‘Hate Letter’ Sent To NJ Chocolate Shop, Advocates Say

PASSAIC COUNTY, NJ — A North Jersey restaurant received an anti-Muslim hate letter in the mail recently, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).

The Chocolate House, a Muslim-owned sweet treat shop, has nine locations across New Jersey. Its flagship location is in Paterson, a city with a prominent Muslim community; however, it was The Chocolate House’s Totowa location that received the hate mail, officials say.

The letter criticized the establishment’s use of Halal products, using profanity while saying that all Muslims are “liars and hypocrites.”

“We really need our officials to come forth and condemn this, whether it’s issuing a statement, whether it’s posting a video on social media, whether it’s going to the mosque and speaking to the community,” said CAIR Communications Manager Aya Elamroussi. “Because right now, the hate against Muslims has been normalized for too long.”

The hate mail comes on the heels of CAIR addressing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s “defamatory and dangerous smear” regarding Paterson and its residents.

"Paterson, New Jersey, is proud to call themselves the first Muslim city,” Gabbard said at a Turning Point USA event. “They are working to implement in their own governments these Islamic principles that are forced on people through the use of laws or violence."

Joining Cair in addressing Gabbard’s comments was Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh, who invited her to see Paterson for herself.

“Paterson welcomes everyone, and Paterson has never failed a friend,” he said. “And Tulsi Gabbard needs to know: Paterson is a better place because Muslims call our city home.”

CAIR said that Gabbard’s comments were “baseless, dangerous, and contribute to anti-Muslim hate and discrimination.”