Burleson mayor calls for end to hate speech surrounding Muslim burial plots in cemetery
Burleson Mayor Ken Shetter called for a stop to “hate speech” on social media after disparaging messages surfaced last week about Muslim burial plots in the city’s cemetery.
On Oct. 5, the city council discussed various options for expanding Burleson Memorial Cemetery, which has an area with burial plots for Muslims that conform to Islamic religious practices.
Shetter said that during the meeting, a council member asked about the plots and said he didn’t have a problem with them but wanted to know why there was a separate area, Shetter said.
“There were no problems whatsoever during the meeting, but soon messages started circulating in various local Facebook groups,” Shetter said. “There are a number of Burleson Facebook groups that have just gotten hateful, and not just on this issue. With this election, sure enough it became a discussion topic.”
Shetter is running for re-election, and his opponent, Chris Fletcher, is running for office for the first time.
Although Shetter is not blaming his opponent, he said he believes that some of Fletcher’s supporters are behind the posts.
“He’s allowed people he shouldn’t trust into his campaign,” Shetter said.
Shetter said he wrote his Facebook post after seeing a post written under a fake profile that called out the “fascist mayor and his merry band of losers who want to appease the goat … among us.”
Fletcher said he was aware of the social media messages and there is no excuse for hate speech, and said an administrator took it down.
“I know my Christian values; that (hate speech) is not acceptable,” he said.
Fletcher said it is impossible to monitor what his supporters are posting. He added that he is new to social media and to politics.
“I have a lot of supporters out there. There is no way that me or Ken can run herd on them,” he said.
Asad Rahman, an attorney who represented several mosques that purchased land in Farmersville for a cemetery, said they also faced a backlash of hate speech several years ago before the city council approved the purchase in 2018.
“The opposition comes from not understanding our Muslim neighbors. We follow all state guidelines when it comes to burials. There are certain religious aspects of being buried among those of the same faith,” he said.
Rahman said when Muslims are buried, their bodies face toward Mecca.
Moujahed Bakash, who came to Fort Worth from Lebanon in 1982 and who is an imam at the Tarrant County Islamic Association, said there is a cemetery for Muslims in the Joshua area.
When asked about the situation in Burleson, Bakash said, “There should be no objections. Ignorance leads to many misconceptions Why not at least be fair and educate yourselves.”
Bakash praised the mayor for speaking out.
“God bless the mayor and city council,” he said.
Shetter said that the anti-Muslim hate speech is a reflection on previous controversies involving discussions in Burleson about race following the death of George Floyd.
The pandemic and the election add to the stress, he said.
Meanwhile, Shetter said Muslims are an important part of the community, and he said they are heavily involved in community service.
The cemetery has always had burial plots for Muslims for many years, he said.
“The expansion is a continuation of what is already there, and the city is accommodating everyone,” he said.
Shetter said he also hopes to see an end to the hate speech.
“I’ve been shocked during this election to see how dehumanizing social media is,” he said.
This story was originally published October 12, 2020 at 5:00 AM.