During a press conference on Tuesday, Tanveer Patel, a candidate for Place 1 on Hoover’s City Council, addressed the hateful comments and death threats she has received in recent weeks. Her attorney said they have reported the death threats to the Hoover Police Department as well as the FBI, and that the FBI had identified a suspect in Georgia.
An Indian immigrant and practicing Muslim, Patel explained she was running for city council “because I care deeply about Hoover’s future” in a July Q&A with the Hoover Sun.
On a recent post to Patel’s campaign Facebook page, though, people left dozens of comments attacking her for her faith, using anti-Muslim slurs, and declaring “foreigners” should not be able to hold public office.
One comment included an image of Donald Trump with the caption “Get Out!” Another depicted a nuclear missile dropping on worshippers surrounding Islam’s holiest site, the Kaaba, with the caption “The Fastest Way to World Peace…”
Other comments were even more violent. One man responded to a supporter of Patel asking “how come we’re not allowed to just shoot and kill these people and get them out of our ******* country?!”
“For the past 24 years, my family and I have proudly called Hoover home,” Patel stated on Tuesday. She emphasized her ties to the local community, including helping to found the free Red Crescent Clinic of Alabama, a joint project of the Birmingham Islamic Society and the Association of Physicians of Pakistani Descent of North America.
“My husband and I are Muslim, but we also serve on the Interfaith Council, working alongside many Christians, Jews, and friends to strengthen relationships across our community,” she continued.
Patel then said she’s “built a life, a business, and a family here in Alabama” and identified herself as “a fiscal conservative who believes in the Constitution of the United States and the promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
“That is why these past few days have been so painful,” Patel added. “My family and I have received hateful messages, insults, and even death threats. It has shaken us up.”
“To be told that I should be sent back to India, called a ‘rag head,’ or to be threatened with violence, is not only frightening. It is heartbreaking,” she said. “These threats are designed to silence, to intimidate our community, and to suppress our rights to vote.”
“But I want to be clear: I still believe in America,” she emphasized. “I still believe in the red, white, and blue. And I still believe in the American dream—that no matter your faith or background, every citizen has the right to live free and to participate fully in this democracy. Hate will not win. Let freedom ring!”
Patel’s opponent in the upcoming city council race, Robin Schultz, issued a statement Tuesday afternoon condemning the attacks on Patel and expressing relief that the death threats appear to have come from a Georgia resident, outside of the Hoover community.
“I am appalled and deeply saddened by the vile death threats and hateful attacks directed at my opponent, Tanveer Patel,” he wrote. “These acts of hatred are not only disgusting and disrespectful but an affront to the very principles of humanity and democracy.”
Frank Brocato, the mayor of Hoover, also issued a statement condemning the racist comments and emphasizing that the elections later this month will be safe.
“The Hoover Police Department is investigating and has a plan in place to make sure all of our residents enjoy free and safe opportunities to vote,” Brocato wrote. “We encourage everyone to get out and vote on Tuesday and to have full confidence that they will be completely safe in their environment.”
“As Mayor, I condemn all forms of hatred toward anyone in our city,” he continued. “Our diversity is what sets Hoover apart.”
Elections for the Hoover City Council and the mayorship will take place on Tuesday, August 26. The location of polling places can be found on the Hoover city government’s website.
