Local Muslim and civil rights leaders gathered in San Diego on Monday to show “solidarity” with Muslim women wearing headscarves while taking familiar jabs at “political candidates” for “anti-Muslim prejudice.”
Rally sponsors included the Islamic Center of San Diego, the Interfaith Center for Worker Justice, and the League of Women Voters of San Diego ,according to KPBS. Organizers handed out “wear in solidarity” hijabs (Islamic headscarves) to non-Muslim attendees.
A photo of the event shows around 30 women donning headscarves. The local public broadcasting report said about 400 people attended the Balboa Park event.
While the KPBS report noted several speakers heralding stories of “bigotry” following the December 2 Islamic terror attacks in nearby San Bernardino, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) policy advocate Homayra Yusufi-Marin admitted that San Diego was very welcoming and open to people of different religions and cultures.
The ACLU representative’s inference echoed sentiments at a mid-December “vigil” held at the Islamic Society of Corona-Norco following the San Bernardino attacks. Breitbart News reported on the event, which that placed an emphasis on allegations of Islamophobia. Instead of addressing Islamic terrorism, local politicians and “interfaith” group leaders placed blame on the media and political candidates such as Donald Trump.
The local news report on Monday’s rally did make reference to two Muslim journalists who encouraged women not to wear the hijab as a sign of “solidarity.” Their Washington Post op-ed stated: “Please do this instead: Do not wear a headscarf in ‘solidarity’ with the ideology that most silences us, equating our bodies with ‘honor.’”
Photo: file
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