NBC Bay Area
The local chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights organization announced Monday that dozens of elected leaders in the state are supporting a statement in support of Gaza, expressing concern over the deadly consequences of the escalating war.
“We have to take a stance and use all powers and opportunities to speak up about the killings of innocent children, families, induvial,” said Maimona Afzal Berta, Santa Clara Board of Education trustee.
They’re not staying silent.
The Bay Area office for the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) said that 50 elected leaders are signing a statement standing in support of the children of Gaza, calling for peace in the region as war escalates between Israel and Hamas.
“We need to do something about it and that’s why we decided to rally people in the community,” said Raeena Lari of the Santa Clara Board of Education.
Berta and Lari both wrote the statement that reads in part, “Every innocent life taken is a travesty, but the continued loss of children is a failure of humanity. At this moment, we stand with the children of Gaza. One million children make up half the population of Gaza. We call for peace and demand that U.S. taxpayer funds be used to immediately de-escalate and stop any additional loss of life.”
That statement garnered support from a wide array of elected officials who feel misinformation about the war is creating Islamophobia. Pointing to a recent incident in Illinois where a 6-year-old Muslim boy was stabbed to death by a suspect who targeted him and his family for being Muslim.
“We know that Islamophobia, the anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian rhetoric that’s bein spewed is having real consequences,” said Berta.
Zahra Billoo is the executive director of the San Francisco Bay Area Office of CAIR and says 50 elected leaders is a great starting point but says the list will take time to grow.
“What we appreciate is that it provides an opportunity for poople of conscience to step forward and have a safe place to do that,” said Billoo.
