John,

The Wall Street Journal just published a dangerous, racist article targeting one of our most diverse cities, Dearborn, Michigan. Our families are already grieving for their loved ones impacted by the Israeli military’s genocide in Gaza. They should not be simultaneously subjected to attacks in the media.

The opinion piece is titled: “Welcome to Dearborn, America’s Jihad Capital.” It targets our neighbors based on their faith and ethnicity and their advocacy for a ceasefire which is what the majority of Americans want right now. All of this while they mourn the nearly 30,000 Palestinians killed amidst the continued bombings in the region.

The blatant Islamophobia and anti-Arab racism espoused in the Wall Street Journal puts people’s lives in danger. In my district, mothers have reached out to me scared to send their children to school and some business owners are opening their doors with caution.

This weekend, a 23-year old Palestinian American was stabbed in the chest in a hate crime—by a man who attacked a group of young Muslim Americans who had a “Free Palestine” flag on their car.  

At a time when many of our communities are mourning the genocide happening in Gaza and grieving their loved ones, they’re also endangered by hate in the United States.

No one should have to endure racist targeting by our country’s media outlets. So I’m lifting up a petition from local organizations to the Wall Street Journal’s editors.

Please add your name to demand the Wall Street Journal retract recent articles that spread Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate.

The article targeting our Dearborn families follows another dangerous Wall Street Journal article from January 31, titled “Chicago votes for Hamas,” after Chicago’s city council and mayor voted to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire.

That one was written by the newspaper’s own editorial board, rather than an outside contributor—which really shows us where the Wall Street Journal stands.

To characterize the movement for a ceasefire as a movement for anything other than peace and coexistence is incredibly dangerous and inaccurate. It adds to the painful dehumanization and hateful rhetoric that’s already spreading, and it puts families in more danger.

Dearborn’s mayor just announced an increase in security at places of worship and other areas around the city, saying there’s been a rise in “Islamophobic rhetoric online targeting the city” directly because of the Wall Street Journal piece.

Another opinion piece from this weekend in the New York Times refers to Middle East countries as insects and uses other genocidal terms like “parasites,” dehumanizing Arab people and justifying mass murder.

The fact that the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times would platform this type of hate and racism is shameful—and it incites violence within the U.S. and abroad.

Across the country, Arab Americans, both of Muslim and Christian faith, are already experiencing a frightening rise in violent hate crimes. Our large American Muslim communities across the country of diverse ethnic backgrounds are living in fear. Media outlets need to know that contributing to this hate is unacceptable.

Sign now to demand that the Wall Street Journal retract anti-Arab, Islamophobic articles and issue a formal statement of apology.

In solidarity,

Rashida