US Muslim Students Face ‘High Levels’ of Bullying

Nearly half of the students interviewed in the state of California reported being bullied for being Muslim, a new report by the Council on American-Islamic Relations found.

Interviews with 700 Muslim students in schools in the state of California found high levels of bullying, harassment, and discrimination by peers and adults, including teachers.

A report conducted in 2021 by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) found that nearly half of the students, 47.1 percent, reported being bullied for being Muslim.

That is more than twice the reported national average of 20 percent.

“Muslim students of all ages have been ostracised and mistreated in the past because of their faith and perceived, yet clearly false, association with 9/11 and other acts of terrorism,” said Amr Shabaik, the civil rights managing attorney for CAIR-LA.

“Often, such events manifest in the form of bullying by other students, lack of preventative and reporting measures by school officials, and insufficient training for educators as to how to mediate or de-escalate religious, racial and ethnically-charged bullying,” Shabaik said.

More than half of respondents, 55.73 percent, reported feeling unsafe, unwelcome, or uncomfortable at school due to their Muslim identity.

This is the highest reported level since CAIR-California began doing the survey in 2013.

“I was constantly called Osama bin Laden by the same guy who would tell me that I looked Bomb with a big emphasis on the word bomb,” said an 18-year-old female student from Brentwood.