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(CHICAGO, IL, 3\/13\/25)<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 The Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago) today denounced the circulation of anti-Muslim flyers in Mokena, Illinois, and urged authorities to investigate the incident as a hate crime.<\/p>\n SEE:\u00a0<\/strong>Summit Hill District 161 Candidates Denounce Anti-Muslim Flyers<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n The anonymous flyer, left in some Mokena mailboxes this week, featured profanity, anti-Muslim sentiment, Islamophobic slurs and offensive language. One of the flyers read: \u201cHope you enjoy terrorists in our neighborhood.\u201d The Chicago Tribune reported that candidates for the Summit Hill Elementary District 161 Board denounced the note as reprehensible rhetoric.<\/p>\n This incident appears to be part of a disturbing trend of Islamophobic rhetoric and misinformation in the area.\u00a0A now-deleted video<\/span><\/a>\u00a0posted by Keith Pekau, the Mayor of Orland Park, falsely accused supporters of his political opponent, Jim Dodge, of being linked to Hamas. The video also falsely suggested CAIR is involved in the campaign, and libeled the civil rights organization with long-debunked anti-Muslim tropes.<\/p>\n \u201cThese hateful attacks\u2014whether through anonymous flyers or misinformation campaigns\u2014are designed to incite fear and division,\u201d\u00a0said\u00a0<\/em>CAIR-Chicago Executive Director Ahmed Rehab.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cSuch false and inflammatory rhetoric not only threatens the safety of communities but also undermines the principles of democracy and civil discourse. We call on local officials and law enforcement to take these incidents seriously and hold those responsible accountable.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cAmerican residents, whether White, black or Brown, or whether Christian, Muslim or Hindu, are tired of the negative attacks, hatemongering, and fearmongering by hate groups and self-serving politicians who seek to divide communities and distract from the bread-and-butter issues that actually matter to families for personal gain because they have nothing positive to contribute,” Rehab added.<\/em><\/p>\n Rehab noted that Islamophobic incidents are rising nationwide, with Muslim institutions and communities increasingly facing threats and discrimination.\u00a0<\/p>\n SEE:\u00a0<\/strong>CAIR\u2019s Civil Rights Report Shows Islamophobia Complaints at All-Time High, Viewpoint Discrimination Key Factor<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n \ufeffCAIR-Chicago\u2019s mission is to\u00a0defend civil rights, fight bigotry, and promote tolerance.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n CONTACT<\/strong>: Ahmed Rehab, Executive Director of CAIR-Chicago, 202-870-0166,\u00a0<\/span>arehab@cair.com<\/span><\/a>;\u00a0Monia Alhelou, Operations Coordinator of CAIR-Chicago, 312-212-1520,\u00a0<\/span>malhelou@cair.com<\/span><\/a>; Hafsa Haider, Communications Coordinator of CAIR-Chicago, 561-317-7509,\u00a0<\/span>hhaider@cair.com<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n