CAIR

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HADITH OF THE DAY: IT IS BETTER TO FORGIVE - TOP

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "It is better for a leader to make a mistake in forgiving than to make a mistake in punishing."

Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 1011

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CAIR SEEKS HATE CRIME PROBE OF THREATS SENT TO N.C. MOSQUES - TOP
Hate mail author uses racial slurs, has 'no problem killing Muslims'

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 4/24/12) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called on state law enforcement authorities and the FBI to investigate threatening letters sent to a number of North Carolina mosques as possible hate crimes.

CAIR said the Islamic Center of Charlotte, N.C., and other mosques in that state received hate letters filled with racial slurs and stating the author has "no problem killing Muslims." At least one of the letters was mailed from Apex, N.C. The FBI has been notified of the letters.

Video: North Carolina Mosques Receive Threatening Letters
Threat Letter to Islamic Center: We Have No Problem Killing Muslims
Letter Writer to Islamic Center: 'No Problem Killing Muslims'

"Threats to our nation's mosques deserve the same law enforcement attention as threats to any other houses of worship," said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. "State and national law enforcement authorities should not wait until threats turn into actual violence."

He noted that CAIR's Iowa chapter recently called on the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate a letter with "very threatening" language and containing a mysterious powder that was sent to a Muslim representative in the Iowa House.

Hooper said CAIR is asking members of the Muslim community to review security procedures using advice contained in its "Muslim Community Safety Kit."

A number of recent reports have documented the growth and promotion of Islamophobia nationwide.

SEE: Protesters Walk Out of Anti-Islam Event at Temple University

CAIR: Same Hate, New Target
Center for American Progress: Fear, Inc.
Southern Poverty Law Center: Jihad Against Islam
People for the American Way: The Right-Wing Playbook on Anti-Muslim Extremism

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

CONTACT: CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com; CAIR Communications Manager Amina Rubin, 202-488-8787, 202-341-4171, E-Mail: arubin@cair.com

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CAIR: CALIF. MUSLIMS TO VISIT JAPANESE-AMERICAN INTERNMENT CAMP - TOP

(ANAHEIM, CA, 4/24/12) -- On Saturday, April 28, the California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CA), in cooperation with the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR), will take a group of Muslims to attend the 43rd Annual Pilgrimage to the 'Manzanar War Relocation Center' -- one of 10 internment camps that held some 10,000 innocent Japanese-American men, women, and children from the West Coast during World War II. Manzanar was the first camp to be established.

This year's pilgrimage will also commemorate the 70th anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's signing of Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, authorizing the unjust incarceration of Japanese Americans.

The daylong program will feature talks by camp survivors and their children, and by interfaith leaders and activists at the Manzanar cemetery. Keynote address will be delivered by Mitchell T. Maki, vice provost of academic affairs at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Maki was the lead author of "Achieving the Impossible Dream: How Japanese Americans Obtained Redress," a detailed case study of the passage of the 1988 Civil Liberties Act, which documents the course of the redress movement from its roots during World War II.

The keynote address will be followed by an interfaith prayer service involving Buddhist, Christian, Muslim and other faiths. Participants will also learn Ondo dancing and enjoy a performance by UCLA Kyodo Taiko. (More)

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DEADLINE EXTENDED TO MAY 4: APPLY FOR ISF-CAIR SCHOLARSHIP - TOP

The Islamic Scholarship Fund offers a wide range of scholarships based on the fields and majors it supports. ISF also offers many joint scholarship programs with partner organization that share its common mission and vision. ISF is honored to work with the Council on American-Islamic Relations, CAIR to host the ISF-CAIR Scholarship Program.

This scholarship is only open to law and public policy students. Recipients of this scholarship are encouraged to intern with one of the many CAIR offices around the US.

Program Description and Eligibility:

ISF accepts online applications once a year starting in January for a period of three months. [The deadline to apply for this scholarship has been extended until May 4, 2012.]

Each eligible applicant must be:

  • Muslim or an active member of the Muslim community;
  • Currently attending a four-year university in the U.S.;
  • Majoring in public policy, law or a related field;
  • Maintaining a minimum 3.4 grade point average;
  • A citizen or permanent resident of the U.S.;
  • An undergraduate (junior/senior) or of graduate standing.

