Discrimination Cases against Muslims in New Jersey See 46% Surge in 2022, Says CAIR
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A report released on Tuesday by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) revealed a significant increase of 46% in discrimination cases against Muslims in the US state of New Jersey in 2022 compared to the previous year.
The report, titled "Beyond the Courts" and spanning 52 pages, was published by CAIR-NJ. It highlights that the organization received 152 calls for assistance in 2022, a notable rise from the 104 calls received in 2021.
According to the report, the complaints involved various forms of discrimination, with 22.4% cases related to employment, 17.8% coming from schools and 11.8% related to hate and bias.
"While it is true that the tragic events of September 11, 2001 shot Muslims into the international spotlight overnight, structural anti-Muslim rhetoric and bigotry and the resulting violence have long preceded the events of 9/11," Qasim Rashad of the United Muslim Masjid in Philadelphia wrote in the report.
"The Patriot Act — unanimously passed by the Senate within one month of 9/11 — was not the first of its kind. In many ways, it was an expansion of the already existing Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) of 1978, which was notoriously weaponized against American Muslims, among other non-white groups," Rashad added.
CAIR last month released a report covering nationwide incidents of civil rights complaints by Muslim Americans in 2022 which revealed a 23% decrease.
The Muslim advocacy group received 5,156 complaints nationwide in 2022, down from 6,720 complaints in 2021.
CAIR noted that it is also the first recorded decline since they started tracking such data in 1995.