San Francisco Community Speaks Out
Against Hateful Muni Ads
More than 70 community members and allies, including a dozen city officials, attended forum to denounce hateful Muni ads which called Arabs and Muslims "savage."
San Francisco: Arab and Muslim community members, city leaders, civic organizations, and Bay Area citizens came together last Thursday evening for a forum to collectively denounce bigoted advertisements placed on San Francisco Municipal Transit buses this past fall. The advertisements were placed by the anti-Muslim group American Freedom Defense Initiative, which has been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Community organizations including the Asian Law Caucus, the Arab Resource and Organizing Center, the Arab Cultural and Community Center and the Council on American-Islamic Relations, San Francisco Bay Area Office, organized the forum for the people of San Francisco to express outrage over the ads and reaffirm the city's commitment to diversity and tolerance. The forum took place at the Tenderloin Recreation Center.
More than 70 community members and allies, including a dozen city and Muni officials, attended the forum. Community leaders Dr. Hatem Bazian, Zahra Billoo, Rebab Abdulhadi and Husam Al-Qoulaq offered remarks to attendees. "Geller may have a legal right to place those ads but that doesn't make it right for her to place them" said Billoo, who serves as CAIR-SFBA's Executive Director.
Community members highlighted for attendees the harmful effects of bigoted speech. Muslim and Arab youth talked about being called terrorists at school and Muni bus driver, Faisal Alkhanshali, spoke of fearing for the safety of his family because of rising Islamophobia.
City officials in attendance included San Francisco Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, Supervisor Eric Mar, San Francisco Municipal Transit Authority Chair Tom Nolan, SFMTA Director Edward Reiskin, Joel Ramos, Cheryl Brinkman, also of SFMTA; Tracey Packer and Susana Hennessey-Lavery of the SF Department of Public Health; Director Theresa Sparks, Nadia Babella, and Zoe Polk of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission. "This never should have happened in our city" said Supervisor Chiu. "In San Francisco, we stand for respect and tolerance."
Allies who testified included Rev. Shad Riddick (Metropolitan Baptist Church), Chris Punonbayan (Asian Law Caucus), Daniel Redman (DLKLawGroup), Emma Rubin (Intl. Jewish Antizionist Network), and Alicia Garza and Jaaron Browne (POWER).
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About the Asian Law Caucus:
The Asian Law Caucus was founded in 1972 as the nation's first legal and civil rights Asian American organization. Recognizing that social, economic, political and racial inequalities continue to exist in the United States, ALC is committed to the pursuit of equality and justice for all sectors of our society, with a specific focus directed toward addressing the needs of low-income, immigrant and underserved Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The Asian Law Caucus is a member of the Asian American Center for Advancing Justice.
Visit: www.asianlawcaucus.org
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