Leaders of the nation's largest Muslim civil liberties group expressed concern over a note left outside a Dundalk family's home this month.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said Friday the note is the latest hate incident directed at American Muslims, mosques and Islamic centers. Part of the note read, "Terrorist, Leave no one wants you here. Your kind is a disgrace. 9/11 was your fault."
The note also had a drawing of a person who was wearing a hijab and holding a cartoon bomb, according to police.
"It is disturbing that a family, having fled violence and hatred, is now being targeted by hate as they seek to build a better life in America," said CAIR Maryland outreach manager Dr. Zainab Chaudry. "We urge local, state and federal authorities to take this matter seriously and to bring the perpetrator to justice."
Baltimore County Police were notified of the note Oct. 14 by a member of the family. Officers said a 14-year-old girl wrote the note, and they concluded that — while offensive — no crime was committed.
Officers spoke with the girl, who said she wrote the note because two children in the family had "cursed at her and made offensive gestures," police said.
Police said officers with the Dundalk Precinct Community Outreach Unit have followed up and will check on both families next week.
They said the girl's parents told police they would discipline her.
Chaudry said the family of six has been living in the U.S. for several months, after moving from Iraq. She said the family struggles with psychological pain as well as with cultural and language barriers.
"To not have that support to cope with the intolerance, it compounds this fear," she said. "They're afraid."
While some might take the note less seriously because it was written by a teen, Chaudry said it's more disturbing because "it sends a strong message that we are creating a society that it's OK to do stuff like this."
Chaudry said Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has fueled anti-Muslim rhetoric, which CAIR says has coincided with an increase in hate incidents targeting Islamic institutions and Muslims.
A recently released CAIR survey of Muslim voters found 85 percent said they felt Islamophobia and anti-Muslim sentiment in the U.S. has increased in the past year, while 30 percent said they have experienced discrimination or profiling in the past year.
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