"Hate will not win": Solidarity rally held after Minnesota's 6th suspected mosque attack this year
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Recent attacks at Twin Cities mosques sparked a show of solidarity Sunday with the Muslim community.
More than 100 people gathered outside the Tawhid Islamic Center in St. Paul after it sustained heavy damage in a suspected arson last week.
Jaylani Hussein, the executive director of CAIR-MN, says it'll cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to rebuild.
"Our community is feeling overwhelmed, under-resourced and under attack," Hussein said.
The fire is the sixth suspected attack on a mosque in Minnesota this year. Community leaders of all faiths made it clear Sunday that Muslims are not alone as they experience this fear and trauma.
Camphor United Methodist Church sits next door to the mosque and has offered any help it can since the fire.
"We are forging some new paths for relationships and so we hope that good will come out of it. But yes, it was a very challenging day," said Pastor Frenchye Magee.
Harold Golden Jr., who's also with the church, says these incidents bring back memories of Black churches in the South being damaged.
At the Capitol, the state legislature has set money aside for security cameras to be installed at places of worship, and Muslim leaders are lobbying for more.
"In Minnesota, hate will not win," Hussein said. "In Minnesota, Minnesotans are always going to stand against hate and fear."
Golden says the solution is more mental health professionals and "closer scrutiny of those who need the help."
Said Murekezi, 42, has been charged with arson in the Tawhid mosque fire. Charging documents show Murekezi said if he wasn't caught, he would've "torch[ed] another one" or a church.
Arson charges have also been brought against a man for a fire at a Minneapolis mosque last month.
