A Ramadan display of a crescent moon on "A" Mountain in Tempe was destroyed on March 17.
Yosra Zourob, one of the leads on the crescent moon project team and a graduate of ASU, said city officials called the group Tuesday morning and said the structure had been damaged.
In a written statement, the Tempe Police Department said the display was found knocked over and vandalized. Officers took a criminal damage report, estimating $20,000 in damage.
An investigation is ongoing, according to Tempe PD.
University and community groups, including ASU's Center of Muslim Experience in the United States, the Muslim Students Association at ASU,the American Muslim Alliance and the Islamic Community Center of Tempe, have displayed the crescent moon on "A" Mountain every Ramadan since 2023.
READ MORE: On Tempe's A Mountain, The Ramadan crescent moon shines for all
Huthaifa Shqeirat, social director for the ICC, said the mosque is letting the city investigate the vandalism and is available to help if needed.
There are no plans to replace the display this year, as Ramadan ends this week, Shqeirat said.
"We're just waiting to get all the facts to make sure we have everything we need to make a very insightful, correct and coordinated decision with regard to what the investigation produces," Shqeirat said.
A spokesperson for CME-US said in a written statement that the center is "deeply saddened by the vandalism."
The crescent moon was "a symbol of light, welcome, and belonging for the Muslim community and for the broader Tempe community during the holy month of Ramadan," the spokesperson said.
"This act of vandalism does not occur in isolation," the spokesperson stated. "It is part of a troubling and well-documented rise in anti-Muslim hate crimes across the United States — a trend that CME-US is committed to confronting directly."
The spokesperson added that the goal of CME-US is to fight Islamophobia through research, documentation and storytelling.
There have been instances where people have tried to unplug the display before, Zourob said.
READ MORE: ASU Muslim community reacts to legislation directed against Muslim organizations, beliefs
Martín Quezada, the attorney and civil rights director for the Arizona chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said it was devastating to hear of any violence occurring against the Muslim community, especially during Ramadan.
Quezada said CAIR-AZ is in constant contact with the ICC and mosques across the state about ways to increase security and work with local law enforcement agencies to protect worshipers during the holy month.
"We are going to be engaging in more meetings with the community, there in Tempe, to figure out ways that we can step up those efforts and to respond to what happened," Quezada said.
Zourob said the crescent moon team has been working with CAIR-AZ and other organizations for support when dealing with this incident.
"It absolutely feels very disappointing," Zourob said. "A lot of people have come to us with a lot of love and excitement for this project, whether it's Muslims or non-Muslims, kids who are super excited to see it up there."
This tradition was something the crescent moon team wanted to continue, Zourob said, and it was upsetting that someone destroyed their work.
However, Zourob said the outpouring of support for the project has brought hope.
"I see the unity in our community and other people coming together to show us the care and love for the hours, the money (and) everything that was done to have it come to life," Zourob said.
Edited by Carsten Oyer, Senna James, Sophia Braccio and Ellis Preston.
Reach the reporter at apruiz@asu.edu and follow @andiruiz2405 on X.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on X.
Andi Ruiz is a lead politics reporter at the State Press dedicated to serving her community with truth and honesty in her reporting. She has been working in broadcast and news since high school and was recently an anchor at The Cut Network during her first year at Cronkite. She is going into her second year at ASU as a Barrett Honors student studying journalism and mass communication.
