(WASHINGTON, D.C., 12/19/2019)– The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned a racist letter sent to a church in North Carolina, Wyoming high school students dressed in attire that resembled Ku Klux Klan (KKK) hoods and racist taunts targeting players at a girls’ basketball game in Illinois.
In North Carolina, St. Andrews AME Zion Church in Wilmington received a letter containing hateful language targeting African-Americans.
SEE: Police, Pastor Respond After Wilmington Church Receives Racist Letter
Wilmington police investigating hate mail targeting African Americans sent to local church
In Wyoming, students at Riverton High School in Riverton, Wyo., dressed in white robes resembling those worn by the KKK. Two students were reportedly disciplined. State and local officials decried the photo and called for a new conversation about racist imagery.
SEE: ”˜Racism is a taught behavior’: High-schoolers disciplined for wearing white robes and a hood on ”˜Spirit Day’
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/12/19/riverton-high-school-white-robes-kkk-student-photo/
2 Students Came to Their School Spirit Day in KKK-Style Robes and Hoods
In Illinois, during a game at St. Edward Central Catholic School in Elgin, Ill., players from Bishop McNamara Catholic School were reportedly subjected to racist taunts and monkey and whale sounds, in a manner that allegedly seemed to be body shaming the players.
SEE: Kankakee Catholic School Girls’ Basketball Team Appalled by Racist And Body-Shaming Taunts At Elgin Game
“We must respond to these and similar troubling incidents around the country with a national dialogue on racism, white supremacy, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and all other forms of bigotry,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. “We must demonstrate through positive community action that hatred will never be tolerated or normalized.”
He noted that CAIR has reported an unprecedented spike in bigotry targeting American Muslims, immigrants and members of other minority groups since the election of Donald Trump as president.
SEE: CAIR-SFBA Expresses Solidarity with Sikh Community After Man Attacked, Calls for Probe of Bias Motive for Assault
CAIR Decries Dismissal of Hate Crime Charges in Murder of Maryland Student
https://www.cair.com/cair_decries_dismissal_of_hate_crime_charges_in_murder_of_maryland_student
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Communications Coordinator Ayan Ajeen, 202-774-0770, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected]