us, especially those of us in public life, have a responsibility to choose our words carefully. We must condemn anti-Muslim bigotry and make it clear that we won’t tolerate religious discrimination.”

Thomas Perez, the assistant US attorney general for civil rights, said anti-Muslim bigotry has brought a surge in the number of federal discrimination cases involving local authorities that have acted to prevent mosques from opening in their communities.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 30^th, 2011.