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{{short description|American Muslim advocacy group}}{{Infobox organization {{short description|American Muslim advocacy group}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Council on American–Islamic Relations | name = Council on American–Islamic Relations
| type = ] | type = ]
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{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2018}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2018}}
{{Islamophobia}} {{Islamophobia}}
The '''Council on American–Islamic Relations''' ('''CAIR''') is a ] ]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/resources/civil-rights-organizations|title=Civil Rights Organizations — The Civil Rights Project at UCLA|website=The Civil Rights Project (UCLA) website|access-date=November 28, 2016|archive-date=August 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804214723/https://www.civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/resources/civil-rights-organizations|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.citypages.com/news/mystery-letter-to-civil-rights-group-threatens-eradication-of-islam-7641820|title=Mystery letter to civil rights group threatens eradication of Islam - City Pages|first=Susan|last=Du|website=City Pages|access-date=November 28, 2016|archive-date=June 19, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619012729/http://www.citypages.com/news/mystery-letter-to-civil-rights-group-threatens-eradication-of-islam-7641820|url-status=live}}</ref> and ].<ref name=prnewswireactivism/> It is headquartered on ] in ], with regional offices nationwide. Through civil rights actions, media relations, civic engagement, and education, CAIR works to promote social, legal and political activism among ]. The '''Council on American–Islamic Relations''' ('''CAIR''') is a ] ]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/resources/civil-rights-organizations|title=Civil Rights Organizations — The Civil Rights Project at UCLA|website=The Civil Rights Project (UCLA) website|access-date=November 28, 2016|archive-date=August 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804214723/https://www.civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/resources/civil-rights-organizations|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.citypages.com/news/mystery-letter-to-civil-rights-group-threatens-eradication-of-islam-7641820|title=Mystery letter to civil rights group threatens eradication of Islam - City Pages|first=Susan|last=Du|website=City Pages|access-date=November 28, 2016|archive-date=June 19, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619012729/http://www.citypages.com/news/mystery-letter-to-civil-rights-group-threatens-eradication-of-islam-7641820|url-status=live}}</ref> and ].<ref name=prnewswireactivism/> It is headquartered on ] in ], with regional offices nationwide. Through civil rights actions, media relations, civic engagement, and education, CAIR works to promote social, legal and political activism among ].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Aoude |first=Safia |title=Islam Matters - How the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) promotes the legitimacy of American Muslims |url=https://www.academia.edu/30645327/Islam_Matters_How_the_Council_on_American_Islamic_Relations_CAIR_promotes_the_legitimacy_of_American_Muslims |journal=University of Copenhagen |via=Academia.edu}}</ref>


== History == == History ==
=== Early years (1994–2001) === === Early years (1994–2001) ===
CAIR was founded in June 1994.<ref name="north american muslim resource guide"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=oL3ywNT--d4C&dq=%22cair%22+relations&pg=PA133 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Mohamed Nimer, Taylor & Francis, 2002, {{ISBN|978-0-415-93728-3}}.</ref> CAIR's first office was located in Washington, D.C., as is its present-day headquarters on ]. Its founding was partly in response to the film '']'', starring ] which Arab and Muslim groups condemned for its stereotyping of Arab and Muslim villains.<ref name="jack shaheen">], "Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People", 2001, {{ISBN|1-56656-388-7}}, Olive Branch Press</ref> The offices opened a month before the film's release. CAIR's first advocacy campaign was in response to an offensive greeting card that used the term "shia" to refer to human excrement. CAIR led a national campaign and used activists to pressure the greeting card company, which eventually withdrew the card from the market.<ref name="north american muslim resource guide" /><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101112204332/http://www.islamicvoice.com/july.2000/news.htm |date=November 12, 2010 }}. Islamic Voice. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref><ref>Noakes, Greg. "CAIR Counters Anti-Islam Card". Washington Report on Middle East Affairs November/December 1994: 62–64</ref> CAIR was founded in June 1994.<ref name="north american muslim resource guide"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=oL3ywNT--d4C&dq=%22cair%22+relations&pg=PA133 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Mohamed Nimer, Taylor & Francis, 2002, {{ISBN|978-0-415-93728-3}}.</ref> CAIR's first office was located in Washington, D.C., as is its present-day headquarters on ]. Its founding was partly in response to the film '']'', which Arab and Muslim groups condemned for its stereotyping of Arab and Muslim villains.<ref name="jack shaheen">], "Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People", 2001, {{ISBN|1-56656-388-7}}, Olive Branch Press</ref> The offices opened a month before the film's release. CAIR's first advocacy campaign was in response to an offensive greeting card that used the term "shia" to refer to human excrement. CAIR led a national campaign and used activists to pressure the greeting card company, which eventually withdrew the card from the market.<ref name="north american muslim resource guide" /><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101112204332/http://www.islamicvoice.com/july.2000/news.htm |date=November 12, 2010 }}. Islamic Voice. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref><ref>Noakes, Greg. "CAIR Counters Anti-Islam Card". Washington Report on Middle East Affairs November/December 1994: 62–64</ref>


In 1995, CAIR handled its first case of ] discrimination, in which a Muslim employee was denied the right to wear the hijab; this type of complaint became one of the most common received by CAIR's civil rights department.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211855/https://books.google.com/books?id=x03mFxZTv44C&dq=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA57 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Hadda, Yazbeck, and Smith, Jane I. p. 35, Rowman Altamira, 2002, {{ISBN|0-7591-0218-X}}, 9780759102187, accessed November 30, 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w2rc0RI7EqYC|title=The Arab Americans|first=Randa A.|last=Kayyali|date=January 1, 2006|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=9780313332197|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/muslimwomeniname00hadd |url-access=registration |quote=cair Council on American-Islamic Relations. |title=Muslim women in America: the challenge of Islamic identity today |first1=Yvonne |last1=Yazbeck Haddad |first2=Jane I. |last2=Smith |first3=Kathleen M. |last3=Moore |page= |publisher=]|location=US |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-19-517783-1 |access-date=November 20, 2009}}</ref> In 1995, CAIR handled its first case of ] discrimination, in which a Muslim employee was denied the right to wear the hijab; this type of complaint became one of the most common received by CAIR's civil rights department.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211855/https://books.google.com/books?id=x03mFxZTv44C&dq=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA57 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Hadda, Yazbeck, and Smith, Jane I. p. 35, Rowman Altamira, 2002, {{ISBN|0-7591-0218-X}}, 9780759102187, accessed November 30, 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w2rc0RI7EqYC|title=The Arab Americans|first=Randa A.|last=Kayyali|date=January 1, 2006|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=9780313332197|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/muslimwomeniname00hadd |url-access=registration |quote=cair Council on American-Islamic Relations. |title=Muslim women in America: the challenge of Islamic identity today |first1=Yvonne |last1=Yazbeck Haddad |first2=Jane I. |last2=Smith |first3=Kathleen M. |last3=Moore |page= |publisher=]|location=US |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-19-517783-1 |access-date=November 20, 2009}}</ref>
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CAIR continued its advocacy work in the aftermath of the April 19, 1995 ] of the Murrah Federal Building. Following the attack, Muslim-Americans were subjected to an upsurge in harassment and discrimination, including a rise in hate crimes nationally;<ref>A Rush to Judgment: A Special Report on Anti-Muslim Stereotyping. Harassment and Hate Crimes Following the Bombing of Oklahoma City's Murrah Federal Building, April 19, 1995 (Washington, D.C.: Council on American-Islamic Relations, 1995), 9–20.</ref><ref>"Arab-Americans Suffer Hatred after Bombing", ''Chicago Sun-Times'', May 13, 1995</ref> 222 hate crimes against Muslims nationwide were reported in the days immediately following the bombing.<ref>Richard Roper (April 24, 1995). . '']''.{{subscription required}}</ref><ref>James Brooke, (August 28, 1995) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314160317/http://www.nytimes.com/1995/08/28/us/attacks-on-us-muslims-surge-even-as-their-faith-takes-hold.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm |date=March 14, 2017 }} '']'' (accessed 10 October 2020)</ref> The bombing gave CAIR national stature for their efforts to educate the public about Islam and religious bias in America; their report was featured on the front page of '']'' on August 28, 1995, and was subsequently mentioned on '']''.<ref name="north american muslim resource guide" /> CAIR continued its advocacy work in the aftermath of the April 19, 1995 ] of the Murrah Federal Building. Following the attack, Muslim-Americans were subjected to an upsurge in harassment and discrimination, including a rise in hate crimes nationally;<ref>A Rush to Judgment: A Special Report on Anti-Muslim Stereotyping. Harassment and Hate Crimes Following the Bombing of Oklahoma City's Murrah Federal Building, April 19, 1995 (Washington, D.C.: Council on American-Islamic Relations, 1995), 9–20.</ref><ref>"Arab-Americans Suffer Hatred after Bombing", ''Chicago Sun-Times'', May 13, 1995</ref> 222 hate crimes against Muslims nationwide were reported in the days immediately following the bombing.<ref>Richard Roper (April 24, 1995). . '']''.{{subscription required}}</ref><ref>James Brooke, (August 28, 1995) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314160317/http://www.nytimes.com/1995/08/28/us/attacks-on-us-muslims-surge-even-as-their-faith-takes-hold.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm |date=March 14, 2017 }} '']'' (accessed 10 October 2020)</ref> The bombing gave CAIR national stature for their efforts to educate the public about Islam and religious bias in America; their report was featured on the front page of '']'' on August 28, 1995, and was subsequently mentioned on '']''.<ref name="north american muslim resource guide" />


In 1996, CAIR began "CAIR-NET", a read-only e-mail ] aimed to help American Muslims identify and combat anti-Muslim prejudice in the U.S. and Canada. CAIR-NET contains descriptions of news, bias incidents or hate speech and hate crimes, often followed by information as to whom readers may contact to influence resolution of an issue.<ref>Smith, Jane. ''Islam in America''. New York. ], 1999.</ref> CAIR also held its first ] in 1996; CAIR continues to encourage active political participation by American Muslims, for them to address political candidates and elected representatives with greater frequency.<ref>Wilgoren, Debbi. "Making Muslim Voices Heard: To Promote the Vote, Leaders Provide Answers and Forms". '']''. September 14, 1996: B01.</ref> In 1996, CAIR began "CAIR-NET", a read-only e-mail ] aimed to help American Muslims identify and combat anti-Muslim prejudice in the U.S. and Canada. CAIR-NET contained descriptions of news, bias incidents or hate speech and hate crimes, often followed by information as to whom readers may contact to influence resolution of an issue.<ref>Smith, Jane. ''Islam in America''. New York. ], 1999.</ref> CAIR also held its first ] in 1996; CAIR continues to encourage active political participation by American Muslims, for them to address political candidates and elected representatives with greater frequency.<ref>Wilgoren, Debbi. "Making Muslim Voices Heard: To Promote the Vote, Leaders Provide Answers and Forms". '']''. September 14, 1996: B01.</ref>


