Hate crimes targeting American Muslims increased by 15 percent nationwide in 2017 compared to the previous year, according to a report released Monday, April 23 by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a trend which members of the advocacy group say is reflected in Southern California.
The report, titled “Targeted,” bears statistics about hate crimes as well as discrimination against Muslims in workplaces, schools, neighborhoods and airports.
In 2017, hate crimes, hate incidents and discrimination against Muslims rose in Southern California, said Hussam Ayloush, executive director of Anaheim-based CAIR-LA. In 2017, he said, his office received reports of 14 hate crimes, up from three in 2016; 37 hate incidents, an increase from 17 the previous year; and 137 incidents of anti-Muslim bias, which was lower than the 156 cases reported in 2016.
A hate crime is defined as a criminal incident that causes damage to person or property; a hate incident is a non-criminal act such as a verbal attack. Discrimination refers to unjust treatment, in this case, due to religious background.
The report sharply criticizes the Trump administration’s controversial travel ban, which keeps out visitors from overwhelmingly Muslim-majority nations.
It points out that 35 percent of all anti-Muslim bias incidents recorded by CAIR in 2017, nationally, originated from federal government agencies including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the FBI, ICE and the Transportation Security Administration. The report gives the account of an American Muslim father who was separated from his daughter as a result of the travel ban. The woman sought legal permanent residence status to join her father, a U.S. citizen.
The travel ban, alone, directly accounted for 18 percent of all anti-Muslim bias incidents CAIR documented nationally in 2017, the report states.
CAIR’s report cites Trump’s “anti-Muslim rhetoric” as a contributor to the hate crimes and hate incidents.
“In some incidents, that connection is clear,” Ayloush said. “For example, in threatening letters mailed to many Southern California mosques last year, we saw a statement that Trump will do to Muslims what Hitler did to the Jews.”
He said CAIR has noted the proliferation of anti-Muslim hate incidents after, for example, a speech about the travel ban.
“We see that many who perpetrate these crimes and incidents don’t hide their love or appreciation for what the president is saying about Muslims,” he said.
Ayloush listed several Southern California cases, which CAIR-LA handled in 2017, including a complaint against a Costa Mesa retailer who refused to rent a truck to a Muslim man. Another case involved a security guard, a Muslim man, who was declined a job because he wouldn’t shave his beard for religious reasons.
Last year, Ayloush’s office advocated for a Muslim family in Anaheim whose neighbor called their teen daughter “weird and dangerous” because she wore a head scarf.
CAIR-LA also filed a housing discrimination case against an apartment complex in Anaheim whose manager told an Egyptian American couple that they would need to get on a wait list, but reportedly leased vacant apartments to others.
Similar reports have continued in 2018, according to CAIR-LA.
Ahlam Shehab, a Cal State Los Angeles senior who wears a head scarf, or hijab, said she was denied an Uber ride last month. She has filed a complaint with CAIR-LA.
Shehab said the incident occurred March 21 when she was on her way to take a midterm exam. She said the Uber driver looked at her through the rear-view mirror, stopped the car and asked her to get out. Shehab, of Van Nuys, said she was shocked to hear the driver say he wouldn’t give a ride to a Muslim wearing a hijab.
Despite her objections, Shehab said she was forced to exit the car and had to wait in the rain for about 15 minutes until another Uber driver picked her up. As a result, she was late to her exam. Though Uber reimbursed Shehab for the cancellation fee and apologized, she said the incident left her feeling “very unsafe and very unwanted.”
CAIR-LA has filed a complaint on Shehab’s behalf to the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, which is investigating the matter. Patricia Shnell, a civil rights attorney with CAIR-LA, called Shehab’s case one of “blatant religious discrimination.”
“We take accusations like this very seriously and investigate every complaint,” said an Uber spokesman. “Uber’s community guidelines call for mutual respect and zero tolerance for discrimination.”
Shehab said the incident has made her more cautious and fearful. She says at times, now, she hides her hijab with her jacket hood while walking.
“I don’t feel safe anymore,” she said. “It’s an unwelcome feeling. It’s just killing me.”
Ayloush cautioned that these and other incidents around the country should raise concern, but don’t mean that “Muslims are living miserably” in this country. He said there have been heartening examples of neighbors acting with love and kindness toward the Muslim community.
Ayloush gave the example of the Mormon church in Yorba Linda, which has offered space, rent-free, for six months so local mosque members who were without a building because their lease ran out have a place to pray.
“We have the bad apples that need to be exposed,” he said. “But overall, we are very grateful for caring community members who are welcoming and inclusive.”
