Group Posts Addresses of 'Muslim Sympathizers'

Days earlier, members held an armed rally outside a Texas mosque
By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 27, 2015 5:20 PM CST
Group Posts Addresses of 'Muslim Sympathizers'
The anti-Muslim group BAIR protests outside a Texas mosque last weekend. This week the group published a list of the names and addresses Muslims and "Muslim sympathizers" to Facebook.   (Facebook)

The group responsible for an armed anti-Muslim protest at a Dallas-area mosque last weekend posted a list containing the names and addresses of dozens of Muslims and "Muslim sympathizers" to Facebook on Wednesday, the Dallas Morning News reports. According to the Huffington Post, the list contained personal information about more than 60 people pulled from an official document of individuals who signed up to speak at a city council debate on "limiting Muslim influence" earlier this year. “This is the first time I’ve been slightly alarmed," the head of a local Islamic group tells the Morning News. "They were just being good citizens to show up and be a part of the democratic process. Now they are targets.”

David Wright led the armed protest outside the Irving Islamic Center last weekend and appears to be behind the list, which has since been removed from Facebook, the Morning News reports. While Wright's organization, BAIR, states its intention isn't to intimidate anyone, people whose names were on the list say it couldn't have been meant for any other reason than to put a target on their backs. The Washington Post quotes a number of Facebook posts from Wright this week, including, "We like to have guns designed to kill people that pose a threat in a very efficient manner," and "My gun is an assault weapon ... It's a weapon designed to assault people not animals." The list may have backfired: The Morning News notes RSVPs for a pro-Muslim rally scheduled for Saturday at the mosque had more than doubled in 24 hours. (More Islamophobia stories.)

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