On March 22, South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) hosted a Capitol Hill Briefing with Members of Congress and civil rights leaders to discuss our 2018 analysis of hate violence, Communities on Fire. The report examines the staggering levels of hate violence faced by South Asian, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu, Middle Eastern, and Arab Americans in the first year of the Trump administration.
As lead sponsor of the End Racial and Religious Profiling Act (ERRPA), Senator Cardin (MD) provided opening remarks to emphasize the connection between policies that racially and religiously profile our communities, such as the Muslim Ban, and the spike in violence aimed at the same constituencies.
The numbers are shocking: between November 2016 and November 2017, SAALT documented a 45% increase in hate violence and xenophobic political rhetoric aimed at the communities above. One in five perpetrators of violence against South Asian, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu, Middle Eastern, and Arab Americans explicitly referenced President Trump, a Trump administration policy (the Muslim ban), or a Trump campaign slogan (“Make America Great Againâ€) while committing the attack or threat. Eighty-two percent of the violence was motivated by anti-Muslim sentiment and 63% of women targeted wore a hijab or a head scarf.
“While hate in America is not new, our report highlights that the policies and vitriolic anti-immigrant rhetoric of this administration embolden and normalize hate and places our communities firmly in the crosshairs of violence, division and bigotry. SAALT stands ready to work with Congressional leaders to fight hate violence and xenophobic political rhetoric targeting our communities, and work together to ensure full inclusion and equality for all,†stated Suman Raghunathan, Executive Director of SAALT.
Honorary Co-hosts:
Senator Ben Cardin (MD)
Senator Mazie Hirono (HI)
Senator Chris Murphy (CT)
Congressional Co-sponsors:
Representative Andre Carson (IN-07)
Representative Keith Ellison (MN-05)
Representative Raul Grijalva (AZ-03)
Representative Ro Khanna (CA-17)
Representative Grace Meng (NY-06)
Panelists:
Maya Berry – Executive Director, Arab American Institute
Becky Monroe – Director, Stop Hate Project, Lawyers
Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
Sim Singh – National Advocacy Manager,Sikh Coalition
Darakshan Raja – Co-Founder, Justice for Muslims Collective
Quotes
Senator Ben Cardin (MD): "We have the rise of violence against the Muslim community and we have found that rhetoric is important. Make no mistake about it. When you have leaders who talk about imposing a ban based upon being Muslim here in the United States or that we have preferences for certain countries for their population coming to America because of race, that is a clear message to the community that it is okay to discriminate against Muslims. We don’t have any room for hate."
Representative Grace Meng (NY-06): "We know in New York that it does no justice to our city’s needs or future to condemn hate violence by staying silent. We know how important it is to speak out early and against hate violence and the policies that we’ve seen put forth this past year that fanned the flames of violence and hatred. As we enter this political season it is important to hold our elected officials and candidates accountable whether they are AAPI or not."
