October 20, 2023
United Muslim Masjid/Facebook
United Muslim Islamic Center in Point Breeze says its windows and doors were vandalized with hateful messages on Wednesday night. Philadelphia police are investigating.
A mosque in Point Breeze reportedly was vandalized Wednesday night with graffiti, and a Philadelphia Muslim group is now calling for a hate crime investigation.
The United Muslim Islamic Center posted photos of the graffiti to its Facebook page Thursday. The images show text written along the windows and doors of the mosque. Though the writing is difficult to decipher, the mosque said at least one message read, "Muslim Men are stupid and dumb" and that a neighboring property was tagged with the text, "Sunnah women are stupid."
Sunnah generally refers to the customs of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that Muslims are expected to follow.
"I only posted the exact words not to inflame people but if anyone knows someone who specifically uses this language and has posted this in other spaces to report them to us or the police," Qasim Rashad, the UMIC president, wrote on Facebook. "It is unfortunate that the current climate of the world today has inspired people to act in very emotional and hateful ways. We pray for the safety of all Masajid and fellow communities of faith."
As-Saalamu Alaikum. Last night United Muslim Islamic Center 1251 Point Breeze was vandalized with graffiti. The speech...
Posted by United Muslim Masjid on Thursday, October 19, 2023
Philadelphia police said they conducted a routine check of the property at 7:59 p.m. Thursday – about the same time that Rashad posted photos of the graffiti to Facebook. During that check, a man approached police and said he had observed the imam clean graffiti earlier that morning. Though there were no visible markings on the scene at that time, authorities said the nearby Brooks Alternative Agency at 1242 Point Breeze Ave. bore graffiti reading, "Suni woman look like dirty crab" and "eat crab." The agency, a senior citizen community center, is not affiliated with the mosque at 1251 Point Breeze Ave. Sunni Islam, referenced in the graffiti, is the religion's largest branch.
Police said they were unable to locate an owner or representative for either property, and that there were no cameras at either site. An investigation is ongoing.
The Philly chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Muslim civil rights group, called for the vandalism to be investigated as a hate crime. CAIR said it has seen a rise in anti-Muslim bigotry since Hamas attacked military bases, civilian areas and a music festival in Israel on Oct. 7, prompting a violent conflict that also has seen Israel bomb civilian areas in the Gaza strip.
"Safety for all houses of worship should be non-negotiable," said Ahmet Tekelioglu, executive director of CAIR-Philadelphia. "We call on politicians and the media to take responsibility for their careless discourse harming our Muslim communities and urge law enforcement authorities to swiftly investigate and hold accountable those responsible for adding to the trauma of our Muslim communities."
Earlier this week, the FBI said it has seen an increase in reports of threats against Jewish, Muslim and Arab communities and institutions during the Israel-Hamas war.
"We take all potential threats seriously and are working closely with our law enforcement partners to determine their credibility, share information and take appropriate investigative action," the FBI said. "As always, we encourage members of the public to immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement."
The FBI's Philadelphia field office and the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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