In 1996, CAIR published a report ''The Usual Suspects'' regarding its perception of anti-Muslim rhetoric in the media after the crash of ]. Their research showed 138 uses of the terms "Muslim" and "Arab" in the 48 hours after the crash in ], ], and ] articles covering the incident. The official ] report said that the crash was most likely caused by mechanical failure.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211855/https://books.google.com/books?id=oL3ywNT--d4C&dq=cair+relations+council&pg=PA133 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Mohamed Nimer, p. 134, Taylor & Francis, 2002, {{ISBN|978-0-415-93728-3}}. Accessed December 9, 2009.</ref> In 1996, CAIR published a report ''The Usual Suspects'' regarding its perception of anti-Muslim rhetoric in the media after the crash of ]. Their research showed 138 uses of the terms "Muslim" and "Arab" in the 48 hours after the crash in ], ], and ] articles covering the incident. The official ] report said that the crash was most likely caused by mechanical failure.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211855/https://books.google.com/books?id=oL3ywNT--d4C&dq=cair+relations+council&pg=PA133 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Mohamed Nimer, p. 134, Taylor & Francis, 2002, {{ISBN|978-0-415-93728-3}}. Accessed December 9, 2009.</ref>
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In 1997, CAIR objected to the production of sneakers made by ] with a design on the heel similar to the Arabic word for "Allah".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510020734/https://www.cincinnati.com/ |date=May 10, 2024 }} The Cincinnati Enquirer, June 25, 1997. Accessed October 24, 2011</ref> As part of an agreement reached between CAIR officials and Nike representatives, Nike apologized to the Muslim community, recalled the products carrying the design, launched an investigation as to how the logo came about, and built a number of children's playgrounds near some Islamic centers in America.<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111112111846/http://articles.cnn.com/1998-11-21/us/9811_21_nike.islamic_1_nihad-awad-playgrounds-cair?_s=PM%3AUS |date=November 12, 2011 }}. Mohamed Nimer, p. 134, Taylor & Francis, 2002, {{ISBN|978-0-415-93728-3}}. Accessed December 9, 2009.</ref> In 1997, CAIR objected to the production of sneakers made by ] with a design on the heel similar to the Arabic word for "Allah".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510020734/https://www.cincinnati.com/ |date=May 10, 2024 }} The Cincinnati Enquirer, June 25, 1997. Accessed October 24, 2011</ref> As part of an agreement reached between CAIR officials and Nike representatives, Nike apologized to the Muslim community, recalled the products carrying the design, launched an investigation as to how the logo came about, and built a number of children's playgrounds near some Islamic centers in America.<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111112111846/http://articles.cnn.com/1998-11-21/us/9811_21_nike.islamic_1_nihad-awad-playgrounds-cair?_s=PM%3AUS |date=November 12, 2011 }}. Mohamed Nimer, p. 134, Taylor & Francis, 2002, {{ISBN|978-0-415-93728-3}}. Accessed December 9, 2009.</ref>


In 1997, as ] are seen as ] by most Muslims, CAIR wrote to United States Supreme Court Chief Justice ] requesting that the sculpted representation of ] on the north frieze inside the Supreme Court building be removed or sanded down. About the request, CAIR spokesman Nihad Awad said, "We believe the court had good intention by honoring the prophet, so we appreciate that. We want to be flexible, and we're willing to pay for the changes ourselves." The court rejected CAIR's request in the end.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904200316/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/supcourt/stories/sculpture.htm |date=September 4, 2017 }} March 8, 1997.</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170219184138/http://www.newsweek.com/how-ban-images-muhammad-came-be-300491 |date=February 19, 2017 }} January 19, 2015.</ref> In 1997, as ] are seen as ] by some Muslims, CAIR wrote to United States Supreme Court Chief Justice ] requesting that the sculpted representation of ] on the north frieze inside the Supreme Court building be removed or sanded down. About the request, CAIR spokesman Nihad Awad said, "We believe the court had good intention by honoring the prophet, so we appreciate that. We want to be flexible, and we're willing to pay for the changes ourselves." The court rejected CAIR's request in the end.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904200316/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/supcourt/stories/sculpture.htm |date=September 4, 2017 }} March 8, 1997.</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170219184138/http://www.newsweek.com/how-ban-images-muhammad-came-be-300491 |date=February 19, 2017 }} January 19, 2015.</ref>


=== Post-9/11 (2001–present) === === Post-9/11 (2001–present) ===
In October 2001, CAIR opposed the ] after the ].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bp6kj6SbgtYC&q=cair+%22random+house%22+%22Council+on+American+Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA71 |last1=Frum |first1=David |last2=Perle |first2=Richard |title=An end to evil: how to win the war on terror |publisher=Random House |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-345-47717-0 |access-date=October 11, 2020 |archive-date=May 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510020839/https://books.google.com/books?id=Bp6kj6SbgtYC&q=cair+%22random+house%22+%22Council+on+American+Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA71#v=onepage&q=cair%20%22random%20house%22%20%22Council%20on%20American%20Islamic%20Relations%22&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> By January 2002, four months after the attacks, the CAIR said that it had received 1,658 reports of discrimination, profiling, harassment, and physical assaults against persons appearing Arab or Muslim, a threefold increase over the prior year. The reports included beatings, death threats, abusive police practices, and employment and airline-related discrimination."<ref>Cole, David. ''Enemy Aliens''. New York. The New Press, 2003. Page 47</ref> CAIR strongly condemned the 9/11 terrorist attacks and has a long history of condemning and combating extremism.<ref></ref> In October 2001, CAIR opposed the ] after the ].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bp6kj6SbgtYC&q=cair+%22random+house%22+%22Council+on+American+Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA71 |last1=Frum |first1=David |last2=Perle |first2=Richard |title=An end to evil: how to win the war on terror |publisher=Random House |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-345-47717-0 |access-date=October 11, 2020 |archive-date=May 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510020839/https://books.google.com/books?id=Bp6kj6SbgtYC&q=cair+%22random+house%22+%22Council+on+American+Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA71#v=onepage&q=cair%20%22random%20house%22%20%22Council%20on%20American%20Islamic%20Relations%22&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> By January 2002, four months after the attacks, the CAIR said that it had received 1,658 reports of discrimination, profiling, harassment, and physical assaults against persons appearing Arab or Muslim, a threefold increase over the prior year. The reports included beatings, death threats, abusive police practices, and employment and airline-related discrimination."<ref>Cole, David. ''Enemy Aliens''. New York. The New Press, 2003. Page 47</ref>


A CAIR initiative funded in part by a $500,000 donation from Saudi Prince ] sent a set of 18 books and tapes to public libraries written by Muslim and non-Muslim authors on Islamic history and practices, as well as an English translation of the ].<ref name="tro ">{{cite news|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dYSdmKGJreEC&q=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA30|last=Tobin|first=Gary A.|author-link=Gary Tobin|year=2008|title=The trouble with textbooks: distorting history and religion|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=9780739130940|access-date=April 19, 2016|archive-date=May 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510020726/https://books.google.com/books?id=dYSdmKGJreEC&q=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA30#v=snippet&q=cair%20%22Council%20on%20American-Islamic%20Relations%22&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> A CAIR initiative funded in part by a $500,000 donation from Saudi Prince ] sent a set of 18 books and tapes to public libraries written by Muslim and non-Muslim authors on Islamic history and practices, as well as an English translation of the ].<ref name="tro">{{cite news|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dYSdmKGJreEC&q=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA30|last=Tobin|first=Gary A.|author-link=Gary Tobin|year=2008|title=The trouble with textbooks: distorting history and religion|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=9780739130940|access-date=April 19, 2016|archive-date=May 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510020726/https://books.google.com/books?id=dYSdmKGJreEC&q=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA30#v=snippet&q=cair%20%22Council%20on%20American-Islamic%20Relations%22&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2003, CAIR employee Randall "Ismael" Royer was indicted for his role in the ].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CG-AjU3rraQC&q=cair%20relations%20council|title=Hamas: Politics, Charity, and Terrorism in the Service of Jihad|page=152|first1=Matthew|last1=Levitt|first2=Dennis|last2=Ross|date=January 1, 2007|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0300122589|via=Google Books|access-date=October 11, 2020|archive-date=May 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510020646/https://books.google.com/books?id=CG-AjU3rraQC&q=cair%20relations%20council#v=snippet&q=cair%20relations%20council&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref>


In 2005, CAIR coordinated the joint release of a ] by 344 American Muslim organizations, mosques, and imams nationwide that stated: "Islam strictly condemns ] and the use of violence against innocent lives. There is no justification in Islam for extremism or terrorism. Targeting civilians' life and property through ]s or any other method of attack is '']'' or forbidden—and those who commit these barbaric acts are criminals, not ]s."<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070814183744/http://www.cair.com/FatwaJuly2005.pdf |date=August 14, 2007 }}. CAIR.com.</ref> The fatwa cited passages from the Quran and hadith that prohibit violence against innocent people and injustice, and was signed by the ]. Authors Kim Ezra Shienbaum and Jamal Hasan felt it did not go far enough in that it did not address attacks on military targets.<ref>Shienbaum, Kim Ezra and Hasan, Jamal (2006). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=RlzoCz83O7IC&dq=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PT20 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. p. xxi. Academica Press LLC. {{ISBN|978-1-933146-19-5}}. Accessed November 30, 2009.</ref> In 2005, CAIR coordinated the joint release of a ] by 344 American Muslim organizations, mosques, and imams nationwide that stated: "Islam strictly condemns ] and the use of violence against innocent lives. There is no justification in Islam for extremism or terrorism. Targeting civilians' life and property through ]s or any other method of attack is '']'' or forbidden—and those who commit these barbaric acts are criminals, not ]s."<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070814183744/http://www.cair.com/FatwaJuly2005.pdf |date=August 14, 2007 }}. CAIR.com.</ref> The fatwa cited passages from the Quran and hadith that prohibit violence against innocent people and injustice, and was signed by the ]. Authors Kim Ezra Shienbaum and Jamal Hasan felt it did not go far enough in that it did not address attacks on military targets.<ref>Shienbaum, Kim Ezra and Hasan, Jamal (2006). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=RlzoCz83O7IC&dq=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PT20 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. p. xxi. Academica Press LLC. {{ISBN|978-1-933146-19-5}}. Accessed November 30, 2009.</ref>
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Also in 2005, following the ] at the ], CAIR initiated an "Explore the Quran" campaign, aimed at providing free copies of the Quran to any person who requested it.<ref>Tariq Ghazi, Muhammad (2006). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=FxZ2oS7tNX0C&dq=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA137 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. AuthorHouse. p. 119. {{ISBN|978-1-4259-4764-4}}, accessed November 30, 2009.</ref> Also in 2005, following the ] at the ], CAIR initiated an "Explore the Quran" campaign, aimed at providing free copies of the Quran to any person who requested it.<ref>Tariq Ghazi, Muhammad (2006). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=FxZ2oS7tNX0C&dq=cair+%22Council+on+American-Islamic+Relations%22&pg=PA137 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. AuthorHouse. p. 119. {{ISBN|978-1-4259-4764-4}}, accessed November 30, 2009.</ref>


In 2006, during the ], CAIR responded by launching an educational program "Explore the Life of Muhammad", to bring "people of all faiths together to learn more about the Islamic Prophet Muhammad and to use mutual understanding as a counterweight to the tensions created by the cartoon controversy".<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090917160734/http://www.cair.com/Muhammad/ |date=September 17, 2009 }}. CAIR. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927204654/http://www2.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/02-14-2006/0004282099&EDATE=Islam%20in%20America%20Ad%20Campaign |date=September 27, 2011 }}. PRNewswire.com. February 14, 2006. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref> It provided free copies of a DVD or book about the life of Muhammad to any person who requested it. Almost 16,000 Americans requested materials.<ref name="ReferenceB"/><ref name="Muslimnews">{{cite news |url=http://www.muslimnews.co.uk/news/news.php?article=10642 |title=Assimilation, tolerance mark U.S. Muslims' reaction to cartoons |last=Parry |first=Wayne |work=] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322030739/http://www.muslimnews.co.uk/news/news.php?article=10642 |archive-date=March 22, 2012 |access-date=August 8, 2017 }}</ref> In 2006, during the ], CAIR responded by launching an educational program "Explore the Life of Muhammad", to bring "people of all faiths together to learn more about the Islamic Prophet Muhammad and to use mutual understanding as a counterweight to the tensions created by the cartoon controversy".<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090917160734/http://www.cair.com/Muhammad/ |date=September 17, 2009 }}. CAIR. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927204654/http://www2.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/02-14-2006/0004282099&EDATE=Islam%20in%20America%20Ad%20Campaign |date=September 27, 2011 }}. PRNewswire.com. February 14, 2006. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref> It provided free copies of a DVD or book about the life of Muhammad to any person who requested it. Almost 16,000 Americans requested materials.<ref name="ReferenceB"> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101006012822/http://www.cair.com/AboutUs/25FactsAboutCAIR.aspx |date=October 6, 2010 }}. Cair.com. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref><ref name="Muslimnews">{{cite news |url=http://www.muslimnews.co.uk/news/news.php?article=10642 |title=Assimilation, tolerance mark U.S. Muslims' reaction to cartoons |last=Parry |first=Wayne |work=] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322030739/http://www.muslimnews.co.uk/news/news.php?article=10642 |archive-date=March 22, 2012 |access-date=August 8, 2017 }}</ref>


