Muslim political leaders and academics are set to gather in Washington, DC, for what is being billed as the first national gathering of Muslims in politics in United States history. The historic moment comes as President Donald Trump and his supporters ramp up attacks on Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, the first two Muslim women in Congress.

Organized by the Muslim Caucus, the Muslim Collective for Equitable Democracy 2019 will feature appearances by representatives Omar, as well as a host of other prominent Muslim American figures, including Gold Star father Khizr Khan and Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress and current Minnesota attorney general. But the organizers are disappointed in the low turnout from major Democratic presidential candidates.

Ilhan Omar, others set to speak at first annual conference. Most major 2020 candidates are not attending. Aside from New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, who is slated to attend the two-day conference in person on Tuesday, and Elizabeth Warren, who plans to address the conference via livestream on Wednesday, none of the major primary candidates from the Democratic Party will participate in the event… The conference comes at a time when rights groups have documented an increase in Islamophobic attacks on Muslim communities and individuals.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) recorded a 17 percent increase in anti-Muslim bias incidents in 2017. It also documented 300 hate crimes against Muslim Americans in 2017, a 15 percent increase from the previous year.

Source: Alzaeera