Every entity that could have released a biased, lopsided statement in support of Israel has. Schools, businesses, and elected officials were quick to release a statement condemning Hamas, looking at the issue in a vacuum. 
This overwhelmingly pushed narrative emboldens harm to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, and Muslims here in New Jersey. We must tell Governor Murphy and state legislators the harm this is causing and what a disservice to truth it is... because nobody is. Send this strong message to them. 
We urge them to address our concerns, see the root cause, and advocate for a balanced approach to the crisis.

Tell State Officials the Harm Created by Biased Narrative

Anti-Muslim bias spiking in New Jersey because of biased statements being used to justify the killing of Palestinians

Every entity that could have released a biased, lopsided statement in support of Israel has. Schools, businesses, and elected officials were quick to release a statement condemning Hamas, looking at the issue in a vacuum. 

This overwhelmingly pushed narrative emboldens harm to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, and Muslims here in New Jersey. We must tell Governor Murphy and state legislators the harm this is causing and what a disservice to truth it is... because nobody is. Send this strong message to them. 

We urge them to address our concerns, see the root cause, and advocate for a balanced approach to the crisis. 

Israel is preparing its ground invasion of Gaza and is indiscriminately bombing Palestinians, killing thousands including many children. Israel's President recently said "There are no innocent civilians in Gaza" and Israel Defense Forces official Daniel Hagari said ""The emphasis is on damage and not on accuracy." Airstrikes are ripping through crowded neighborhoods and some 70 Palestinians who were following the order to evacuate south were slaughtered. 

Recent bombardment of pro-Israel statements that totally disregard the suffering of Palestinians and totally disregard what was happening before this October, are furthering harm toward Palestinians in Palestine, and embolden harm against Muslims in New Jersey. These statements also ignore the pain of Palestinian-Americans like Imam Mohammad Qatanani of Paterson who saw that 15 of his family members were killed by Israel on TV as he was comforting the bereaving. Palestinian-Americans and American Muslims are grieving. New Jersey has some of the most significant Palestinian and Muslim communities in the nation. 

CAIR-NJ, the New Jersey chapter of the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization says they are being flooded with complaints and calls for help stemming from a spike in Anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia. Such complaints include but are not limited to: two girls had their hijabs ripped off at a high school, a hateful message was graffitied at Rutgers University, a teacher called a student a terrorist for having a Palestinian flag, cafe workers are harassing Muslim customers, a restaurant owner found Quran ripped up and tossed all over the floor, a green card was terminated for posting about Palestine on social media, and a physician was fired from a hospital for posting about Palestine. A 6-year old boy in Chicago was just stabbed 26 times to death and his mother critically wounded by a racist landlord motivated by Anti-Muslim and Anti-Palestinian hate stemming from a biased, dehumanizing narrative. WE DO NOT WANT THIS TO HAPPEN IN NEW JERSEY OR ANYWHERE ELSE. Statements, often emotionally charged, from schools, elected officials, and employers have created an unwelcoming environment for Muslims at every turn. Supremacists in Israel, New Jersey and New York are celebrating the violence calling Gaza a cemetery.

If Hamas were to disappear, the problem would not be resolved. Another such group would form. The root issue is the Israeli occupation of Palestine - continuously stealing homes, building illegal settlements, and killing more Palestinians in the West Bank during the first 9 months of 2023 than any year since 2005! In September, Israel banned all exports from Gaza, adding to the blows of economic strangling. This all must end. In the same way you may have expressed support for the Ukrainian people, we ask you to do the same for Palestinians, who according to Human Rights Watch have endured Israeli occupation, war crimes, and blatant human rights violations for the majority of the past century.

***Now knowing all this, can your office come out with a balanced statement that makes Palestinian voices heard and acknowledges their suffering?***

Please also see this letter dated 10/10 from 30+ mosques and Muslim organizations: cair-nj.org/openletter

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