News: Attack at the Islamic Center of San Diego

The Islamic Center of San Diego was attacked on May 18, leaving five people dead, three adult victims and two teenage suspects, who died of self-inflicted wounds. At this point, the FBI is currently investigating the attack as a hate crime. While details are still emerging, a few things are clear:

Anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States has increased dramatically over the past few years. Equality Labs released a study which “identified more than 4.72 million Islamophobic posts targeting Muslim communities nationwide, generating 34.8 million total engagements…across 12 social media platforms.” This anti-Muslim rhetoric takes place within an ecosystem of hate and bigotry normalized at the highest levels of government. President Donald Trump has repeatedly made dehumanizing remarks about Muslim communities, referring to Somali Americans as "garbage," and deeming Muslim immigrants as threats to national security.

Congressional representatives like @RepFine, @RepOgles, @RepKeithSelf, and @SenTTuberville have openly posted and amplified reprehensible and inflammatory anti-Muslim rhetoric. A Washington Post analysis found that since the start of 2025, nearly 100 Republican members of Congress have posted negatively about Muslims/Islam on social media. Their vile statements are then amplified by hate-mongering influencers like @LauraLoomer, Valentina Gomez, and others.

The political climate in the United States-where anti-Muslim hate is perpetuated at the structural and societal levels with impunity-cannot be separated from what happened in San Diego on May 18.

Read more here: https://www.sandiego.gov/activeshooter