Victoria Islamic CentreAmericans have raised $860,000 in one day for a Muslim community in Texas to help rebuild their mosque after it was destroyed by a fire on Saturday.
The mosque in Victoria was discovered on fire just hours after President Donald Trump announced a ‘travel ban’ against citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries and a 120-day halt to the US’s refugee program.
Thankfully, no one was injured in the blaze.
While the authorities are yet to discover the cause of the fire, the local community have rallied around those who worship in the Mosque, which was burnt to the ground just a week after it was broken into by thieves who stole hundreds of dollars worth of electrical items.
Victoria Islamic CentreA fundraising campaign to help rebuild the mosque was set up on Sunday and has since surpassed its $850,000 (£680,000) goal.
Almost 18,000 people have contributed to the fund in the space of a day.
Omar Rachid, who created the GoFundMe campaign, wrote:
Our hearts are filled with gratitude for the tremendous support we’ve received. The outpouring of love, kind words, hugs, helping hands and the financial contributions are examples of the true American spirit.
Today our faith in humanity has been rekindled again! The local support from our wonderful Victorians has been heart…
Posted by Victoria Islamic Center on Sunday, 29 January 2017
With the racial and religious hate circulating in this whirlwind of destructive rhetoric, we should all hold onto news like this, safe in the knowledge that – at the end of the day – we are all just humans with empathetic hearts and the generosity and power to make a difference through small acts of kindness.
Meanwhile, Victoria fire marshal’s office has opened an investigation into the incident after the building has been consistently targeted by hate crime.
A former emo kid who talks too much about 8Chan meme culture, the Kardashian Klan, and how her smartphone is probably killing her. Francesca is a Cardiff University Journalism Masters grad who has done words for BBC, ELLE, The Debrief, DAZED, an art magazine you’ve never heard of and a feminist zine which never went to print.