Muslim groups raise thousands for Pittsburgh synagogue shooting victims

A crowdfunding campaign started by two Muslim groups has raised more than $55,000 for the victims of the shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue on Saturday.

The campaign on LaunchGood, a Muslim-focused crowdfunding site, reached its $25,000 goal in less than six hours, and surpassed its updated $50,000 goal in less than 24 hours. The campaign is now hoping to raise $75,000.

“The Muslim-American community extends its hands to help the shooting victims, whether it is the injured victims or the Jewish families who have lost loved ones,” the fundraising page reads. “We wish to respond to evil with good, as our faith instructs us, and send a powerful message of compassion through action.”

As of Sunday afternoon, the campaign had raised $57,362 from 1,344 supporters. 

{mosads}The fundraiser was started by Celebrate Mercy and MPower Change, two Muslim-American nonprofit organizations. The groups say they are partnering with the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh to distribute the funds.

At least 11 people were killed and several others injured after a gunman opened fire at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood. The shooting is believed to be the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The suspected gunman has been charged on 29 federal counts.

The funds will go to help families of victims pay for funeral expenses and medical bills, according to the LaunchGood page.

“Through this campaign, we hope to send a united message from the Jewish and Muslim communities that there is no place for this type of hate and violence in America,” the page reads. “We pray that this restores a sense of security and peace to the Jewish-American community who has undoubtedly been shaken by this event.”

The Hill has reached out to the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh for comment.

— This report was updated on Sunday, Oct. 28 at 2:15 p.m.