Discrimination and attacks against Muslims in the United States peaked in 2023, propelled by increased Islamophobia and prejudice after the Israel-Gaza war broke out late in the year, data from an advocacy group revealed on Tuesday, April 2.
As many as 8,061 complaints were filed, indicating a hike of 56 percent, which is the highest since the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) began 30 years ago. Unsurprisingly, about 3,600 of those incidents were reported from October to December.
Similarly, CAIR has reported a global rise in Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian bias, and antisemitism since the escalation of recent conflict in the Arab world.
In the US, the incidents include the brutal October stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian American, the November shooting of three Palestinian American students, and the February stabbing of a Palestinian-descent man.
The report said 2023 witnessed a “resurgence of anti-Muslim hate” after the first-ever annual drop in complaints was recorded in 2022. At the beginning of the year, such incidents averaged 500 a month before increasing to nearly 1200 each month in the last quarter.
“The primary force behind this wave of heightened Islamophobia was the escalation of violence in Israel and Palestine in October 2023,” CAIR said.
The incidents were mostly reported in the categories of immigration, employment discrimination, hate crimes, and education discrimination.
The CAIR claimed it collected the data by compiling the numbers after reviewing public statements and reports from public calls, emails, and an online complaint system. The agency contacted people whose incidents were reported in the media.
