In cities across the U.S. we are seeing a new battleground in the area of Islamophobia:  Transit ads.  Even though the sides of buses and subway stations are not thought of as a historical battleground for airing political dirty laundry – it seems to be a key strategy by the purveyors of the Islamophobia industry.

Why, you ask?  Well, for starters – the ads are relatively cheap.  With thousands of points of contact (transit travellers) per day, the ads are able to showcase your firm (or hate-group, in the case of Robert Spencer and Pamela Geller) and its message.  Unfortunately, this message brings no positive call to action – only spreading misinformation and ignorance of the religion of Islam.

Here’s a link to a recent NY Times article regarding the issue.

Even though the Geller’s and Spencer’s of the world are relatively obscure in their cause – they thrive off any negative attention and PR that is given to them.  It is for these reasons, that we have seen them begin to take out ads in transportation systems throughout the U.S. – including New York, San Francisco, Washington D.C, and Chicago.

There are many theories as to which approach is the most effective response to ads such as these.  On one hand, the content is so offensive and factually incorrect, that it deserves a response.  Conversely, many will say that its best to just ignore the ads altogether – and to let these hate groups waste their money on ads that will likely change no minds.

Send us your feedback – do you think that it is important to respond to these type of hate-ads with a counter-ad campaign?  Or should these type of ads just be ignored?