Muslims create fund to restore Jewish cemetery

Flowers and messages left outside the Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery on February 22, 2017 in University City, Missouri. Photo by AFP

J.K. Rowling helps Muslim fundraisers to repair Jewish cemetery raise $100k

By AFP/ Al Arabiya
February 23, 2017

A fundraiser started by a pair of Muslim-American activists got a boost from famed Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, raising tens of thousands of dollars to aid a Jewish cemetery that was vandalized over the weekend.

Approximately 180 tombstones were knocked over at the Chesed Shel Emeth Society cemetery in the University City suburb of St. Louis, Missouri, according to police, who told AFP on Wednesday that they were still investigating the case and had no suspects.

While authorities said they had no indication the act was a hate crime, it came amid a spate of antisemitic threats against Jewish groups across America.

In response, Muslim-American activists Linda Sarsour and Tareq El-Messidi started an online campaign to raise funds for the cemetery’s recovery and to “send a united message from the Jewish and Muslim communities.”

Rowling tweeted a link to a news article about the campaign on Tuesday night, adding simply: “This is such a beautiful thing.”

Within hours, the fundraiser appeared to have more than tripled its haul to over $70,000. Their initial goal was $20,000.

Sarsour and El-Messidi planned to continue the fundraiser until March 20, and to send the proceeds to help the cemetery’s recovery. Leftover funds would be donated to other Jewish groups.

“There is no place for this type of hate, desecration and violence in America,” the activists wrote on their fundraiser webpage.

They had the idea and they made it happen.

Tareq El Messidi and BDS supporter Linda Sarsour

.

‘In their crowdfunding pitch, Sarsour and El-Messidi appealed to cooperation between Jews and Muslims recorded in the Quran. They say any extra funds will go to repairing vandalism at other Jewish sites.’ FastForward

“Through this campaign, we hope to send a united message from the Jewish and Muslim communities that there is no place for this type of hate, desecration, and violence in America,” they wrote.
.
.

“We pray that this restores a sense of security and peace to the Jewish-American community who has undoubtedly been shaken by this event.”

The cemetery has received an outpouring of support, with Missouri Governor Eric Greitens announcing that he will lead a group of clean-up volunteers on Wednesday afternoon.

“Anyone who would seek to divide us through an act of desecration will find instead that they unite us in shared determination,” Greitens said in a written statement.

Since the start of the year, the Jewish Community Centre Association of North America has recorded 69 bomb threat incidents at dozens of centres in 27 US states and one Canadian province.

On Monday alone, nearly a dozen Jewish community centres received bomb threats that prompted evacuations. All of the threats turned out to be hoaxes.

After remaining silent on the subject for several days, President Donald Trump on Tuesday called for an end to “hatred in all of its very ugly forms.”

“The antisemitic threats targeting our Jewish community and community centres are horrible, and are painful – and a very sad reminder of the work that still must be done to root out hate and prejudice and evil,” Trump said.

Nabiha Quadri and Gwyn Thorpe work together during a cleanup effort at Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery on February 22, 2017 in University City, Missouri. Photo by AFP.

Muslim campaign raises over $100,000 for vandalized Jewish cemetery

By JTA
February 23, 2017

A crowdfunding campaign launched by two Muslim Americans has raised over $100,000 in less than two days for a vandalized Jewish cemetery outside  St. Louis.

The LaunchGood.com campaign, titled “Muslims Unite to Repair Jewish Cemetery,” has brought in $115,000 as of Thursday morning for repairs to the Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery in University City, Missouri. On Monday, over 170 gravestones were found to have been toppled there by vandals.

Vice President Mike Pence and Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, who is Jewish, both stopped by the cemetery on Wednesday to help volunteers in the cleanup effort. In a speech, Pence condemned the recent bomb threats against Jewish community centers across the country and “this vile act of vandalism and those who perpetrated it in the strongest possible terms.”

No suspects have been identified.

The Muslim fundraiser was started by activists Linda Sarsour and Tarek El-Messidi on Tuesday afternoon. Sarsour has stirred controversy for her support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel. She has called herself “a critic of the State of Israel” and has posted several anti-Israel messages on Twitter in recent years.

El-Messidi, who works at the Muslim charity Celebrate Mercy, told NBC News that approximately two-thirds of the donations have come from Muslims.

“Historically, we did not work together,” he said. “People are putting their politics aside and working to fight bigotry together.”