In June 2006, CAIR announced a $50 million project to create a better understanding of Islam and Muslims in the US. ($10 million per year for five years), in a project to be spearheaded by ], a former US Congressman.<ref>{{cite news|author=Javid Hassan|title=Media Campaign in US to Dispel Islamophobia|url=http://www.arabnews.com/?article=84122|newspaper=]|date=June 21, 2006|access-date=November 25, 2006|archive-date=September 30, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930202349/http://www.arabnews.com/?article=84122|url-status=live}}</ref> In June 2006, CAIR announced a $50 million project to create a better understanding of Islam and Muslims in the US. ($10 million per year for five years), in a project to be spearheaded by ], a former US Congressman.<ref>{{cite news|author=Javid Hassan|title=Media Campaign in US to Dispel Islamophobia|url=http://www.arabnews.com/?article=84122|newspaper=]|date=June 21, 2006|access-date=November 25, 2006|archive-date=September 30, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930202349/http://www.arabnews.com/?article=84122|url-status=live}}</ref>
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CAIR has opposed proposed United States legislation and executive orders which would have designated the ] as a foreign terrorist organization, saying that such a designation would "inevitably be used in a political campaign to attack those same groups and individuals, to marginalize the American Muslim community and to demonize Islam".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905234026/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/07/world/middleeast/muslim-brotherhood-terrorism-trump.html |date=September 5, 2017 }}, NY Times, Peter Baker, February 7, 2017</ref> CAIR has opposed proposed United States legislation and executive orders which would have designated the ] as a foreign terrorist organization, saying that such a designation would "inevitably be used in a political campaign to attack those same groups and individuals, to marginalize the American Muslim community and to demonize Islam".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905234026/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/07/world/middleeast/muslim-brotherhood-terrorism-trump.html |date=September 5, 2017 }}, NY Times, Peter Baker, February 7, 2017</ref>


In 2021 the director of the San Francisco branch of CAIR, Zahra Billoo, gave a speech labeling ]s and major Jewish organizations including ] and the ADL as "enemies" and called for synagogues and these organizations to be monitored.<ref>{{cite news|title=CAIR supports member that said 'Zionist synagogues' behind Islamophobia|url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/cair-supports-member-that-said-zionist-synagogues-behind-islamophobia/ar-AARJG62|access-date=2021-12-16|website=MSN|archive-date=December 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211216204542/https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/cair-supports-member-that-said-zionist-synagogues-behind-islamophobia/ar-AARJG62|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Rosenfeld |first=Arno |date=December 9, 2021 |title=Muslim leader's warning about Hillel, ADL and other pro-Israel groups prompts backlash |url=https://forward.com/news/479293/muslim-leaders-warning-about-pro-israel-groups-such-as-hillel-and-adl/ |access-date=2021-12-16 |website=The Forward |language=en-US |archive-date=December 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211210170235/https://forward.com/news/479293/muslim-leaders-warning-about-pro-israel-groups-such-as-hillel-and-adl/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite news|last=Stutman|first=Gabe|title=California Muslim leader warns about 'polite Zionists,' drawing rebuke from ADL|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/california-muslim-leader-warns-about-polite-zionists-drawing-rebuke-from-adl/|access-date=2021-12-16|website=The Times of Israel|language=en-US|archive-date=December 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211220023426/https://www.timesofisrael.com/california-muslim-leader-warns-about-polite-zionists-drawing-rebuke-from-adl/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite news|title=CAIR supports member that said 'Zionist synagogues' behind Islamophobia|url=https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/cair-supports-member-that-said-zionist-synagogues-behind-islamophobia-688510|access-date=2021-12-16|newspaper=The Jerusalem Post|language=en-US|archive-date=December 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211218135528/https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/cair-supports-member-that-said-zionist-synagogues-behind-islamophobia-688510|url-status=live}}</ref> She claimed these organizations were part of a "a well-funded ] to marginalize us. We have to connect the dots between the organizations that promote ]. They are the same ones that want to pass anti-] legislation."<ref name=":3" /> She went on to denounce a ] to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying "Allah has promised us victory."<ref name=":2" /> Her remarks prompted ], CEO of the ADL, to accuse Billoo of promoting ] rhetoric. On December 11, CAIR responded by defending Billoo's remarks.<ref>{{cite news|last=Shapiro|first=Dmitriy|title=CAIR Backs Leader After 'Virulently Antisemitic' Speech Attacking Mainstream Jewish Entities|date=December 15, 2021|url=https://www.jewishpress.com/news/islamists-news/cair-backs-leader-after-virulently-antisemitic-speech-attacking-mainstream-jewish-entities/2021/12/15/|access-date=2021-12-16|language=en-US|archive-date=December 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211216224557/https://www.jewishpress.com/news/islamists-news/cair-backs-leader-after-virulently-antisemitic-speech-attacking-mainstream-jewish-entities/2021/12/15/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":3" /> In 2021 the director of the San Francisco branch of CAIR, Zahra Billoo, gave a speech in which she denounced a ] to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and stated that "We need to pay attention" to the ADL and Hillel, "because just because they are your friends today, doesn't mean that they have your back when it comes to human rights." Later on in her speech, Billoo told the audience to "know your enemies".<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Stutman |first=Gabe |title=California Muslim leader warns about 'polite Zionists,' drawing rebuke from ADL |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/california-muslim-leader-warns-about-polite-zionists-drawing-rebuke-from-adl/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211220023426/https://www.timesofisrael.com/california-muslim-leader-warns-about-polite-zionists-drawing-rebuke-from-adl/ |archive-date=December 20, 2021 |access-date=2021-12-16 |website=The Times of Israel |language=en-US}}</ref> Her remarks prompted ], CEO of the ADL, to accuse Billoo of promoting ] rhetoric. On December 11, CAIR responded by defending Billoo's remarks.<ref>{{cite news|last=Shapiro|first=Dmitriy|title=CAIR Backs Leader After 'Virulently Antisemitic' Speech Attacking Mainstream Jewish Entities|date=December 15, 2021|url=https://www.jewishpress.com/news/islamists-news/cair-backs-leader-after-virulently-antisemitic-speech-attacking-mainstream-jewish-entities/2021/12/15/|access-date=2021-12-16|language=en-US|archive-date=December 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211216224557/https://www.jewishpress.com/news/islamists-news/cair-backs-leader-after-virulently-antisemitic-speech-attacking-mainstream-jewish-entities/2021/12/15/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite news |title=CAIR supports member that said 'Zionist synagogues' behind Islamophobia |url=https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/cair-supports-member-that-said-zionist-synagogues-behind-islamophobia-688510 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211218135528/https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/cair-supports-member-that-said-zionist-synagogues-behind-islamophobia-688510 |archive-date=December 18, 2021 |access-date=2021-12-16 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |language=en-US}}</ref>

In December 2023, the Biden administration disavowed and cut off contact with CAIR after its executive director stated they were "happy to see" Palestinians break out of Gaza on October 7,<ref>{{cite news |title=Inside Biden's Broken Relationship With Muslim and Arab American Leaders|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/us/politics/biden-muslim-arab-americans-gaza.html|work=The New York Times |date=May 10, 2024|last1=Nehamas|first1=Nicholas|last2=Epstein|first2=Reid J.|access-date=May 12, 2024|archive-date=May 11, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240511001414/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/us/politics/biden-muslim-arab-americans-gaza.html|url-status=live|issn=0362-4331|quote=There are limits to the people and groups that Mr. Biden’s White House will engage with about the Gaza conflict. The administration disavowed and cut off communication with the Council on American-Islamic Relations in December after its executive director said that he “was happy to see” Palestinians break out of Gaza on Oct. 7.}}</ref> and that Palestinians "have the right to self-defense" but that Israel "as an occupying power" does not.<ref name="NYT Dec 8 2023">{{cite news |title=White House Disavows U.S. Islamic Group After Leader's Oct. 7 Remarks|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/08/us/politics/white-house-cair-nihad-awad.html|work=The New York Times |date=December 8, 2023|last1=Baker|first1=Peter|access-date=May 12, 2024|archive-date=May 9, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240509190936/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/08/us/politics/white-house-cair-nihad-awad.html|url-status=live|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>


== Projects and media == == Projects and media ==
Local CAIR chapters such as the Michigan chapter organized a "Remember Through Service" campaign which was a video and billboard media campaign which featured positive representations of Muslim-Americans including a Muslim first responder during the September 11 World Trade Center events.<ref>{{cite news|title=CAIR-MI launches 'Remembering Through Service' campaign in advance on 9/11 anniversary|access-date=January 24, 2014|url=http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2011/09/cair-mi_launches_remembering_t.html|newspaper=All Michigan|date=September 7, 2011|archive-date=February 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201232030/http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2011/09/cair-mi_launches_remembering_t.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
CAIR conducts research on the American Muslim community, releasing annual reports on public opinion and demographic statistics on the community, as well as annual Civil Rights reports concerning issues such as hate crimes, discrimination, and profiling.{{citation needed|date=January 2014}} It also sponsors voter registration drives and outreach, and interfaith relations with other religious groups in America.<ref name="mission">{{Cite web|url=http://sun.cair.com/AboutUs/VisionMissionCorePrinciples.aspx|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091016040309/http://sun.cair.com/AboutUs/VisionMissionCorePrinciples.aspx|url-status=dead|title=CAIR's Vision, Mission, and Core Principles|archivedate=October 16, 2009}}</ref>

Local CAIR chapters such as the Michigan chapter organized a "Remember Through Service" campaign which was a video and billboard media campaign which featured positive representations of Muslim-Americans including a Muslim first responder during the September 11 World Trade Center events.<ref>{{cite news|title=CAIR-MI launches 'Remembering Through Service' campaign in advance on 9/11 anniversary|access-date=January 24, 2014|url=http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2011/09/cair-mi_launches_remembering_t.html|newspaper=All Michigan|date=September 7, 2011|archive-date=February 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201232030/http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2011/09/cair-mi_launches_remembering_t.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The CAIR Arizona Chapter works with the non-partisan ]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.voteriders.org/partners/|title=Partner Organizations • VoteRiders|access-date=November 6, 2022|archive-date=October 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221019003103/https://www.voteriders.org/partners/|url-status=live}}</ref> organization to spread state-specific information on voter ID requirements.


