The San Francisco Bay Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SFBA), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed the filing of hate crime charges against a man accused of threatening a BART passenger with a knife while shouting xenophobic slurs.
Alameda County prosecutors have charged 45-year-old Michael Eugene Sprague with a hate crime enhancement for allegedly threatening the victim on a BART platform in the East Bay while yelling “go back to your country.”
In a statement, CAIR-SFBA Executive Director Zahra Billoo said:
“We’re grateful that prosecutors are taking this incident seriously and pursuing hate crime charges. No one should be subjected to threats or violence because of how they look or where someone thinks they’re from. Our communities deserve to feel safe in public spaces—without fear of being targeted for their identity.”
This incident comes just days after a hate-motivated arson at a church in Novato and a shooting in Igo, adding to a troubling rise in bias-driven acts across the state. CAIR California’s latest Civil Rights report documented over 150 hate incidents in 2024, underscoring growing threats to communities perceived as outsiders or “other.”
CAIR-SFBA encourages community members to report hate crimes and bias incidents to its Civil Rights Department for documentation and support at 408.986.9874 or bit.ly/cairsfbareport.
CAIR-SFBA is an office of CAIR, America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
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CONTACT: CAIR-SFBA Communications Manager Lorrie Adam, 408.498.5779, ladam@cair.com