Muslim civil rights and advocacy group again calls on Congress to deny federal funding to local police departments that do not report hate crimes to FBI
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 12/13/22) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today responded to the release of “incomplete and underreported” FBI hate crime data by again calling on the U.S. government to make federal funding for local police departments contingent on them reporting hate crimes.
In her reporting on the FBI data, CBS reporter Nicole Sganga notes, “less than two-thirds of law enforcement agencies reported data on hate crimes to the FBI, last year, marking a significant drop-off.” Earlier this year, Axios’s Russell Contreras found, “About 88% of cities don’t report hate crimes data.”
CAIR Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor said:
“Reducing hate is a priority for America. That’s why it’s difficult to accept law enforcement agencies talking about their commitment to fighting hate while not submitting data. It’s hard to know how to fight a problem if you do not understand its true scope.”
He noted that in recent months, waves of both antisemitic and anti-Asian hate crimes have led law enforcement to repeatedly claim that they take issues of hate seriously.
Saylor added, “The insight gained from consistent reporting is already being seen in the addition of anti-Arab and anti-Sikh categories. Arab, Muslim, Middle Eastern, Sikh, and South Asian communities remain significant targets of hate. The hate crimes statistics, as underreported as they are, tell this tale.”
SEE: CAIR Welcomes DOJ Initiatives to Address Growing Hate Incidents, Urges Government to Tie Police Funding to Reporting on Hate Crimes
CAIR National’s 2022 Civil Rights Report, “Still Suspect,” documented various school-related complaints ranging from bullying, Islamophobic school curriculum, and holiday denials in 2021. Bullying is consistently one of the most common types of school-related complaints received at CAIR offices around the country.
SEE: 2022 Civil Rights Report: Still Suspect
https://www.cair.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Still-Suspect-Report-2022.pdf
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 Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor, 202-384-8857, [email protected]; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, [email protected]; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Coordinator Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, [email protected]