== Litigation == == Litigation ==
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The 2009 book '']'' by Paul David Gaubatz and ] portrays CAIR "as a subversive organization allied with international terrorists".<ref name=co>, '']'', November 10, 2009, accessed November 17, 2009 {{Dead link|date=September 2017}}</ref><ref name="mcclatchydc200911"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510021240/https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/article24563338.html |date=May 10, 2024 }}, McClatchy Newspapers, Michael Doyle, November 9, 2009</ref> The 2009 book '']'' by Paul David Gaubatz and ] portrays CAIR "as a subversive organization allied with international terrorists".<ref name=co>, '']'', November 10, 2009, accessed November 17, 2009 {{Dead link|date=September 2017}}</ref><ref name="mcclatchydc200911"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510021240/https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/article24563338.html |date=May 10, 2024 }}, McClatchy Newspapers, Michael Doyle, November 9, 2009</ref>


Consequently, CAIR brought a federal civil lawsuit in 2009 against Dave Gaubatz and his son for allegedly stealing documents, which were used in the making of Gaubatz's book.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2009cv2030-10|title=Memorandum Opinion|date=November 3, 2009|publisher=United States District Court for the District of Columbia|access-date=December 1, 2009|archive-date=May 27, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527231308/https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2009cv2030-10|url-status=live}}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091113082123/http://www.kansascity.com/444/story/1559014.html |date=November 13, 2009 }}, '']'', November 9, 2009, accessed November 15, 2009</ref><ref>Abbott, Ryan (November 2, 2009). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716031927/http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/11/02/Muslims_Say_Author_Spied_%26_Trespassed.htm |date=July 16, 2011 }}. ''Courthouse News''. Accessed November 17, 2009]</ref><ref>Levine, Mike (November 11, 2009). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924134209/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/11/11/fbi-ties-cair-remain-strained-obama-administration/ |date=September 24, 2015 }}. Fox News. Retrieved November 15, 2009.</ref> ] ] concluded that the Gaubatzs "unlawfully obtained access to, and have already caused repeated ] of, material containing CAIR's proprietary, confidential and ]," which CAIR says included names, addresses, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of CAIR employees and donors. As a result, the judge ordered Gaubatz to remove certain documents from his website. Judge Kollar-Kotelly also said that CAIR's employees have reported a dramatic increase in the number of threatening communications since the release of Mr. Gaubatz's book.<ref name="mcclatchydc200911"/> Consequently, CAIR brought a federal civil lawsuit in 2009 against Dave Gaubatz and his son for allegedly stealing documents, which were used in the making of Gaubatz's book.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2009cv2030-10|title=Memorandum Opinion|date=November 3, 2009|publisher=United States District Court for the District of Columbia|access-date=December 1, 2009|archive-date=May 27, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527231308/https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2009cv2030-10|url-status=live}}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091113082123/http://www.kansascity.com/444/story/1559014.html |date=November 13, 2009 }}, '']'', November 9, 2009, accessed November 15, 2009</ref><ref>Abbott, Ryan (November 2, 2009). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716031927/http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/11/02/Muslims_Say_Author_Spied_%26_Trespassed.htm |date=July 16, 2011 }}. ''Courthouse News''. Accessed November 17, 2009]</ref><ref>Levine, Mike (November 11, 2009). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924134209/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/11/11/fbi-ties-cair-remain-strained-obama-administration/ |date=September 24, 2015 }}. Fox News. Retrieved November 15, 2009.</ref> ] ] concluded that the Gaubatzs "unlawfully obtained access to, and have already caused repeated ] of, material containing CAIR's proprietary, confidential and ]," which CAIR says included names, addresses, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of CAIR employees and donors. As a result, the judge ordered Gaubatz to remove certain documents from his website. Judge Kollar-Kotelly also said that CAIR's employees have reported a dramatic increase in the number of threatening communications since the release of Gaubatz's book.<ref name="mcclatchydc200911"/>


== Operations == == Operations ==
CAIR's literature describes the group as promoting understanding of Islam and protecting Muslim civil liberties. It has intervened on behalf of many American Muslims who claim discrimination, profiling, or harassment.<ref name='CAIR-25FACTS'>{{cite web |url=http://www.cair.com/factsaboutcair.asp |title=25 Facts about CAIR: Did you know? |access-date=August 25, 2007 |publisher=Council on American-Islamic Relations |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070826144932/http://www.cair.com/factsaboutcair.asp |archive-date=August 26, 2007 }}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=jXl2Z2PI3xMC&dq=%22cair%22+relations&pg=PA156 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Zahid Hussain Bukhari, Rowman Altamira, 2004, {{ISBN|0-7591-0613-4}}, 9780759106130</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qdRx7qLF8KIC|title=Muslims in the West: From Sojourners to Citizens|first=Yvonne Yazbeck|last=Haddad|date=April 11, 2002|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=9780198033752|via=Google Books}}</ref> CAIR is a nonprofit ] organization with affiliates in 20 states (many of which manage multiple offices), and 33 chapters in the US. CAIR and its affiliates are managed by board members from 50 American cities, and combined employ more than 70 full-time staff.<ref name="ReferenceB"> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101006012822/http://www.cair.com/AboutUs/25FactsAboutCAIR.aspx |date=October 6, 2010 }}. Cair.com. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref> CAIR's literature describes the group as promoting understanding of Islam and protecting Muslim civil liberties. It has intervened on behalf of many American Muslims who claim discrimination, profiling, or harassment.<ref name='CAIR-25FACTS'>{{cite web |url=http://www.cair.com/factsaboutcair.asp |title=25 Facts about CAIR: Did you know? |access-date=August 25, 2007 |publisher=Council on American-Islamic Relations |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070826144932/http://www.cair.com/factsaboutcair.asp |archive-date=August 26, 2007 }}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917211856/https://books.google.com/books?id=jXl2Z2PI3xMC&dq=%22cair%22+relations&pg=PA156 |date=September 17, 2023 }}. Zahid Hussain Bukhari, Rowman Altamira, 2004, {{ISBN|0-7591-0613-4}}, 9780759106130</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qdRx7qLF8KIC|title=Muslims in the West: From Sojourners to Citizens|first=Yvonne Yazbeck|last=Haddad|date=April 11, 2002|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=9780198033752|via=Google Books}}</ref>


== Controversies == == Controversies ==
Critics of CAIR have accused it of pursuing an ] agenda,<ref name="scr" /><ref name="auto">{{cite news |last=Sethi |first=Arjun Singh |date=February 8, 2017 |title=Calling the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group would hurt all American Muslims |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/02/08/calling-the-muslim-brotherhood-a-terrorist-group-would-hurt-all-american-muslims/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328070152/https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/02/08/calling-the-muslim-brotherhood-a-terrorist-group-would-hurt-all-american-muslims/ |archive-date=March 28, 2019 |access-date=March 10, 2018 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref><ref name="Wapo20141107" /> being an apologist for extremism,<ref name="NYT Dec 8 2023" /> and claimed the group is connected to ] and the ] due to a purported connection to the ].<ref name="foxnews.com" /><ref name="auto1">http://coop.txnd.uscourts.gov/judges/hlf2.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171128132942/http://coop.txnd.uscourts.gov/judges/hlf2.html|date=November 28, 2017}} Elbarasse Search 1 -40 US v Holy Land Foundation (HLF) trial (Dallas, 2008), the largest terrorism financing and Hamas trial in American history</ref> CAIR denies such links, and ], a fact checker at '']'', has stated such allegations are "unfair" since CAIR has never been charged with criminal activity and maintains its tax-exempt nonprofit status.<ref name="Wapo20141107" /><ref>{{cite news |last=Kessler |first=Glenn |date=March 10, 2011 |title=The King hearings: Is CAIR a 'terrorist organization'? |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/the-king-hearings-is-cair-a-terrorist-organization/2011/03/10/AB3AdTQ_blog.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514115718/https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/the-king-hearings-is-cair-a-terrorist-organization/2011/03/10/AB3AdTQ_blog.html |archive-date=May 14, 2021 |access-date= |newspaper=The Washington Post |quote=CAIR itself has never been charged with criminal activity... The repeated references to CAIR being an 'unindicted co-conspirator' is one of those true facts that ultimately gives a false impression.}}</ref>

=== Gender bias === === Gender bias ===
CAIR has been accused of ignoring sexual misconduct involving its leaders.<ref>{{cite news|last=Company|first=Tampa Publishing|title=Tampa Muslim civil rights leader accused of abuse, harassment|url=https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida/2021/04/16/tampa-muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-abuse-harassment/|access-date=2021-06-07|website=Tampa Bay Times|language=en|archive-date=June 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602222540/https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida/2021/04/16/tampa-muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-abuse-harassment/|url-status=live}}</ref> ] reported: "When concerned parties brought allegations to senior CAIR officials in Washington, D.C., and Florida, former employees said, there was little, if any, follow-up action. They said leaders were aware of some of the allegations as early as 2016."<ref name=":1" /> NPR "interviewed 18 former employees at the national office and several prominent chapters who said there was a general lack of accountability when it came to perceived gender bias, religious bias or mismanagement".<ref name=":1">{{cite news|last1=Fadel|first1=Leila|date=15 April 2021|title=Muslim Civil Rights Leader Accused Of Harassment, Misconduct|language=en|publisher=NPR|url=https://www.npr.org/2021/04/15/984572867/muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-harassment-misconduct|access-date=19 May 2021|archive-date=May 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519080127/https://www.npr.org/2021/04/15/984572867/muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-harassment-misconduct|url-status=live}}</ref> A Florida CAIR chapter has been accused of ignoring misconduct involving its leaders.<ref>{{cite news|last=Company|first=Tampa Publishing|title=Tampa Muslim civil rights leader accused of abuse, harassment|url=https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida/2021/04/16/tampa-muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-abuse-harassment/|access-date=2021-06-07|website=Tampa Bay Times|language=en|archive-date=June 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602222540/https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida/2021/04/16/tampa-muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-abuse-harassment/|url-status=live}}</ref> ] reported: "When concerned parties brought allegations to senior CAIR officials in Washington, D.C., and Florida, former employees said, there was little, if any, follow-up action. They said leaders were aware of some of the allegations as early as 2016."<ref name=":1" /> NPR "interviewed 18 former employees at the national office and several prominent chapters who said there was a general lack of accountability when it came to perceived gender bias, religious bias or mismanagement".<ref name=":1">{{cite news|last1=Fadel|first1=Leila|date=15 April 2021|title=Muslim Civil Rights Leader Accused Of Harassment, Misconduct|language=en|publisher=NPR|url=https://www.npr.org/2021/04/15/984572867/muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-harassment-misconduct|access-date=19 May 2021|archive-date=May 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519080127/https://www.npr.org/2021/04/15/984572867/muslim-civil-rights-leader-accused-of-harassment-misconduct|url-status=live}}</ref>


=== Anti-union efforts === === Labor organizing ===
NPR's investigation reported that CAIR "thwart employees' efforts to unionize in the national office in 2016".<ref name=":1" /> "Service Employees International Union Local 500 said in filings Wednesday that the Council on American-Islamic Relations was trying to bust its effort to organize the civil rights group's staff. CAIR responded with a statement Thursday calling the charge 'meritless'."<ref>{{cite news|date=2017-04-20|title=Labor group charges union busting by CAIR|url=https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/labor-group-charges-union-busting-by-cair|access-date=2021-05-28|website=The Washington Examiner|language=en|archive-date=November 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112042452/https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/labor-group-charges-union-busting-by-cair|url-status=live}}</ref> NPR's investigation reported that CAIR "thwart employees' efforts to unionize in the national office in 2016".<ref name=":1" /> "Service Employees International Union Local 500 said in filings Wednesday that the Council on American-Islamic Relations was trying to bust its effort to organize the civil rights group's staff. CAIR responded with a statement Thursday calling the charge 'meritless'."<ref>{{cite news|date=2017-04-20|title=Labor group charges union busting by CAIR|url=https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/labor-group-charges-union-busting-by-cair|access-date=2021-05-28|website=The Washington Examiner|language=en|archive-date=November 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112042452/https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/labor-group-charges-union-busting-by-cair|url-status=live}}</ref>


