Arab Americans worry about their safety amid the anger, fear and injustice they feel over Plainfield boy’s killing, threats toward Muslim schools, and “harmful narratives” perpetuated by media and politicians: “We’ve seen this before.”

A Chicago Muslim civil rights organization is pointing to recent violent incidents and threats in Plainfield, Harvey, and Lombard, saying hatred-fueled violence should not be happening to anyone, and it's worse now than immediately post-9/11.

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(CHICAGO, IL, [10/20/2023]) - The Chicago office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization is hosting a press conference today to address the recent alarming increase in grotesque hate incidents directed at the Muslim community and in the current politically charged climate. 

The Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago), a chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today announced that hate crime charges were brought against a man who reportedly threatened to shoot two Muslim men after allegedly shouting anti-Muslim statements.

In this insightful CNN discussion, Executive Ahmed Rehab delves into the intricate dynamics of media coverage regarding the Gaza conflict. Gain valuable perspectives and deep analysis on this critical issue.

The Council on American–Islamic Relations, a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, identified the mother and son as Hanaan Shahin and Wadea Al-Fayoume, who are both Palestinian-American. They had resided on the ground floor of the home for two years and had no notable issues with Czuba, their landlord, according to a statement from the advocacy group.

Shahin’s serious injuries prevented her from attending her son’s funeral Monday, said Ahmed Rehab, executive director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Chicago office. In accordance with tradition, deceased Muslims are buried as soon as possible after death.

“Our hearts are heavy, and our prayers are with the darling boy and his mother,” Ahmed Rehab, the executive director of the Council of American Islamic Relations (CAIR) for the Chicago chapter, said in a statement on their website.

“[Wadea] loved everybody,” said Ahmed Rehab, CAIR-Chicago’s executive director, during a news conference. “He has no clue about these larger issues happening in the world, but he was made to pay for it.”

At a news conference on Sunday, CAIR said Wadea was born in the US while his mother - originally from Beitunia in the West Bank - came to the country 12 years ago.

“This is a heavy day that we hoped would never come. As they say, the smallest coffins are the heaviest,” said Ahmed Rehab, CAIR-Chicago executive director, said in the statement.

On Sunday, the Chicago office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, denounced the stabbing and called it “our worst nightmare.”

Ahmed Rehab, head of the Chicago office for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), told Anadolu that the funeral of the 6-year-old is expected to be "one of the biggest funerals" because "there's a lot of pain and anger in the community".

A Palestinian American boy and his mother were stabbed by their landlord, in their home on Saturday, October 14. The boy died and the mother is in critical condition. The accused killer yelled anti-Muslim epithets and stabbed the child 26 times. The Chicago Sun-Times reports that he had been listening to conservative talk radio about the Israel-Hamas war and had become concerned about his Muslim tenants.

A top official at the Council on American Islamic Relations (Cair) National has warned of a potential rise in violence against Muslims and Palestinians in the US following the hate-crime murder of a six-year-old boy in Illinois and the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

CAIR-Chicago Pres. Ahmed Rehab on allegations the suspect in a fatal stabbing of a 6-year-old Muslim boy “was incensed by what happened in Israel and has been watching the news”: “This atmosphere has created a monster out of a normal man who once built a treehouse.”

Meanwhile, Ahmed Rehab, CAIR-Chicago's executive director, said at a Sunday news conference with members of Wadea's family that he was "a lovely boy" who loved his family, friends, soccer and basketball, and who "paid the price for the atmosphere of hate and othering."

Wadea had celebrated his birthday shortly before his death, Ahmed Rehab, CAIR-Chicago’s executive director, said in a news conference Sunday.