By David A. Love
The Philadelphia Citizen
Meanwhile, Jacob Bender — executive director of the Philadelphia chapter of CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations — says his organization has received numerous offers of support from outside the Muslim-American community since the election. The group has been monitoring Islamophobic hate crimes and conducting town hall meetings, education and outreach since the election. “I think the dire situation offers an opportunity for a broad coalition across religious, ethnic and racial groups,” Bender says.
Bender notes that his constituency consists of African-American Muslims and immigrant Muslims from the Mideast and Asia. “Just like American Jews have been surprised by the emergence [of Trump], immigrant Muslims who had done quite well in navigating through American society and getting good houses in the suburbs are suddenly seen as the fifth column. It must be a surprise and a shock,” Bender says. “To people who grew up in the terror of the Klan in the South, it is hardly a surprise.” Continue reading…
