The president of the San Diego University College Republicans group said he received backlash and at least one physical threat after calling on the school’s Muslim Student Association to condemn the recent terror attack in Barcelona, Spain, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
In the letter posted on the group’s Facebook page, College Republicans President Brandon Jones extended condolences to the victims of the attack and said such acts must be “disavowed by Muslim leaders on our campus and in our community.”
The need for such a letter was questioned by the vast majority of people who left comments on the College Republicans Facebook page.
The letter quoted the Muslim Student Association’s mission statement of being dedicated to creating a sense of community and inclusive environment for all students on campus.
“Unfortunately, until radical Islamic terrorism is disavowed by the Muslim Student Organization at SDSU, we can not move forward in creating an inclusive environment for all students on campus,” Jones wrote.
The letter asked the organization’s leadership to either publicly denounce the terrorism or resign from their positions.
The Muslim Student Association called it a “distasteful letter” and thanked people for supporting the group after it was posted.
“The Muslim Student Association of SDSU would like to thank all the individuals and organizations who have expressed their support for us in the past few days,” read a message posted Sunday. “We have received numerous amounts of positive messages and comments regarding the distasteful letter that was sent to us. Your kind words and willingness to stand against injustice has showed our members and Muslim students from other universities around the country that we are not alone.”
The College Republican’s Facebook page showed the original post had more than 230,000 views and 500 responses, the majority against the letter, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Jones said the letter was endorsed by other College Republican Board Members. After putting his own phone number on the letter, Jones received one threatening text.
“It said, ‘I hope you rot in hell,’” Jones said. “‘We’re coming for you this week, you vile piece of a human being. Watch your back every step you take. SDSU campus will be the war zone against you and inhumane rats.’”
An anonymous e-mail to the organization also asked Jones to resign from his position and “when convenient, kill yourself,” he said.
Despite the controversy, Jones said he does not regret posting the letter, which he saw as a reasonable request.
“In our opinion, it’s real simple,” he said. “There was an act of violence, much like the one that happened in Charlottesville, and we were making a simple request in calling them to join us in condemning it.”
The post from the Muslim Student Association stated the group’s support for victims of “white supremacy, nationalism, and terrorism,” but it did not specifically address Barcelona.
The university’s Young Democratic Socialists group responded to the College Republican’s letter, referring to it as a “bigoted attack.”
“In our current political climate, Muslim students already feel threatened in their own country,” the post read. “By insinuating that MSA members will be considered terrorist sympathizers unless they condemn an attack they had nothing to do with, your organization is making Muslim students feel even more unsafe on their own campus.”
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