SEATTLE -- Sunday will mark the 15th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. In the wake of the tragedy, American-Muslim communities across the country saw a surge of hate speech and hate crimes. And discrimination against these communities has lingered.

Arsalan Bukhari, executive director at Washington state's chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said that in 2015, CAIR offices nationwide were the target of the highest number of reported hate crimes in history - amounting to an average of at least one report per day. The state chapter received 34 all year. He said inaccurate coverage of Muslims in the media can harm the community.

"The key message here is that hate speech leads to hate crimes,” Bukhari said. “And also proper context and accurate language in media reporting results in greater understanding. Inaccurate language and loaded context results in hate and prejudice."

Research by the University of Hawaii, University of Exeter and National Hispanic Media Coalition showed that the media can have a direct effect on hate and prejudice against minority groups. A study of prime-time news by Media Tenor found that Islam was mentioned more than any other religion, and that the coverage was overwhelmingly negative.

Bukhari said although anti-Muslim rhetoric from politicians has increased during this election season, the media still wields a great deal of power in how Muslims - or people believed to be Muslims - are perceived. He said the uptick in reported hate crimes began in late 2014.

"According to data, this is a trend that started well before the election season,” Bukhari said. "Again, the focus is not necessarily on what elected officials are saying but rather on how media stories and commentary that follows events treat minority groups."

Still, Bukhari said fair-minded politicians have a duty to provide more accurate depictions of American-Muslim communities.

"If lawmakers talked more about the 10,000 American Muslims serving in our nation's armed forces, if they talked about the 50,000 American Muslims who are medical doctors saving lives every day, if they talked more about the everyday lives and contributions,” Bukhari said, "the public would be able to get a more realistic understanding of who their fellow Americans are."



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Community leaders in Harlem are calling on local and state elected officials to make significant community investments.

As part of their 2023 Justice Agenda, grassroots group Citizen Action New York wants a series of steps enacted - not only to protect New York City residents, but New Yorkers all over the state.

These include housing and tenant protections, protecting people's freedom to vote and healthcare equity through universal care.

Vanessa Rosser - vice chair of the New York City Regional Chapter of Citizen Action of New York - said despite having numerous options for getting health care, people struggle with the process to qualify for certain plans, like Medicaid or Medicare.

"Those entities exist, but sometimes the process to go through or to facilitate those pathways are not always available," said Rosser, "especially if you don't know who to go to, to get the coverage that you need, or to get the access to those entities."

She added that healthcare inequities that existed prior to the pandemic are part of why these community investments are so necessary.

Concerns have risen across the U.S. as Medicaid's "continuous coverage" program comes to an end. A report from the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation finds 8.2 million people will lose Medicaid eligibility.

Rosser said Harlem residents want to ensure their voices are heard by city and state officials. She noted that it's only one part of New York City facing the challenges that come with gentrification - including rents becoming unaffordable for long-time residents.

While there's a melange of ways to alleviate this, she said she feels rethinking outdated policies is a start.

"Raising the poverty level would probably help some people to some degree," said Rosser, "because we know the poverty level hasn't been looked at or touched since probably the 1930s."

She added that there are some people making $50,000 to $60,000 a year who still can't pay their rent.

The Federal Poverty Level for a one person household is a little over $14,000, which has increased only slightly from when it was first created.

And yet, the average rent for a studio apartment in Harlem is almost $2,500 a month - which over the course of a year, is almost $30,000.




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A proposal to create a perimeter around working police investigations has made it through the first half of the 2023 Indiana legislative session.

Rep. Wendy McNamara, R-Evansville, said House Bill 1186 allows for a buffer zone up to 25 feet between officers and bystanders.

Amelia McClure, executive director of the Hoosier State Press Association, has concerns about how the bill could affect journalists.

"Democracy functions when citizens can properly monitor their public officials' actions," McClure asserted. "Oftentimes, we rely on journalists to report on those actions, because we can't be everywhere at once. So, when there is a bill that could hinder the public's access to public officials, we are almost always concerned about that."

The bill would make "encroaching on an investigation" a Class C misdemeanor. It has passed out of the Indiana House and is in the Senate chamber, where opponents hope to offer amendments.

McClure said a recent report suggests it takes more than 17 feet to disarm someone.

"I think that, in conjunction with the proliferation of cellphone videos and protests, and movements surrounding George Floyd, have kind of all come together to influence this legislation," McClure noted.

McClure pointed out journalists' ability to observe and report also adds a measure of credibility for law enforcement officers on the job.


This story is based on original reporting from Xain Ballenger with The Statehouse File.

The disability community is mourning the loss of one of its greatest advocates.

Judy Heumann, often called the "mother of the disability rights movement," and a driving force behind some of its greatest legislative accomplishments, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, has passed away.

Monica Zulauf, interim executive director with Able N.H., said Heumann helped ensure people with disabilities were made visible.

"We're losing a generation of people who knew how to advocate and how to bring people together in a respectful way that really moved the needle," Zulauf said.

Zulauf added she admired Heumann's bold leadership and direct actions, including a 1977 sit-in by disabled activists at a federal building in San Francisco which lasted 28 days and led to passage of what's known as Section 504, one of the first federal civil rights laws offering protection for Americans with disabilities.

Heumann spent her life working to ensure people like herself had access to education and jobs. In 1970, she won a lawsuit against the New York Board of Education and became the first teacher there to work while using a wheelchair. Kelly Ehrhart, president of People First of New Hampshire, said Heumann's activism made a lasting impression.

"I think it will help us realize that we can advocate for ourselves because she did it for herself and other people, too," Ehrhart said.

Some of Ehrhart's advocacy work coming to fruition. After years of debate, a law ensuring dental benefits for adults under New Hampshire's Medicaid program has been fully implemented providing more than 100-thousand Medicaid recipients access to needed care.


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