FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON D.C. March 15, 2019 – The Afghan Diaspora for Equality and Progress (ADEP) is devastated to learn of the terrorist attacks on Muslims that were congregated in two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. We fiercely condemn these unspeakable acts against New Zealand’s Muslim community. We call on all major media outlets and networks to completely halt airing the terrorist manifesto and video of the attack.
Furthermore, we call on American authorities to take the threat of homegrown white supremacy seriously. From Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Oslo, Norway and now Christchurch, New Zealand, the demonization of Islam and minority communities has gone on for far too long and has proliferated right-wing extremists to take elected office and bring their bigotry to the mainstream. Those who continue to engage, enable, and peddle in Islamophobia and other forms of bigotry are directly responsible for these reprehensible attacks.
We call on our elected leaders to denounce Islamophobia and white supremacy. We call on leaders in technology to take down and refuse extremists who use their platforms to recruit and radicalize. We call on public officials to hold and facilitate difficult conversations about the culpability and complicity of our media’s discourse on Muslims, immigrants, and people of color. White supremacist terrorism can and will be stopped, but we need to be proactive.
ADDENDUM: Those that are struggling with trauma today, or any day, may wish to visit the Muslim Wellness Foundation for resources.
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