by Aysha Qamar

According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the number of anti-Muslim attacks in the United States has sharply risen. With the rise of hate crimes and Islamophobia a desire for change and advocacy has increased; however, while many wish to help in uncomfortable situations, they are unsure what to do.

The city of Boston has launched a poster campaign to fight Islamophobia by encouraging bystanders to intervene, in a non-confrontational way, when they witness anti-Muslim harassment. 

50 posters have been placed around the city with advice on what to do if you see Islamophobic behavior.

The campaign follows a racist incident in the city, where a man shouted anti-Muslim slurs at an old woman wearing a headscarf while traveling in a train and accused her of having a bomb. The posters, to be displayed at bus stops and other public spaces, recommend sitting by a victim of harassment and spreading to them about a neutral subject while ignoring the harasser.

The original version of these posters was designed for a Feminist Group based in the Middle East by Marie-Shirine Yener, who goes by the alias Maerill. The Paris-based illustrator’s step-by-step guide first appeared on Tumblr in September, as a response to the “wave of Islamophobic hatred” in France.

She encouraged her followers to keep conversation with those targeted about “anything: a movie you liked, the weather … Keep eye contact with them, and don’t acknowledge the attacker’s presence: the absence of response from you two will push them to leave the area shortly,” she wrote on Tumblr. She also urged followers to share the how-to guide saying, “it could push a lot of people to overcome bystander syndrome.”