SACRAMENTO, Calif. - U.S. Attorney Ben Wagner held a roundtable discussion today with Muslim and Sikh community leaders and senior law enforcement officials to discuss community concerns over potential bias incidents and hate crimes, the need for reporting by victims of those incidents, and the need to build solid relationships between the community and law enforcement. The group also discussed how law enforcement can assist in building resilient communities that can resist radicalization to violence. After the discussion, local media was invited to talk with participants.
Today’s meeting was one of 14 events in 11 federal judicial districts across the United States designed to build on both the Justice Department’s prosecutorial work in countering post-September 11th backlash, as well as its outreach efforts, including the new interagency initiative to combat religious discrimination throughout the country.
U.S. Attorney Wagner stated: “The Muslim community is a strong ally in combatting radicalization and terrorism. We want the Muslim community to know that we stand with them against Islamophobia and hate. Those who seek to target or harass them should be on notice that such conduct will be investigated by law enforcement."
Since Sept 11, 2001, the Department of Justice has investigated over 1,000 incidents involving acts of violence, threats, assaults, vandalisms and arsons targeting Arab, Muslim, Sikh and South Asians, and those perceived to be members of these groups. The Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys’ offices throughout the country have brought prosecutions against more than 60 defendants in such cases, with 57 convictions to date.
The Civil Rights Division is leading an interagency initiative to combat religious discrimination, which includes combatting illegal restrictions on religious properties like mosques.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
