Muslim Activists Promise To Help Rebuild Second Vandalized Jewish Cemetery

[Jimbo101]

Huffington Post

After hearing that a Jewish cemetery was vandalized near his home, a Muslim activist in Pennsylvania is pledging to once again stand with his Jewish neighbors amid increased reports of anti-Semitism.

Tarek El-Messidi, who with the help of fellow activist Linda Sarsour had earlier helped raise over $135,000 to repair toppled gravestones at a Missouri Jewish cemetery, announced that excess funds from that campaign will also be allocated to Philadelphia’s Mount Carmel Cemetery.

As many as 100 tombstones were damaged at Mount Carmel over the weekend, according to CNN. Police, who are still searching for the culprits, classified the incident as institutional vandalism.

When he heard that a cemetery had been vandalized a few miles from his home, El-Messidi reportedly rushed to the cemetery to offer his support. In a Facebook video from the scene, the activist called on Muslims to continue to stand with Jews and other marginalized communities.

“We must stand together against these acts of racism, anti-Semitism, and Islamophobia,” El-Messidi wrote on Facebook.
“I’ve been speaking to some of the rabbis at the cemetery ... and I’ve told them that we Muslims will help again,” El-Messidi said in the video.

“We’re in a very difficult time in the United States when people cannot even rest in peace after they pass away, where people have to be worried about their ancestors’ graves,” he added.

“We must stand together against these acts of racism, anti-Semitism, and Islamophobia,” El-Messidi wrote on Facebook.