A seven -year-old boy recently donated all his savings to a Texas mosque that was vandalised in what police are saying is a hate crime.
In a shocking incident of Islamophobia in the aftermath of terror attacks in Paris, torn pages of the Holy Quran were found at the door of a mosque in an Austin suburb.
Jack Swanson, the young donor, went to the mosque on the same afternoon and handed over his savings of $20, that had been collected in the form of pennies over time, according to Faisal Naeem, one of the mosque’s board members.
“Jack’s $20 are worth $20 million to us because it’s the thought that counts,” Naeem said.
“Jack is just a little older than my son, Ibrahim. If we have more kind-hearted kids like them in the world, I have hope for our future,” he added.
Jack’s mother, Laura Swanson said that she wanted to support the mosque and show that “what happened in Paris is not what’s happening in Pflugerville.”
Further, Naeem said that he didn’t want to assume the vandalism was motivated by news of the Paris terror attacks until police conclude their investigation. However, he said he was frustrated that such “generalisations” are often applied to the Muslim community after extremist attacks.
“It’s become so commonplace where something goes wrong somewhere and people want to blame all Muslims,” he said. “If anything, it’s a pointing indictment of the logical fallacy in our society’s way of thinking.”
Nonetheless, Naeem said the mosque remains encouraged by the local community’s outpouring of support since the vandalism.
Although there was no physical damage to the facility, clean-up costs were estimated to be approximately $150. The Austin Police Department said it had increased patrols around “sensitive sites.”
Many took to Twitter appreciating the young boy’s contribution:
Ppl this is what compassion looks like.! 7Year-Old Boy Donates Piggy Bank to Vandalized Mosque – ABC News (via @ABC)https://t.co/YB8dYJvWzj
— LShustr (@leecaly) November 19, 2015
7-yr-old boy donates $20 in piggy bank to vandalized mosquehttps://t.co/udUT9UVBQ2
— Seth Palmer (@sethpalmer3) November 19, 2015
And a child shall lead them…… https://t.co/BKEgkwQRKE
— Jon Goode (@JonGoode) November 19, 2015
Little boy empties piggy bank to help vandalized Texas mosque. God bless you #JackSwanson https://t.co/qpK55s0cWR
— Keli Goff (@keligoff) November 19, 2015
7-year-old child donates his piggy bank $$ after mosque vandalized by hatriots https://t.co/Ot4qU0C30G
— Tamra M Cronin (@tamranyc) November 19, 2015
7-Y.O. Boy Donates All the Money in His Piggy Bank to Mosque Vandalized in Texas – @ABC – https://t.co/JiQRceOAbIhttps://t.co/soYmchffbY
— Anthony B. (@PoliticalAnt) November 20, 2015
The world needs more mothers like her 7-Year-Old Boy Donates Piggy Bank to Vandalized Mosque – ABC News –https://t.co/gxhzVDciFE via @ABC
— BEAUTY OF ISLAM (@aim_jannah) November 19, 2015
Seven-Year-Old Boy Donates Piggy Bank Money To Help Clean Up Vandalized Mosque In Texas: A seven-year-old boy …https://t.co/B7anq05o0N
— Electric Gherkin (@electricgherkin) November 20, 2015
7-year-old boy empties piggy bank and donates money to vandalised mosque in #Texas | The Independenthttps://t.co/KZrbvbQjCj
— UCLAsFan (@UCLAsFan) November 20, 2015
Further, it is reported that the boy was saving the money for an iPad which he was gifted by the Muslim community in American for his kind gesture.
