Imam Blames Anti-Muslim Rhetoric for San Diego Attack: 'This Is What We Get'

San Diego, CA: Religious leaders from across the country are warning that a deadly shooting at a San Diego Islamic center — the latest in a string of attacks against houses of worship — reflects the escalating rhetoric against Muslims and other religious groups.

“This tragedy is a painful reminder that Islamophobia and religious bigotry continue to endanger lives and undermine the safety and rights of minority communities,” said a statement from the Indian American Muslim Council. “We urge political leaders, law enforcement, and civil society to confront anti-Muslim hatred with the seriousness it demands and to ensure that all communities are able to worship in peace and security.”

Monday’s  fatal shooting of three men  at the Islamic Center of San Diego also brought a spotlight to the issue of public funding for security at religious institution. Hundreds of clergy were on Capitol Hill Tuesday as  a bill was filed  in the Senate to provide $1 billion in additional funding for such security.

San Diego police said the two teenage suspects in Monday’s attack were radicalized online. In one of their vehicles, the FBI found “writings and various ideologies outlining religious and racial beliefs of how the world they envisioned should look.” The two were found dead nearby shortly after the attack.

“When elected officials, when the media try to dehumanize a community, this is the result," Imam Taha Hassane, the center’s director, said in an interview with The Washington Post. “When we don’t watch what we say about one another as Americans, this is what we get.”

Multiple Republican members of Congress along with prominent social influencers this year  have made Islamophobic public statements .

“Muslims don’t belong in American society. Pluralism is a lie,” Rep Andrew Ogles (Tennessee)  posted on X  in March.

In February, Rep Randy Fine (Florida)  posted on the same platform:  “If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one.”

Sen Tommy Tuberville (Alabama)  said on the Senate floor  in January that “radical Muslims” are coming to the United States with the intent to “destroy the West.”