=== Designation as terrorist organization by UAE=== === Designation as terrorist organization by UAE===
In November 2014, CAIR was designated a terrorist organization by the ],<ref name="wam.ae">{{cite news|url=http://wam.ae/en/details/1395272478814|title=UAE Cabinet approves list of designated terrorist organisations, groups|date=November 15, 2014|newspaper=]|access-date=September 11, 2017|archive-date=June 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612165042/http://wam.ae/en/details/1395272478814|url-status=live}}</ref> due to alleged ties to the ].<ref name="Wapo20141107"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180804150441/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/11/17/why-the-u-a-e-is-calling-2-american-groups-terrorists/ |date=August 4, 2018 }} November 17, 2014</ref><ref name="GulfNews20141116">Samir Salama (November 16, 2014). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910125723/http://gulfnews.com/news/uae/government/uae-addresses-root-causes-of-terror-1.1413289 |date=September 10, 2017 }}. ''Gulf News''.</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Perry Chiaramonte |title=US group CAIR named terrorist organization by United Arab Emirates |url=http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/11/17/us-group-cair-added-to-terror-list-by-united-arab-emirates/?intcmp=latestnews |publisher=Fox News |date=November 17, 2014 |access-date=January 24, 2015 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924173511/http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/11/17/us-group-cair-added-to-terror-list-by-united-arab-emirates/?intcmp=latestnews |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280972910|title=Securing a Dynamic and Open Economy: The UAE's Quest for Stability|first1=Rashed|last1=Lekhraibani|first2=Emilie|last2=Rutledge|first3=Ingo|last3=Forstenlechner|date=June 1, 2015|journal=Middle East Policy|volume=22|issue=2|pages=108–124|via=ResearchGate|doi=10.1111/mepo.12132|access-date=October 11, 2020|archive-date=May 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510021127/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280972910_Securing_a_Dynamic_and_Open_Economy_The_UAE's_Quest_for_Stability|url-status=live}}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911115223/http://www.agsiw.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/UAE-Security_ONLINE.pdf |date=September 11, 2017 }}. Ibish Hussein, 2017, pages 40-41</ref> UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs ] said groups, such as CAIR, may appeal the designation if their "approach has changed", as the law contains clauses allowing "organizations the availability to appeal through evidence and via the courts to have their names eliminated from the list". Gargash rejected criticism of the designation, saying "The noise (by) some Western organizations over the UAE's terrorism list originates in groups that are linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and many of them work on incitement and creating an environment of extremism."<ref name="Reuters20141120"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170915023451/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-emirates-politics-brotherhood/uae-official-says-groups-may-appeal-against-inclusion-on-terror-list-idUSKCN0J41O420141120 |date=September 15, 2017 }}, Reuters, November 20, 2014</ref> In November 2014, CAIR was designated a terrorist organization by the ],<ref name="wam.ae">{{cite news|url=http://wam.ae/en/details/1395272478814|title=UAE Cabinet approves list of designated terrorist organisations, groups|date=November 15, 2014|newspaper=]|access-date=September 11, 2017|archive-date=June 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612165042/http://wam.ae/en/details/1395272478814|url-status=live}}</ref> which claimed that the organization has ties ].<ref name="Wapo20141107"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180804150441/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/11/17/why-the-u-a-e-is-calling-2-american-groups-terrorists/ |date=August 4, 2018 }} November 17, 2014</ref><ref name="GulfNews20141116">Samir Salama (November 16, 2014). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910125723/http://gulfnews.com/news/uae/government/uae-addresses-root-causes-of-terror-1.1413289 |date=September 10, 2017 }}. ''Gulf News''.</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Perry Chiaramonte |title=US group CAIR named terrorist organization by United Arab Emirates |url=http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/11/17/us-group-cair-added-to-terror-list-by-united-arab-emirates/?intcmp=latestnews |publisher=Fox News |date=November 17, 2014 |access-date=January 24, 2015 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924173511/http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/11/17/us-group-cair-added-to-terror-list-by-united-arab-emirates/?intcmp=latestnews |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280972910|title=Securing a Dynamic and Open Economy: The UAE's Quest for Stability|first1=Rashed|last1=Lekhraibani|first2=Emilie|last2=Rutledge|first3=Ingo|last3=Forstenlechner|date=June 1, 2015|journal=Middle East Policy|volume=22|issue=2|pages=108–124|via=ResearchGate|doi=10.1111/mepo.12132|access-date=October 11, 2020|archive-date=May 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510021127/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280972910_Securing_a_Dynamic_and_Open_Economy_The_UAE's_Quest_for_Stability|url-status=live}}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911115223/http://www.agsiw.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/UAE-Security_ONLINE.pdf |date=September 11, 2017 }}. Ibish Hussein, 2017, pages 40-41</ref> UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs ] rejected criticism of the designation, saying that "The noise (by) some Western organizations over the UAE's terrorism list originates in groups that are linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and many of them work on incitement and creating an environment of extremism."<ref name="Reuters20141120"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170915023451/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-emirates-politics-brotherhood/uae-official-says-groups-may-appeal-against-inclusion-on-terror-list-idUSKCN0J41O420141120 |date=September 15, 2017 }}, Reuters, November 20, 2014</ref>
CAIR called the move "shocking and bizarre", and some international terrorism analysts were also critical. ''The Washington Post'' wrote: "CAIR and the Muslim American Society are not alone in their shock. Diverse groups across Europe were also added to the list, leaving many observers perplexed at the scope and sheer scale of the list. Norway's foreign ministry publicly requested an explanation as to why one of the country's largest Islamic groups, the ], was included, and the U.S. State Department said they would be seeking more information from the U.A.E."<ref name="Wapo20141107"/> In January 2015, CAIR said it would seek to appeal the designation in the UAE.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911114701/https://www.thenational.ae/uae/government/two-groups-on-uae-terror-list-set-to-appeal-1.122198 |date=September 11, 2017 }}, The National, Lindsay Carroll, January 14, 2015</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911174612/http://washington.cbslocal.com/2015/01/16/us-muslim-rights-group-cair-seeks-removal-from-uae-terror-list/ |date=September 11, 2017 }}, CBS DC (Associated Press wire), January 16, 2015</ref> CAIR called the move "shocking and bizarre", and some international American terrorism analysts were also critical. ''The Washington Post'' wrote: "CAIR and the Muslim American Society are not alone in their shock. Diverse groups across Europe were also added to the list, leaving many observers perplexed at the scope and sheer scale of the list. Norway's foreign ministry publicly requested an explanation as to why one of the country's largest Islamic groups, the ], was included, and the U.S. State Department said they would be seeking more information from the U.A.E."<ref name="Wapo20141107"/> In January 2015, CAIR said it would seek to appeal the designation in the UAE.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911114701/https://www.thenational.ae/uae/government/two-groups-on-uae-terror-list-set-to-appeal-1.122198 |date=September 11, 2017 }}, The National, Lindsay Carroll, January 14, 2015</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911174612/http://washington.cbslocal.com/2015/01/16/us-muslim-rights-group-cair-seeks-removal-from-uae-terror-list/ |date=September 11, 2017 }}, CBS DC (Associated Press wire), January 16, 2015</ref> CAIR has criticized UAE for targeting and detaining American Muslims, such as the civil rights attorney and human rights activist Asim Ghafoor, the former attorney of the ]'','' the ''Washington Post'' journalist ] in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |title=Why the UAE is Obsessed with Targeting American Muslim Activists Like Asim Ghafoor |url=https://www.cair.com/op_eds/why-the-uae-is-obsessed-with-targeting-american-muslim-activists-like-asim-ghafoor/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241209234714/https://www.cair.com/op_eds/why-the-uae-is-obsessed-with-targeting-american-muslim-activists-like-asim-ghafoor/ |archive-date=December 9, 2024 |access-date=2024-12-09 |language=en-US}}</ref> Ghafoor helped establish the organization ], which has focused part of its work on human rights violations in the UAE. CAIR has claimed that "The real reason the UAE targeted Ghafoor became even clearer when Emirati media outlets began publishing unhinged, Islamophobic hit-pieces slandering him as a “terrorist” for his pro-democracy work with DAWN and other groups."<ref name=":5" /> It also argued that, "the UAE’s history targeting American Muslims as part of its effort to spread secular authoritarianism throughout the Middle East."<ref name=":5" />


In an interview with ] of ], UAE Foreign Minister ] was asked about the designation of CAIR as a terrorist group, in which he responded: In an interview with ] of ], UAE Foreign Minister ] was asked about the designation of CAIR as a terrorist group, in which he responded:
Line 131: Line 124:
The United States government has not listed CAIR as a terrorist organization.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/11/17/why-the-u-a-e-is-calling-2-american-groups-terrorists/|title=Why the U.A.E. is calling 2 American groups terrorists|last=Taylor|first=Adam|date=November 17, 2014|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=November 25, 2016|archive-date=August 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180804150441/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/11/17/why-the-u-a-e-is-calling-2-american-groups-terrorists/|url-status=live}}</ref> The United States government has not listed CAIR as a terrorist organization.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/11/17/why-the-u-a-e-is-calling-2-american-groups-terrorists/|title=Why the U.A.E. is calling 2 American groups terrorists|last=Taylor|first=Adam|date=November 17, 2014|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=November 25, 2016|archive-date=August 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180804150441/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/11/17/why-the-u-a-e-is-calling-2-american-groups-terrorists/|url-status=live}}</ref>


=== Hamas === ===LGBT rights===
In 2016, in the wake of the ], CAIR representatives met with LGBT leaders to condemn the attack, gather in solidarity, and voice their support for LGBT rights.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Muslim, LGBT community members gather to demand equal rights for all |url=https://abc7chicago.com/cair-lgbt-council-on-american-islamic-relations/1394094/ |access-date=2024-11-22 |website=ABC7 Chicago |language=en}}</ref> CAIR Sacramento director Basim Elkarra also released a statement offering “support and allyship to the LGBTQ community, which has been a faithful ally against Islamophobia.”<ref>{{Cite web |title=CAIR: Sacramento Muslims, LGBTQ and Interfaith Leaders to Respond to‪ #‎Orlando Night Club Shooting |url=https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-sacramento-muslims-lgbtq-and-interfaith-leaders-to-respond-to%E2%80%AA-%E2%80%8Eorlando-night-club-shooting/ |access-date=2024-12-26 |language=en-US}}</ref> CAIR director Nihad Awad also voiced his support, saying that American “Muslims stand united” with the LGBT community.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CAIR: Muslims Stand United with LGBT Community |url=https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/nation/2016/06/12/85805328/ |access-date=2024-11-22 |website=USA TODAY |language=en-US}}</ref>
{{original research section|reason=This section cites multiple primary sources; certain sentences, such as the one regarding six senators and representatives, are not supported by the cited secondary sources; and a number of sources, such as Levitt's book, do not mention CAIR at all.|date=March 2021}}
Critics of CAIR have accused it of having ties to the Palestinian ]-Islamic fundamentalist organization ].<ref name="Wapo20141107"/> Federal judge ] said that there was evidence to show that CAIR has an association with the ], ], and Hamas. However, Judge Solis acknowledged that this evidence predates the official designation of these groups as terrorist organizations. On appeal, Judge Solis was rebuked for making these comments and for not paying enough attention to CAIR's rights under the ].<ref>{{cite news|title=The King hearings: Is CAIR a 'terrorist organization'?|author=Glenn Kessler|url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/2011/03/the_king_hearings_is_cair_a_te.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=March 10, 2011|access-date=January 29, 2014|archive-date=June 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130604054359/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/2011/03/the_king_hearings_is_cair_a_te.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> CAIR acknowledges that cofounder Nihad Awad declared support for Hamas in 1994, before it was designated a ] by the United States in January 1995,<ref name="TopInternet">{{cite web|url=http://ca.cair.com/losangeles/campaign/top_internet_misinformation_and_conspiracy_theories_about_cair|title=Top Internet Misinformation and Conspiracy Theories About CAIR|publisher=CAIR California|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202174929/http://ca.cair.com/losangeles/campaign/top_internet_misinformation_and_conspiracy_theories_about_cair|archive-date=February 2, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://kyl.senate.gov/legis_center/subdocs/091003_epstein.pdf|title=Saudi Support for Islamic Extremism in the United States|last=Epstein|first=Mathew|date=September 10, 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120503035244/http://kyl.senate.gov/legis_center/subdocs/091003_epstein.pdf|archive-date=May 3, 2012|work=Testimony of Matthew Epstein Before the United States Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology, and Homeland Security|access-date=November 10, 2009}}</ref> a legal category established at that time.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/31/595.311|title=31 CFR § 595.311 - Specially designated terrorist|publisher=Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute|access-date=2019-03-05|archive-date=March 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306111403/https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/31/595.311|url-status=live}}</ref> Since then CAIR has denounced violence by Hamas, and in 2006, Nihad Awad said, "I don't support Hamas today&nbsp;... we condemn suicide bombings."<ref name="TopInternet" />


