| No Images? Click here   Two moms in Tempe, Ariz., have been arrested and charged with burglary after taking their children to a mosque and vandalizing the property. The incident took place earlier this month, but only surfaced last week after HuffPost reporter Rowaida Abdelaziz got a tip about a Facebook Live video in which one of the moms filmed their crime.The video is truly outlandish and horrifyingly hateful of Muslims. In one scene, one of the kids in tow, a young girl, warns her older brother to watch out because Muslims will rape him.In another scene the group enters the mosque. Once inside, the women, led by Dauenhauer, tear off notices from a bulletin board. The mothers then accuse an exiting worshiper of wanting to eat their dog and engage in pedophilia.“We’re coming after you. We, the people. We’re exposing you. You guys stand for evil and nothing but evil,” Gonzales is heard yelling at the stunned man, while the children watch.Ahmad Al-Akoum, the operations director and acting imam of the Tempe center, told HuffPost the video’s scenes of children being led to hate were the most disturbing to him.“What really affected me the most is seeing those young children getting real-life lessons in hate, that was the thing that made me really, really upset with those people,” Al-Akoum said. “Children are now really learning hate from their parents. It’s really disheartening.”We talked to the reporter, Abdelaziz, about how she got the story.How did you come across the video of the moms? I received a tip from a source based in Arizona who was a member of the Islamic Community Center of Tempe. He saw the videos and was appalled that such a thing was happening to his community. He sent it to me and I began digging right away. Although most viewers were focusing on the longest and most appalling video, I was able to find two other videos that were just as outrageous.What was most challenging? The most difficult challenge was verifying the information as it was disappearing before my own eyes. Both women were active on Facebook, but a lot of the footage was being deleted as it gained more traction. I had to make sure I was swift with obtaining copies of everything. From there, I needed to cross reference all the information online with people on the ground in Arizona, including reviewing the footage with mosque members, and confirming the women’s identities with local police. What about the story surprised you? Like most readers, the involvement of the children was most appalling. Even when the children were not partaking in the actual vandalism, you can hear them repeating vile and Islamophobic comments to each other. The young girl was particularly disturbing, especially in how eager she was to impress her mother with her anti-Muslim rhetoric. She didn’t look older than seven or eight. Thinking about it again really shocks me, and that says something because I’ve reported on plenty of vile and Islamophobic stories.Anything else you’d like to add?Islamophobia is a very real and serious issue. Some people argue that Islam as a faith, can and should be subjected to criticism, just like any other religion. But that’s not the point. Islamophobia becomes especially dangerous when a group of people are so vilified and demonized, that women like the ones in this story feel embolden to launch a hateful attack and even bring their kids with them.In addition, it’s not just this specific Islamic center that is hurt by this. All the other mosques and Muslim organizations in the area that were listed on the bulletin boards, then needed to take extra precautions in case copycats decided to do the same to them.Hate is a learned trait and we see that very clearly in this story.
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