Pro-Islam billboards get more hate calls from Dallas

Rasa - An Islamic grassroots organization that funded 12 billboards across Dallas and Fort Worth to combat misinformation about Islam has been receiving more hate calls in Dallas than in other cities participating in the nationwide campaign.

News ID: 426284

Date: 04 January 2017 - 21:03

RNA - The Islamic Circle of North America used mosque donations to fund the billboards spread across the city's highways, the Dallas Morning News reported. The billboards read "ISLAM = Racial Equality" and provide a hotline phone number and website for "Why Islam?"

New Jersey's hotline call center manager Imam Jawad Ahmed said the group should do more of these campaigns in Dallas because of the amount of hate responses to the billboards.

"They would just curse the Muslims in general and say things like racial slurs, go back to your country, or get out of America, things like that."

The group received 75 phone calls during the first five weeks the billboards were up in Dallas. While the hotline did receive calls cursing Muslims, Ahmed said most callers were non-Muslims that wanted to learn more about the religion.

The group's local spokesman Furqan Ansari said the billboards are a response to the rise of hatred aimed at minorities, including Muslims, which coincide with the election of President-elect Donald Trump. About 52 of the at least 867 hate crimes reported since the election were aimed at Muslims.

847/940