In Michigan, CAIR voiced concerns over an amendment to the ], advocating that the amendment's LGBT rights provisions include faith protections.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-mi-concerned-by-senate-vote-failing-to-include-religious-protections-in-civil-rights-law/ |title=CAIR-MI Concerned by Senate Vote Failing to Include Religious Protections in Civil Rights Law |publisher=Council of American-Islamic Relations |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=March 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307020159/https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-mi-concerned-by-senate-vote-failing-to-include-religious-protections-in-civil-rights-law/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/02/26/christian-and-muslim-groups-oppose-lgbtq-rights-bill-call-for-changes/69915513007/ |title=Christian and Muslim groups want faith protections added to LGBTQ rights bill |newspaper=] |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=June 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230617220830/https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/02/26/christian-and-muslim-groups-oppose-lgbtq-rights-bill-call-for-changes/69915513007/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
Six Republican members of the ] and ]<ref name="kylepress">{{cite web|url=https://votesmart.org/public-statement/410315/letter-to-the-honorable-robert-s-mueller-iii-director-federal-bureau-of-investigation|title=Schumer, Kyl Inquire About Recent FBI Decision to Sever Ties with Islamic Group|last=Kyl|first=Jon|date=February 23, 2009|website=VoteSmart.org|publisher=U.S. Senate|access-date=December 23, 2016|archive-date=December 24, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161224030931/https://votesmart.org/public-statement/410315/letter-to-the-honorable-robert-s-mueller-iii-director-federal-bureau-of-investigation|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="myrickpress">{{cite web|url=https://franks.house.gov/press-release/franks-myrick-shadegg-broun-call-cair-investigations|title=Franks, Myrick, Shadegg, Broun Call for CAIR Investigations|last=Franks|first=Trent|date=October 14, 2009|publisher=U.S. House of Representatives|access-date=December 23, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161224032602/https://franks.house.gov/press-release/franks-myrick-shadegg-broun-call-cair-investigations|archive-date=December 24, 2016|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref name="boxertimes">{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2007/jan/10/20070110-102836-3329r/|title=Boxer's stand|last=Mowbray|first=Joel|date=January 10, 2007|newspaper=The Washington Times|access-date=November 10, 2009|archive-date=November 4, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111104142135/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2007/jan/10/20070110-102836-3329r/|url-status=live}}</ref> have alleged ties between the CAIR founders and ]. Both cofounder Omar Ahmad and Awad were involved previously with the ] (IAP),<ref>{{cite web|title=Muslim-Americans in Mainstream America|url=http://ameu.org/getattachment/09cc482e-5e7a-4740-9118-da1a1a4023fd/Muslim-Americans-in-Mainstream-America.aspx|publisher=]|quote=In this effort I worked closely with IAP president Omar Ahmad.|access-date=September 10, 2017|archive-date=October 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151023012640/http://ameu.org/getattachment/09cc482e-5e7a-4740-9118-da1a1a4023fd/Muslim-Americans-in-Mainstream-America.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Judy |first=Michael |date=2011 |title=The Muslim Brotherhood and the Threat to US National Security—'The Movement' |url=http://globalsecuritystudies.com/Judy%20MB%20Final.pdf |journal=Global Security Studies |volume=2 |issue=4 |access-date=September 11, 2017 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304231002/http://globalsecuritystudies.com/Judy%20MB%20Final.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> a group described by the FBI, in 1993, as "intimately tied to the most senior Hamas leadership",<ref>{{Cite book |last=Levitt |first=Mathew |year=2006 |title=Hamas Politics, Charity, and Terrorism in the Service of Jihad |publisher=Yale University Press |page= |isbn=0-300-11053-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/hamaspoliticscha00levi/page/149 }}</ref> and participated in a meeting held in Philadelphia on October 3, 1993, with Hamas sympathizers and officials of the ] (which was designated in 1995 by Executive Order{{citation needed|date=September 2017}} and later designated in a 2008 court case, as an organization that had raised millions of dollars for Hamas).<ref name="dallasnewsfbi">{{cite news|url=http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/10/fbi-cair-is-a-front-group-and.html|archive-url=https://swap.stanford.edu/20090417160939/http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/10/fbi%2Dcair%2Dis%2Da%2Dfront%2Dgroup%2Dand.html|archive-date=April 17, 2009|url-status=dead|title=FBI: CAIR is a front group, and Holy Land Foundation tapped Hamas clerics for fundraisers|last=Trehan|first=Jason|date=October 7, 2008|work=]|access-date=November 10, 2009}}</ref><ref name="khou">{{cite news|url=http://www.khou.com/news/state/stories/khou070826_tnt_muslimcharity.70ea6a5c.html |title=Documents detail Hamas support within U.S. |date=July 26, 2007 |agency=Associated Press |access-date=November 10, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003054807/http://www.khou.com/news/state/stories/khou070826_tnt_muslimcharity.70ea6a5c.html |archive-date=October 3, 2009 }}</ref> Based on electronic surveillance of the meeting, the FBI reported that "these participants took great pains to disguise their association with Hamas ... referring to it simply as 'The Movement'."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Levitt |first=Mathew |year=2006 |title=Hamas Politics, Charity, and Terrorism in the Service of Jihad |publisher=Yale University Press |page= |isbn=0-300-11053-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/hamaspoliticscha00levi/page/148 }}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191216214534/https://books.google.com/books?id=CStFAAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover |date=December 16, 2019 }}, ] {{ISBN|9780231522298}}, pp. 177 –182</ref>


CAIR and several other Muslim organizations have opposed mandatory “sexually-themed lessons” in ]. These lessons include LGBT-inclusive content. CAIR issued a statement saying parents should be notified in advance so their children can opt-out of “sexually-themed content.” CAIR released a statement saying that “Schools should respect their authority by restoring the option to opt their children out of reading sexually-themed content or participating in sexually-themed lessons and discussions, without any adverse consequences.''”''<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cair.com/press_releases/hundreds-of-maryland-parents-urge-mcps-to-restore-of-opt-out-option-parental-notice-for-sexually-themed-material/ |title=Hundreds of Maryland Parents Urge MCPS to Restore of Opt-Out Option, Parental Notice for Sexually-Themed Material |publisher=Council on American-Islamic Relations |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=April 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406173849/https://www.cair.com/press_releases/hundreds-of-maryland-parents-urge-mcps-to-restore-of-opt-out-option-parental-notice-for-sexually-themed-material/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/04/11/montgomery-county-schools-lgbtq-book-opt-out/ |title=Some Montgomery parents want to opt out of new books featuring LGBTQ characters |newspaper=] |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=May 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230524004229/https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/04/11/montgomery-county-schools-lgbtq-book-opt-out/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
In early 2007, ''The New York Times'' wrote that "more than one described the standards used by critics to link CAIR to terrorism as akin to ], essentially ]."<ref name=scr/> At that time (prior to the Holy Land trial), the ''Times'' called efforts to link the organization to Hamas and ] "unsuccessful", citing a retired FBI official who was active through 2005 and who suggested that while "of all the groups, there is probably more suspicion about CAIR", you don't get "cold hard facts".<ref name=scr/>{{context inline|date=September 2021}} The ''Times'' and ''The Washington Post'' also noted that even though a handful of its former members had faced prosecution, CAIR has never faced ]s.<ref name=scr/><ref>{{cite news|title=The King hearings: Is CAIR a 'terrorist organization'?|author=Glenn Kessler|url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/2011/03/the_king_hearings_is_cair_a_te.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=March 10, 2011|quote=...as Baca pointedly noted, CAIR itself has never been charged with criminal activity. 'We don't play around with criminals in my world,' he told Cravaack. 'If CAIR is an organization that's a, quote, "criminal organization", prosecute them. Hold them accountable and bring them to trial.|access-date=January 29, 2014|archive-date=June 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130604054359/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/2011/03/the_king_hearings_is_cair_a_te.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

As of 2007, FBI officials attended CAIR events. In 2009, ] said that the FBI broke off formal outreach contacts with CAIR, and shunned all of its local chapters, concerned about CAIR's ties to Hamas.<ref name="foxnews.com"/> In 2011, ''The New York Times'' said that while the FBI and CAIR had no "formal relationship", CAIR officials and chapters worked regularly with FBI officials.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Shane |first=Scott |date=March 11, 2011 |title=Congressional Hearing Puts Muslim Civil Rights Group in the Hot Seat Again |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/12/us/politics/12muslims.html |work=The New York Times |page=A16 |access-date=16 April 2019 |archive-date=March 14, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314184117/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/12/us/politics/12muslims.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Foreign policy scholar ] notes that there are reasons for the FBI's continued work with CAIR, as some believe they are a necessary ally in counter-terrorism operations, regardless of their controversial status, history, and alleged association with the Muslim Brotherhood.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fpri.org/article/2011/12/muslim-brotherhood-organizations-in-america-goals-ideologies-and-strategies/|last=Vidino|first=Lorenzo|publisher=]|date=December 3, 2011|quote=Put yourselves in the FBI Director's shoes: you don't want to burn bridges with CAIR. Consequently, there is a kind of understanding that as much as they are not the ideal partners for the FBI when engaging the Muslim community, they are a necessary one.|title=Muslim Brotherhood Organizations in America: Goals, Ideologies, and Strategies|access-date=October 30, 2017|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107030327/https://www.fpri.org/article/2011/12/muslim-brotherhood-organizations-in-america-goals-ideologies-and-strategies/|url-status=live}}</ref>

However, the United States government has been criticized, particularly by the ], for unjust prosecutions and other actions (leading to some of the criticism above) that "have created a climate of fear that chills American Muslims' free and full exercise of their religion through charitable giving, or Zakat, one of the 'five pillars' of Islam and a religious obligation for observant Muslims". The Executive Director of the Michigan office of CAIR said in 2008 "Smearing CAIR as an unindicted co-conspirator sabotages the new president's outreach with the Muslim world."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aclu.org/publications/blocking-faith-freezing-charity-chilling-muslim-charitable-giving-war-terrorism-financing|title=Blocking Faith, Freezing Charity: Chilling Muslim Charitable Giving in the "War on Terrorism Financing"|publisher=American Civil Liberties Union|date=16 June 2009|access-date=December 9, 2023|archive-date=December 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231209182943/https://www.aclu.org/publications/blocking-faith-freezing-charity-chilling-muslim-charitable-giving-war-terrorism-financing|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Muslim Brotherhood ===
Several academics and conservative leaning politicians have accused CAIR of being a ] affiliate or ] in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bc.edu/content/dam/files/schools/cas_sites/polisci/pdf/Muslim%20American%20Muddle_National%20Affairs.pdf|title=Skerry, Peter. "The Muslim-American Muddle". National Affairs 9 (2011).|publisher=] |access-date=September 11, 2017|archive-date=February 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224162052/https://www.bc.edu/content/dam/files/schools/cas_sites/polisci/pdf/Muslim%20American%20Muddle_National%20Affairs.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.capro.info/Cults_and_Isms/Islam/PDFs/The_Muslim_Brotherhood_in_the_United-States-Steve_Merley.pdf|title=Merley, Steven. The Muslim Brotherhood in the United States. Center on Islam, Democracy, and the Future of the Muslim World, Hudson Institute, 2009.|publisher=Christian Apologetics Project|access-date=September 11, 2017|archive-date=September 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911162038/http://www.capro.info/Cults_and_Isms/Islam/PDFs/The_Muslim_Brotherhood_in_the_United-States-Steve_Merley.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hudson.org/content/researchattachments/attachment/1332/baran_vol6.pdf|title=Baran, Zeyno. "The Muslim Brotherhood's US Network". ''Current Trends in Islamist Ideology'' 6 (2008): 95.|publisher=Hudson Institute|access-date=September 11, 2017|archive-date=September 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911162117/https://www.hudson.org/content/researchattachments/attachment/1332/baran_vol6.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal <!-- Citation bot bypass--> |last1=Lebl |first1=Leslie S. |title=The EU, the Muslim Brotherhood and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation |journal=] |date=December 2013 |volume=57 |issue=1 |pages=101–119 |doi=10.1016/j.orbis.2012.10.007 |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0030438712000804}}</ref><ref name="AJ201702"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911162415/http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/02/republican-calls-cair-hamas-linked-terrorist-group-170210134359010.html |date=September 11, 2017 }}, Aljazeera, February 10, 2017, Creede Newton</ref><ref> , TIME, Maya Rhodan, December 15, 2015</ref><ref>Peter Beinart (March 19, 2017). {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20170319230057/https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/03/frank-gaffney-donald-trump-and-the-denationalization-of-american-muslims/519954/ |date=March 19, 2017 }}, ''The Atlantic''.</ref> CAIR has rejected such associations as a smear campaign.<ref name="AJ201702"/><ref>Zaid Jilani (March 15, 2017). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510021225/https://theintercept.com/2017/03/15/trump-designating-the-muslim-brotherhood-as-terrorists-would-be-a-massive-victory-for-extremists/ |date=May 10, 2024 }}. ''The Intercept''.</ref> According to ], while CAIR is not a "Muslim Brotherhood organisation", CAIR has significant ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://icsr.info/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/1300106834ICSRTheNewMBintheWest.pdf|title=Vidino, Lorenzo. "The Muslim Brotherhood in the West: Evolution and Western Policies". ''Developments in Radicalisation and Political Violence'', The International Center for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence (2011). |access-date=December 3, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160509080522/http://icsr.info/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/1300106834ICSRTheNewMBintheWest.pdf|archive-date=May 9, 2016|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191216214534/https://books.google.com/books?id=CStFAAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover |date=December 16, 2019 }}, ] {{ISBN|9780231522298}}, pp 177-198</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227022711/http://intelligence.house.gov/sites/intelligence.house.gov/files/documents/sfr20110413vidino.pdf |date=December 27, 2016 }}, Lorenzo G. Vidino, April 2011</ref>

