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INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – The Marion County District Attorney’s Office kicked off what will become a series of community hate crimes talks on Tuesday evening.
They are an extension of the work already carried out with the Marion County Hate Crime Hotline, which premiered in August.
The prosecutor said that with the county’s diverse population, it was time to anticipate these hate crime conversations.
MOTW coffee and pastries is on the west side of Indianapolis, an area of the city known for its diversity in business and culture. This is part of the reason why two friends, Kate Breen and Megan Zurawicz, make it a point to come to the cafe west of Lafayette Road on West 38th Street.
MOTW in the name of the store means Muslims of the World. “I thought to myself, ‘Well, this is unique’, and I also thought that (having Muslims in the name) is kinda brave because of the way things are today,” said said Breen.
The store hosted the first discussion on Tuesday evening designed to focus on hate crimes in the Muslim community.
Breen has to thank her friend Zurawicz for even getting to know the place. She lives just a few blocks away and says it’s the epitome of what a community business looks like.
“When I moved to Indianapolis, I chose this neighborhood specifically for its diversity because it’s something I cherish,” she said.
Breen appreciates what the county attorney is doing. “We need more of why we are the same, what makes us the same rather than what makes us different,” she said.
Coffee and pastries are in the name of the shop, but it’s more of a backdrop for what really matters. The pictures on the wall tell stories of the persecution of Muslims around the world, setting the tone for a much needed discussion of hate crimes against Muslim communities in Indianapolis.
“It is definitely time for Indiana to join with the rest of the country in recognizing that this is a problem, and that it is a problem that needs to be addressed properly,” Marion County District Attorney said. , Ryan Mears.
Mears said 45 states have hate crime laws, but Indiana was not one of them. When Indiana Police are called to the scene, it is never for a true hate crime.
“What we can do is argue for a worsening of the law, which means that a judge can impose more severe penalties than they would otherwise,” said Mears. “But, there is no stand-alone crime and it really hinders the ability of law enforcement to investigate because they don’t have a stand-alone crime to investigate.”
He said that when it comes to hate, it is important to hold victims accountable.
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