Eight predominately black churches burned following the killing spree at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, last month, when Dylann Roof, a white supremacist, shot 9 people. Three groups have started an online fundraiser to help rebuild the churches that have recently been destroyed.
The root cause of the fires was determined to be arson in three of the cases, spurring the fundraiser.
"Three were undoubtedly set by arsons; the others are pending investigation," reads the message on the fundraising site. "But to many it is clear that these are attacks on black culture, black religion and black lives."
Three Muslim groups are behind the fundraiser — Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative, the Arab-American Association of New York, and Ummah Wide, a digital media startup with a focus on Muslim issues.
In less than a week, the effort has already met its goal of $30,000, which is triple its original goal of $10,000, said Dustin Craun, founder of Ummah Wide and one of the organizers.
What has been great to see, Craun said, is that the money has not been just coming from Muslim supporters; he called it an "interfaith" effort. Donations have also been coming from abroad — a Pakistani media organization was one of the first to write about the fund.
BY HUIZHONG WU
www.mashable
BY HUIZHONG WU
www.mashable
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