===LGBT rights===
In Michigan, CAIR voiced concerns over the passage of an amendment to the ], believing that the amendment's LGBT rights provisions would infringe upon the rights of religious organizations.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-mi-concerned-by-senate-vote-failing-to-include-religious-protections-in-civil-rights-law/ |title=CAIR-MI Concerned by Senate Vote Failing to Include Religious Protections in Civil Rights Law |publisher=Council of American-Islamic Relations |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=March 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307020159/https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-mi-concerned-by-senate-vote-failing-to-include-religious-protections-in-civil-rights-law/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/02/26/christian-and-muslim-groups-oppose-lgbtq-rights-bill-call-for-changes/69915513007/ |title=Christian and Muslim groups want faith protections added to LGBTQ rights bill |newspaper=] |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=June 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230617220830/https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/02/26/christian-and-muslim-groups-oppose-lgbtq-rights-bill-call-for-changes/69915513007/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

CAIR and several other Muslim organizations have opposed mandatory LGBT-inclusive curricula in ]. CAIR issued a statement saying parents should be notified in advance so their children can opt-out of lessons that mention gender identity, drag queens, or sexual orientation. CAIR has characterized LGBT-inclusive lessons as "sexually-themed", claiming that LGBT-inclusive education violates the religious liberty of Muslims.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cair.com/press_releases/hundreds-of-maryland-parents-urge-mcps-to-restore-of-opt-out-option-parental-notice-for-sexually-themed-material/ |title=Hundreds of Maryland Parents Urge MCPS to Restore of Opt-Out Option, Parental Notice for Sexually-Themed Material |publisher=Council on American-Islamic Relations |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=April 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406173849/https://www.cair.com/press_releases/hundreds-of-maryland-parents-urge-mcps-to-restore-of-opt-out-option-parental-notice-for-sexually-themed-material/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/04/11/montgomery-county-schools-lgbtq-book-opt-out/ |title=Some Montgomery parents want to opt out of new books featuring LGBTQ characters |newspaper=] |accessdate=2023-06-17 |archive-date=May 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230524004229/https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/04/11/montgomery-county-schools-lgbtq-book-opt-out/ |url-status=live }}</ref>


== Reception == == Reception ==


=== Praise === === Praise ===
U.S. Senator ]'s 2006 decision to withdraw a "certificate of accomplishment" originally given to former CAIR official Basim Elkarra on grounds of suspicions about the organization's background "provoked an outcry from organizations that vouch for the group's advocacy, including the ACLU and the California Council of Churches."<ref name=scr/> ], executive director of the ACLU of Northern California, criticized Senator Boxer's decision and added that CAIR has "been a leading organization that has advocated for civil rights and civil liberties in the face of fear and intolerance, in the face of religious and ]."<ref name=scr/>

U.S. Senator ]'s 2006 decision to withdraw a "certificate of accomplishment" originally given to former CAIR official Basim Elkarra on grounds of suspicions about the organization's background "provoked an outcry from organizations that vouch for the group's advocacy, including the ACLU and the California Council of Churches.<ref name=scr/> "They have been a leading organization that has advocated for civil rights and civil liberties in the face of fear and intolerance, in the face of religious and ]," said ], executive director of the ACLU of Northern California.<ref name=scr/>


]-winning journalist ] advocated for people to support and sign up as members of CAIR in response to the ].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/opinion/a-12-step-program-for-responding-to-president-elect-trump.html?mcubz=1|title=A 12-Step Program for Responding to President-Elect Trump|last=Kristof|first=Nicholas|newspaper=The New York Times|date=November 17, 2016|access-date=September 2, 2017|archive-date=September 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170903034926/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/opinion/a-12-step-program-for-responding-to-president-elect-trump.html?mcubz=1|url-status=live}}</ref> ]-winning journalist ] advocated for people to support and sign up as members of CAIR in response to the ].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/opinion/a-12-step-program-for-responding-to-president-elect-trump.html?mcubz=1|title=A 12-Step Program for Responding to President-Elect Trump|last=Kristof|first=Nicholas|newspaper=The New York Times|date=November 17, 2016|access-date=September 2, 2017|archive-date=September 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170903034926/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/opinion/a-12-step-program-for-responding-to-president-elect-trump.html?mcubz=1|url-status=live}}</ref>
Line 164: Line 143:


=== Criticism === === Criticism ===
December 2023, the Biden administration cut off contact with CAIR after its executive director stated he was "happy to see" Palestinians break ] on October 7.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Nehamas |first1=Nicholas |last2=Epstein |first2=Reid J. |date=May 10, 2024 |title=Inside Biden's Broken Relationship With Muslim and Arab American Leaders |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/us/politics/biden-muslim-arab-americans-gaza.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240511001414/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/us/politics/biden-muslim-arab-americans-gaza.html |archive-date=May 11, 2024 |access-date=May 12, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |quote=There are limits to the people and groups that Mr. Biden’s White House will engage with about the Gaza conflict. The administration disavowed and cut off communication with the Council on American-Islamic Relations in December after its executive director said that he “was happy to see” Palestinians break out of Gaza on Oct. 7.}}</ref> Awad also stated that Palestinians "have the right to self-defense" but that Israel "as an occupying power" does not.<ref name="NYT Dec 8 2023">{{cite news |last1=Baker |first1=Peter |date=December 8, 2023 |title=White House Disavows U.S. Islamic Group After Leader's Oct. 7 Remarks |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/08/us/politics/white-house-cair-nihad-awad.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240509190936/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/08/us/politics/white-house-cair-nihad-awad.html |archive-date=May 9, 2024 |access-date=May 12, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> According to a CAIR press release, during his speech, Awad had also stated that, "The hatred, the prejudice, the violence, the discrimination against Jews because of their faith or their life or their religious practices is a hateful mindset, behavior and action. We as human beings, as Muslims, as Palestinians, see it as evil the way it is, and should be condemned because ] is a real phenomenon, a real evil, and it has to be rejected and combated by all people regardless of their faith tradition, ideology, or those people who have no ideology. It is an attack on humanity and should be clearly condemned by all people."<ref name=":4" />
Critics of CAIR have accused it of pursuing an ] agenda<ref name="scr "/><ref name="auto"/><ref name="Wapo20141107"/> and claimed the group is connected to ] and the ].<ref name="foxnews.com" /><ref name="auto1"/><ref name="Wapo20141107" /> CAIR denies such links.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/the-king-hearings-is-cair-a-terrorist-organization/2011/03/10/AB3AdTQ_blog.html|title=The King hearings: Is CAIR a 'terrorist organization'?|last=Kessler|first=Glenn|date=March 10, 2011|newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date= |quote=}}</ref>


In response to the criticism from the Biden administration, Awad released a statement and held a press conference in which reiterate his opposition to and condemnation of all attacks on civilians, including the ], claiming that this original remarks were taken out of context. He stated that, “Ukrainians, Palestinians and other occupied people have the right to defend themselves and escape occupation by just and legal means, but targeting civilians is never an acceptable means of doing so, which is why I have again and again condemned the violence against Israeli civilians on Oct. 7th and past Hamas attacks on Israeli civilians, including suicide bombings, all the way back to the 1990s—just as I have condemned the decades of violence against Palestinian civilians. “The average Palestinians who briefly walked out of Gaza and set foot on their ethnically cleansed land in a symbolic act of defiance against the blockade and stopped there without engaging in violence were within their rights under international law; the extremists who went on to attack civilians in southern Israel were not. Targeting civilians is unacceptable, no matter whether they are Israeli or Palestinian or any other nationality.”<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=Statement By Nihad Awad on Remarks at Palestine Human Rights Conference |url=https://www.cair.com/press_releases/statement-by-nihad-awad-on-remarks-at-palestine-human-rights-conference/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241209234603/https://www.cair.com/press_releases/statement-by-nihad-awad-on-remarks-at-palestine-human-rights-conference/ |archive-date=December 9, 2024 |access-date=2024-11-29 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-12-08 |title=CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad pushes back on criticism for October 7 comment |url=https://abc7chicago.com/cair-director-nihan-awad-israel-hamas/14155569/ |access-date=2024-11-29 |website=ABC7 Chicago |language=en}}</ref>
The White House disavowed CAIR on December 7, 2023, after the director ] said in a speech "The people of Gaza only decided to break the siege, the walls of the concentration camp, on Oct. 7," he said. "And yes, I was happy to see people breaking the siege...." he continued "And yes, the people of Gaza have the right to self-defense, have the right to defend themselves, and yes, Israel as an occupying power does not have that right to self-defense," referring to the ].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/08/us/politics/white-house-cair-nihad-awad.html|title=White House Disavows U.S. Islamic Group After Leader's Oct. 7 Remarks|last=Baker|first=Peter|date=December 8, 2023|website=The New York Times|access-date=|quote=|archive-date=December 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231208191625/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/08/us/politics/white-house-cair-nihad-awad.html|url-status=live}}</ref>


