Vandals Target Roseville Islamic Center
ROSEVILLE (CBS13) — A hate crime targeting an Islamic center in Roseville left much of the building defaced on Wednesday.
Roseville police say someone tagged the Tarbiya Institute with hateful comments overnight. Members of the institute are speaking out, saying they're now concerned for their safety.
"This is not what you want to wake up to in the morning," said Kamran Islam, a member of the Tarbiya Institute.
Hateful and vulgar comments were tagged all over the Tarbiya Institute, telling Muslims to leave America. One comment cursed the name of Islam.
The tagged obscenities are something new to Islam.
"There is a sinister strain of thought that is apparent around the world and here locally, targeting Muslims and it is definitely emboldened by our government," Islam said.
The Tarbiya Institute serves thousands in the Muslim community in Roseville and around Sacramento County.
Islam says the institute doesn't just provide religious education, but also community outreach.
"We have a duty to educate people about who we are and what our message is," added Islam.
The hate speech graffiti is a first for the Tarbiya Institute, and it's also coming as a shock to the Roseville community.
"It's disgusting; I almost cried when I pulled up this morning, it's really sad," said one woman.
Roseville police are calling the vulgar graffiti a hate crime. The police department is now stepping up its patrols at the Tarbiya Institute and other Islamic centers in Roseville.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations released a statement Wednesday in light of the recent attacks on Islam: "We hope the Sacramento-area community will offer similar support to the families that worship at the Tarbiya Institute."
For Islam, it's time to move forward and stay positive.
"We will not fear, we will stand proudly with our allies, our neighbors and the good people of our nation."
A reward is being offered by Roseville Crime Stoppers for any information leading up to the arrest of whoever was responsible for the hate crime. They can be reached at (916) 783-7867.
