hate crimes – oogenhand

http://www.carbonated.tv/news/home-of-uks-first-female-muslim-band-the-ulfah-collective-destroyed-in-raciallymotivated-arson-attack

Sameera Ehteram

The Ulfah Collective, UK’s first female Muslim band, faced the brunt of racial hatred when the Ulfah Arts and Media Center was set ablaze.

The community center where the band started has been completely gutted in the attack, which was suspected to be racially motivated

They had been receiving anti-Islamic hate mail for some time now.

Ulfah Arts and Media spokeswoman Sarah Javid said “Over the last two months our CEO (Prashant Singh) has been receiving hate mail which has been anti-Islamic.”

“He also received a DVD which was full of race hate messages.

“Mr Singh has no idea why anyone would have a personal vendetta against him or the organization. But the fire has destroyed everything. It’s destroyed equipment, but also all of our projects, some we have been working on for over a year.”

Racial Hatred Destroys Home Of UK’s First Muslim Female Band

The Ulfah Collective comprises of Muslim women from Pakistan, Somalia, Bangladesh, some Arab countries and Jamaica – with ages ranging from 13 to 42. The core team of the band is five members but expands to 14 members for larger performances.

The varying backgrounds and cultures bring together different interpretations of Islam that are heard by women-only audiences. The group writes its own lyrics as well as vocal compositions and only uses a hand drum in their performances.

Their music is universal and apart from traditional Islamic songs, includes songs from the literature of other faiths such as the gospel.

Hate crimes against Muslims soared in the UK during 2013. Hundreds of anti-Muslim offenses were carried out across the country, especially after the murder of soldier Lee Rigby by two Islamic extremists in Woolwich, Southeast London, in May.

Britain’s biggest force, the Metropolitan police, recorded 500 Islamophobic crimes in 2013, up from 336 in 2012 and 318 in 2011.

The fact that the figure may actually be higher than reported is extremely disturbing – but it is a fact. Nearly half of the 43 forces in England and Wales had not revealed how many hate crimes targeted Muslims.

Some officials even admitted not always recording the faith of the victim.

Comment: Stormfront also believes Muslims to be a race. As most Muslims aren’t clearly black, yellow or white, the kind of men that can enter mosques at will without having to wear beards, knitted skullcaps, shortened trousers etc. should be called swarthy. It is very likely that the perpetrators weren’t motivated solely by religious motives. Nevertheless, increasing the birthrate of white British people would require a shift to a sexual morality that stresses reproduction (almost tautologically), and thus a shift in the direction of Muslim morality. This is ironic and inevitable.

Hate crime charge in NY attack on Sikh professor

By Associated Press, Published: April 19

NEW YORK — A man accused of pulling the beard of a Sikh professor before a group of young men who had called the professor “Osama” and a “terrorist” attacked him, has been arrested and charged with a hate crime, police said Saturday.Christian Morales, 20, was charged with aggravated harassment in connection with September’s attack on Columbia University professor Prabhjot Singh, who suffered a broken jaw.Singh, 31, was walking home with a friend in upper Manhattan when he was approached by a group of 12 to 15 young men, he said days after his attack.

“I heard, ‘Get him. Osama.’ I heard ‘terrorist.’ And I felt somebody grab my beard,” Singh said then.

He was then kicked and punched in an attack that ended after other people intervened, police said.

Singh didn’t return a message seeking comment Saturday.

Morales was in custody and was unavailable for comment. A phone number for him was out of service, and it was unclear if he had an attorney.

Detectives from the hate crimes task force are investigating the case.

Sikhism is a peace-loving religion that originated in India and preaches equality and a commitment to justice. Its practitioners have been targeted by attackers who in some cases confuse Sikhism and Islam because Sikh men and boys are required to wear turbans and beards.

Singh co-authored a 2012 op-ed in The New York Times accusing the federal government of failing to accurately measure the extent of anti-Sikh violence in response to the August 2012 shooting at a Sikh temple in suburban Milwaukee that left six people and the white supremacist gunman dead.

In the op-ed, Singh and his co-author argued that it is wrong “to assume that every attack against a Sikh is really meant for a Muslim.” They said Sikhs have historically been targeted.