After the Texas Tech student mosque was vandalized Monday night, Adam Telfah started a gofundme, raising $625 in 19 hours.
The front door of the student mosque. Picture from the gofundme page.
The senior electrical engineering major from Cypress, Texas, said the fundraiser is not only intended to raise money for repairs to the broken door and lights, but to raise awareness of the true message of Islam.
“This act of vandalism should not be used to instill fear, instead it should be used to shine light,” he wrote on the gofundme page. “There is ignorance in our community about what Islam truly is.”
He said he is taught not to seek revenge but forgiveness. He wants this event to be used as an opportunity to educate fellow Red Raiders about Islam and come together as a family.
Photo from the gofundme page.
Sheikh Samer Altabaa, the imam of the mosque, said a police report has been filed and the incident is being investigated.
According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, Facebook page, the vandalism was discovered when an official associated with the Islamic Center of South Plains showed up for his early morning fajr prayers. Nothing was stolen.
Although Altabaa was upset because the building was vandalized and not burglarized, he feels it is an isolated incident and the majority of people in Lubbock are welcoming and friendly.
“I wish I could meet with this person just to teach him about Islam,” Altabaa said.
He said a meeting will be held Wednesday at 7 p.m. to decide how to respond.
The Huffington Post has been keeping a running list of Islamophobic acts in the U.S. since the terrorists attacks in Paris last week.
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