Leading American Muslim and Arab organizations have publicly condemned the shooting at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, one of the capital’s most visited sites, on Wednesday afternoon. The gunman, an 88-year old white supremacist, fatally wounded a security guard before he himself was wounded after police returned fire.
The Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), a national policy and public affairs group, issued a statement on Thursday focusing on the need to fight intolerance. "Our prayers go out to the victim's family," said MPAC Executive Director Salam Al-Marayati. "Tragic incidents like this one only strengthen our commitment to combating intolerance in all forms through education and dialogue."
America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), declared on Thursday that they "stand with the Jewish community and with Americans of all faiths in repudiating the kind of hatred and intolerance that can lead to such disturbing incidents."
The Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee's National Executive Director Kareem Shora said, "This act of hate against the Holocaust Museum in our nation's capital is revolting. Once again, ADC is consistent in condemning hate-motivated crimes and any attacks aimed at civilians no matter who the victims or the perpetrators may be."
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), the nation's first Muslim congressperson, extended his condolences to the family of the murdered security guard, Stephen Tyrone Johns, and raised concerns about national security.
"This is the third high-profile gun crime in the United States in recent weeks fueled by hatred and armed by lax gun laws," Ellison said through a statement, referring to the murders of Dr. George Tiller and the Little Rock military recruiter. "I encourage law enforcement to continue its effort to focus on reasonable suspicion and not demographic factors like race, religion and other immutable considerations. They should instead do what's prudent and reasonable – within the law – to protect the public by preventing these horrific acts of hatred from happening again."
The museum attack came just days after President Obama accompanied Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel to the Buchenwald death camp in Germany.
In response to the shooting, President Obama stated that "this outrageous act reminds us that we must remain vigilant against anti-Semitism and prejudice in all its forms."
Posted June 12, 2009
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