For more information, click here.

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CAIR-CT REP JOINS PANEL ON RACIAL PROFILING - TOP
Susan Campbell, Hartford Courant, 4/23/12

Come listen to "Racial Profiling: Islamophobia, East Haven, and the School-to-Prison Pipeline" at 7 p.m. Wednesday at St. Joseph College's Mercy Hall Crystal Room.

The panel, sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut, Greater Hartford chapter, and the St. Joseph College School of Humanities and Social Sciences, includes:

  • Michael Lawlor, Under Secretary for criminal justice policy and planning for the state Office of Policy and Management
  • Mongi Dhaoudi, executive director of the Connecticut chapter of the Council of American-Islamic Relations
  • Hannah Benton, staff attorney at Center for Children's Advocacy
  • Khalilah L. Brown-Dean, associate professor of political science, Quinnipiac University.

The moderator is Todd Fernow, University of Connecticut School of Law professor, and director of the Criminal Law Clinic.

The program is free and open to the public. (More)

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VIDEO: CAIR-CA REP DISCUSSES EROSION OF CIVIL LIBERTIES IN WAR ON TERROR - TOP

Topic: Eroding Civil Liberties: From the War on Drugs to the War on Terror
Speaker: Zahra Billoo, CAIR-Northern California Executive Director

April 21, 2012
Booth Auditorium
UC Berkeley Boalt Law School

Watch Zahra's talk here.

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CAIR-ST. LOUIS: JAIL CHANGES POLICIES TO ADDRESS MUSLIM RELIGIOUS CONCERNS (POST-DISPATCH) - TOP
Jennifer Mann, Post-Dispatch, 4/24/12

The St. Louis County jail has decided to change its search policies after hearing from Muslim leaders who were upset over the forced removal of a woman's religious headscarf earlier this year.

From now on, a woman wearing a hijab will be allowed to go into a private room to have the headscarf searched, then will be allowed to put it back on for the rest of the time that she is held at the jail -- at least for as long as jailers are processing her arrest. The jail is still researching how to handle the issue with inmates who are housed there long-term.

The hijab is used by some Muslim women to cover the neck and head when in public or in the presence of males aside from their husbands.

The St. Louis Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations had raised concerns about jail policy last week after learning that Basra Noor, 23, of Ballwin, had hers taken despite her protests after she was arrested Jan. 24 near a West County mosque because of a warrant for an expired car registration.

That prompted a meeting Monday between the group and other Muslim leaders and police and jail officials. (More)

SEE ALSO:

CAIR: MISSOURI COUNTY JAIL TO ALLOW MUSLIM HEADSCARVES (AP) - TOP
Associated Press, 4/24/12

CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) - The St. Louis County jail has adopted a new policy that will let spare Muslim women from having religious headscarves removed in front of male inmates and staff. (More)

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CAIR-CAN: CITY HATE CRIMES TRIPLE NATIONAL AVERAGE: REPORT - TOP
Nick Ashdown, Ottowa Citizen, 4/24/12

Ottawa's rate of reported hate crimes was more than three times higher than the national average in 2010, states a new Statistics Canada report.

The report included all police-reported criminal incidents that were determined to be motivated by hate toward an identifiable group. As in previous years, the most common type of hate crime was mischief, representing 56 per cent of all incidents. This often includes acts of vandalism. ...

Perry and Mendes both said Ottawa Police and grassroots community groups in Ottawa are doing a good job creating an atmosphere where more hate crimes are reported. "They're really campaigning hard," Perry said.

One such community group is the Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CAN). "We encourage Canadian Muslims to report hate crimes," said Ihsaan Gardee, the executive director of CAIR-CAN. The organization provides seminars and educational material to teach people what their rights and responsibilities are in reporting hate crimes.

"A hate crime doesn't just target the individual or the community. It has a ripple effect in terms of how that community is perceived and how they perceive themselves," Gardee said. (More)

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AMNESTY: EUROPE MUST FIGHT ANTI-MUSLIM PREJUDICE - TOP
Angela Charlton, Associated Press, 4/24/12

European laws on what girls and women wear on their heads are encouraging discrimination against Muslims and against a religion that has been part of Europe's fabric for centuries, Amnesty International says in a new report. (More)

You can read the report by Amnesty International here.



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