12-02-2015 | 11:20
Over 16,000 murders occur per year in America. But only a few stories like this get international attention – the hate crime disguised as parking dispute.
The three young relatives in the college town of Chapel Hill were gunned down in their North Carolina home. The victims in the triple homicide had been identified as Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23; his wife, Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha, 21; and her sister, Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19. All three victims were shot in the head.
Police believed the triple homicide of the Muslim family was due to a parking conflict and was likely not religiously motivated. But the victims’ family disagreed, calling it a “hate crime” and an “execution.”
A 46-year-old man identified by police as Craig Stephen Hicks turned himself. He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of three counts of first degree murder. Hicks lived next door to the family in a condominium complex a few miles east of the University of North Carolina’s flagship campus.
The women’s father, psychiatrist Dr. Mohammad Abu-Salha declared that while parking might had been the catalyst for Tuesday’s events, the shooter had an underlying animosity towards his daughters and son-in-law based on their religion and culture.
“It was execution style, a bullet in every head,” Abu-Salha said. “This was not a dispute over a parking space; this was a hate crime. This man had picked on my daughter and her husband a couple of times before, and he talked with them with his gun in his belt. And they were uncomfortable with him, but they did not know he would go this far.”
Moreover, the grieving father said that one of his daughters had told the family a week ago that she had a “hateful neighbor.”
“Honest to God, she said, ‘He hates us for what we are and how we look,'” he said. Both women wore hijabs, the traditional Muslim head scarf.
While police noted that the killings were likely part of an ongoing parking dispute, they added that they had not ruled out the possibility that it was a religiously motivated attack.
Chapel Hill Police Chief Chris Blue said in a statement, “We understand the concerns about the possibility that this was hate-motivated and we will exhaust every lead to determine if that is the case.”
CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad declared, “Based on the brutal nature of this crime, the past anti-religion statements of the alleged perpetrator, the religious attire of two of the victims, and the rising anti-Muslim rhetoric in American society, we urge state and federal law enforcement authorities to quickly address speculation of a possible bias motive in this case.”
According to US media, Hicks a self-described atheist who regularly posted content critical of religion on his Facebook account wrote in one post: “When it comes to insults, your religion started this, not me. If your religion kept its big mouth shut, so would I.” The quote in question was paraphrased from Pat Condell, an Irish comedian and atheist internet personality.
However, a Twitter account that belonged to Deah Barakat showed a post published a week before his murder that expressed his concern over increasing cases of religious and national hatred over recent months.
The shooting had elicited a strong response on social media and in the Muslim-American community who called on law enforcement to investigate the incident as a hate crime.
Chris Rock, one of the United States most popular stand-up comics, re-tweeted a photograph of the victims providing food and dental supplies to the homeless.
Rock, along with other social media users, accused the mainstream media of ignoring the shooting. Some argued that if a Muslim had gunned down three atheists, the headlines would be “screaming TERROR ATTACK.”
Whereas others focused on the victims themselves, their love of life and dedication to their community.
Vigils for the victims were planned at UNC and at North Carolina State University, where all three received their undergraduate degrees.
Vigils for the victims were planned at UNC and at North Carolina State University, where all three received their undergraduate degrees.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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