Civil rights complaints reported by Muslims in Michigan have increased dramatically since Oct. 7.
The Michigan chapter of The Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR-MI, says complaints, including hate crimes, increased by 340% in the days and weeks following Hamas’ attack on Israel and Israel’s war on Gaza.
That makes Michigan fourth on the list of states with the most reported incidents nationwide.
“These are the highest statistics we’ve had since 9-11 in our office,” said Executive Director Dawud Walid. “The type of vitriol and rhetoric for all Muslims, especially Palestinians, has been sharp.”
Most complaints reported to CAIR occurred in public schools and universities.
In Oakland County, CAIR says it had to go to several schools over their treatment of students who advocated for Palestinians, including one school where students who walked out in peaceful protest were investigated under a “Threat assessment,” said CAIR-MI attorney Amy Doukoure.
There were 8,061 complaints reported to CAIR nationally, nearly half of which occurred in the last three months of 2023. During that timeframe, 495 complaints were made in Michigan.
“Even our office, there was a man in Florida who has been charged federally for threatening to kill everyone here in my office, including myself,” said Walid.
To address the issue, Walid says, “We need community leaders to be civil with their discourse, and we don’t need rhetoric like Congressman Walberg’s.”
Rep. Tim Walberg, a Republican serving Michigan’s District 5, came under fire after a video circulated of him saying, “It should be like Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Get it over quick.” His comments were in reference to the conflict in Gaza.
Rep. Walberg later released a statement, saying, “In a shortened clip, I used a metaphor to convey the need for both Israel and Ukraine to win their wars as swiftly as possible, without putting American troops in harm’s way. My reasoning was the exact opposite of what’s being reported.”