Hundreds of students, faculty, and community members gathered at UC San Diego to honor the three victims of the May 18 hate-motivated shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego. The attack killed Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha, and Nadir Awad, who are credited with helping protect children and others at the mosque during the attack.
Speakers at the vigil remembered the victims as beloved community leaders and highlighted concerns about rising Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hate. Law enforcement continues to investigate the shooting as a hate crime after discovering extremist materials and Nazi symbols linked to the two teenage suspects, who died by suicide after the attack.
Community members called for greater action to combat hate and support Muslim communities while honoring the victims’ legacy of service, courage, and compassion.
“Concerns of the MSA have not been addressed on multiple occasions; I know that there was an Islamophobic display that was on campus only last week,” Abusham said. “These words are not just words, and we saw that on Monday. These words turned into action and this action led to the killing of three amazing individuals.”