] has argued that CAIR's agenda is focused on "]".<ref>{{cite journal|title=Exposing the 'Flying Imams'|journal=Middle East Quarterly|date=Winter 2008|pages=3–11|url=http://www.meforum.org/1809/exposing-the-flying-imams|author=M. Z. Jasser|access-date=January 30, 2017|archive-date=March 18, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110318001234/http://www.meforum.org/1809/exposing-the-flying-imams|url-status=live}}</ref> Best-selling author and prominent critic of ],<ref>{{cite news|last1=Nawaz|first1=Maajid|last2=Harris|first2=Sam|title=We Need to Talk About Islam's Jihadism Problem|newspaper=The Daily Beast|date=September 15, 2015|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/we-need-to-talk-about-islams-jihadism-problem|access-date=June 17, 2020|archive-date=August 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807191810/https://www.thedailybeast.com/we-need-to-talk-about-islams-jihadism-problem|url-status=live}}</ref> ], criticized CAIR by saying the organization is "an Islamist public relations firm posing as a civil-rights lobby".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922140739/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/losing-our-spines-to-save_b_100132/ |date=September 22, 2020 }}. ''The Huffington Post''. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref> Critics of CAIR have accused it of pursuing an ] agenda.<ref name="scr" /><ref name="auto">{{cite news |last=Sethi |first=Arjun Singh |date=February 8, 2017 |title=Calling the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group would hurt all American Muslims |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/02/08/calling-the-muslim-brotherhood-a-terrorist-group-would-hurt-all-american-muslims/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328070152/https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/02/08/calling-the-muslim-brotherhood-a-terrorist-group-would-hurt-all-american-muslims/ |archive-date=March 28, 2019 |access-date=March 10, 2018 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> CAIR denies these allegations.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kessler |first=Glenn |date=March 10, 2011 |title=The King hearings: Is CAIR a 'terrorist organization'? |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/the-king-hearings-is-cair-a-terrorist-organization/2011/03/10/AB3AdTQ_blog.html |access-date= |newspaper=The Washington Post |quote=}}</ref> ], a physician and ] politician in Arizona, has criticized CAIR and argued that its agenda is focused on "]".<ref>{{cite journal|title=Exposing the 'Flying Imams'|journal=Middle East Quarterly|date=Winter 2008|pages=3–11|url=http://www.meforum.org/1809/exposing-the-flying-imams|author=M. Z. Jasser|access-date=January 30, 2017|archive-date=March 18, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110318001234/http://www.meforum.org/1809/exposing-the-flying-imams|url-status=live}}</ref> Best-selling author and prominent critic of ],<ref>{{cite news|last1=Nawaz|first1=Maajid|last2=Harris|first2=Sam|title=We Need to Talk About Islam's Jihadism Problem|newspaper=The Daily Beast|date=September 15, 2015|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/we-need-to-talk-about-islams-jihadism-problem|access-date=June 17, 2020|archive-date=August 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807191810/https://www.thedailybeast.com/we-need-to-talk-about-islams-jihadism-problem|url-status=live}}</ref> ], criticized CAIR by saying the organization is "an Islamist public relations firm posing as a civil-rights lobby".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922140739/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/losing-our-spines-to-save_b_100132/ |date=September 22, 2020 }}. ''The Huffington Post''. Retrieved on March 19, 2011.</ref>


Some Muslims have criticized CAIR for taking a ] approach on some issues. These critics claim that past statements by the organization, such as the claim that the headscarf is a religious requirement for Muslim women, often follow conservative Saudi religious doctrine and do not capture diverse religious perspectives.<ref name="scr"/> The claim that the headscarf is religious obligation upon Muslim women has been criticized by some Muslim scholars and academics, including ].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-01-10 |title=5 Muslim Scholars On The Permissibility Of Not Wearing The Headscarf |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/5-muslim-scholars-on-the-permissibility-of-not-wearing-the-heads_b_610874fde4b0497e67026d7c |access-date=2024-08-25 |website=HuffPost |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-01-02 |title=FATWA: On Hijab (The Hair-covering of Women) UPDATED |url=https://www.searchforbeauty.org/2016/01/02/fatwa-on-hijab-the-hair-covering-of-women/ |access-date=2024-08-25 |website=Khaled Abou El Fadl on The Search For Beauty in Islam |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-05-15 |title=FATWA: Question on the evidence of hijab from a brother |url=https://www.searchforbeauty.org/2017/05/15/question-on-the-evidence-of-hijab-from-a-brother/ |access-date=2024-08-25 |website=Khaled Abou El Fadl on The Search For Beauty in Islam |language=en-US}}</ref>
Some Muslims criticize CAIR for taking a conservative religious approach on many issues. These critics claim that statements by the organization (for example, that all Muslim women are required to veil) often follow conservative Saudi religious doctrine and do not capture diverse religious perspectives.<ref name="scr"/>


== Funding == == Funding ==
CAIR has an annual budget of around $3 million (as of 2007).<ref name=scr/> It states that while the majority of its funding comes from American Muslims, it accepts donations from individuals of any faith and also foreigners.<ref name="TopInternet" /> In the past CAIR has accepted donations from individuals and foundations close to ] governments.<ref name="scr ">{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/14/washington/14cair.html |url-access=subscription |last=MacFarquhar|first=Neil|date= March 14, 2007 |title= Scrutiny Increases for a Group Advocating for Muslims in U.S. |work=The New York Times |access-date=April 19, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160520033604/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/14/washington/14cair.html |archive-date= May 20, 2016 }}</ref> Within CAIR there is debate regarding foreign funding, and several CAIR branches have criticized the national office for accepting foreign donations.<ref name="scr" /> CAIR has an annual budget of around $3 million (as of 2007).<ref name=scr/> It states that while the majority of its funding comes from American Muslims, it accepts donations from individuals of any faith and also foreigners.<ref name="TopInternet">{{cite web |title=Top Internet Misinformation and Conspiracy Theories About CAIR |url=http://ca.cair.com/losangeles/campaign/top_internet_misinformation_and_conspiracy_theories_about_cair |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202174929/http://ca.cair.com/losangeles/campaign/top_internet_misinformation_and_conspiracy_theories_about_cair |archive-date=February 2, 2014 |publisher=CAIR California}}</ref> In the past CAIR has accepted donations from individuals and foundations close to ] governments.<ref name="scr">{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/14/washington/14cair.html |url-access=subscription |last=MacFarquhar|first=Neil|date= March 14, 2007 |title= Scrutiny Increases for a Group Advocating for Muslims in U.S. |work=The New York Times |access-date=April 19, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160520033604/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/14/washington/14cair.html |archive-date= May 20, 2016 }}</ref> Within CAIR there is debate regarding foreign funding, and several CAIR branches have criticized the national office for accepting foreign donations.<ref name="scr" />


In April 2011, Rep. ], R-Va. cited a 2009 letter sent from CAIR's executive director, Nihad Awad, to ] asking Gaddafi for funding for a project called the Muslim Peace Foundation at a ] Appropriations sub-committee hearing.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nation.foxnews.com/cair/2011/04/07/cair-caught-gaddafi-web|title=CAIR Caught in Gaddafi $ Web|date=July 4, 2011|publisher=Fox News|access-date=April 15, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410120352/http://nation.foxnews.com/cair/2011/04/07/cair-caught-gaddafi-web|archive-date=April 10, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> ] called the funding request "hypocritical",<ref name="Lawmaker_Fox">{{cite news|url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/04/06/lawmaker-criticizes-controversial-muslim-group-200-fundraising-letter-qaddafi/|title=Lawmaker Criticizes Muslim Group Director's 2009 Fundraising Letter to Qaddafi|first=Ben|last=Evansky|publisher=]|date=April 6, 2011|access-date=April 7, 2011|archive-date=April 8, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408140846/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/04/06/lawmaker-criticizes-controversial-muslim-group-200-fundraising-letter-qaddafi/|url-status=live}}</ref> while CAIR spokesman, Ibrahim Hooper, said that the Muslim Peace Foundation was Awad's personal initiative "unrelated to CAIR", that CAIR didn't receive any money from the Libyan government, and also that CAIR was one of the first American organizations to call for a no-fly zone to protect Libyan citizens from Gaddafi during the ].<ref name="Lawmaker_Fox"/> In April 2011, Rep. ], R-Va. cited a 2009 letter sent from CAIR's executive director, Nihad Awad, to ] asking Gaddafi for funding for a project called the Muslim Peace Foundation at a ] Appropriations sub-committee hearing.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nation.foxnews.com/cair/2011/04/07/cair-caught-gaddafi-web|title=CAIR Caught in Gaddafi $ Web|date=July 4, 2011|publisher=Fox News|access-date=April 15, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410120352/http://nation.foxnews.com/cair/2011/04/07/cair-caught-gaddafi-web|archive-date=April 10, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> ] called the funding request "hypocritical",<ref name="Lawmaker_Fox">{{cite news|url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/04/06/lawmaker-criticizes-controversial-muslim-group-200-fundraising-letter-qaddafi/|title=Lawmaker Criticizes Muslim Group Director's 2009 Fundraising Letter to Qaddafi|first=Ben|last=Evansky|publisher=]|date=April 6, 2011|access-date=April 7, 2011|archive-date=April 8, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408140846/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/04/06/lawmaker-criticizes-controversial-muslim-group-200-fundraising-letter-qaddafi/|url-status=live}}</ref> while CAIR spokesman, Ibrahim Hooper, said that the Muslim Peace Foundation was Awad's personal initiative "unrelated to CAIR", that CAIR didn't receive any money from the Libyan government, and also that CAIR was one of the first American organizations to call for a no-fly zone to protect Libyan citizens from Gaddafi during the ].<ref name="Lawmaker_Fox"/>

Latest revision as of 00:29, 30 December 2024

American Muslim advocacy group
Council on American–Islamic Relations
FormationJune 1994; 30 years ago (1994-06)
FounderOmar Ahmad
Type501(c)3 organization
Tax ID no. 77-0646756
PurposeMuslim activism
HeadquartersWashington, D.C.
Location
  • 453 New Jersey Ave., S.E.
Region served United States
Executive DirectorNihad Awad
Key peopleRoula Allouch
(Chairperson)
Ibrahim Mossallam
(Board VP)
Ibrahim Hooper
(National Communications Director)
Staff70+
Volunteers300+
Websitewww.cair.com Edit this at Wikidata

Part of a series on
Islamophobia
No mosque
Issues
Status by country
ExamplesAttacks on mosques:

Genocide:

Massacres, torture, expulsion:

Other incidents:

Media
Opposition

The Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) is a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group. It is headquartered on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., with regional offices nationwide. Through civil rights actions, media relations, civic engagement, and education, CAIR works to promote social, legal and political activism among Muslims in America.

History

Early years (1994–2001)

CAIR was founded in June 1994. CAIR's first office was located in Washington, D.C., as is its present-day headquarters on Capitol Hill. Its founding was partly in response to the film True Lies, which Arab and Muslim groups condemned for its stereotyping of Arab and Muslim villains. The offices opened a month before the film's release. CAIR's first advocacy campaign was in response to an offensive greeting card that used the term "shia" to refer to human excrement. CAIR led a national campaign and used activists to pressure the greeting card company, which eventually withdrew the card from the market.

In 1995, CAIR handled its first case of hijab discrimination, in which a Muslim employee was denied the right to wear the hijab; this type of complaint became one of the most common received by CAIR's civil rights department.

CAIR continued its advocacy work in the aftermath of the April 19, 1995 Oklahoma City bombing of the Murrah Federal Building. Following the attack, Muslim-Americans were subjected to an upsurge in harassment and discrimination, including a rise in hate crimes nationally; 222 hate crimes against Muslims nationwide were reported in the days immediately following the bombing. The bombing gave CAIR national stature for their efforts to educate the public about Islam and religious bias in America; their report was featured on the front page of The New York Times on August 28, 1995, and was subsequently mentioned on ABC World News Tonight.

In 1996, CAIR began "CAIR-NET", a read-only e-mail listserve aimed to help American Muslims identify and combat anti-Muslim prejudice in the U.S. and Canada. CAIR-NET contained descriptions of news, bias incidents or hate speech and hate crimes, often followed by information as to whom readers may contact to influence resolution of an issue. CAIR also held its first voter registration drive in 1996; CAIR continues to encourage active political participation by American Muslims, for them to address political candidates and elected representatives with greater frequency.

In 1996, CAIR published a report The Usual Suspects regarding its perception of anti-Muslim rhetoric in the media after the crash of TWA Flight 800. Their research showed 138 uses of the terms "Muslim" and "Arab" in the 48 hours after the crash in Reuters, UPI, and AP articles covering the incident. The official NTSB report said that the crash was most likely caused by mechanical failure.

In 1997, CAIR objected to the production of sneakers made by Nike with a design on the heel similar to the Arabic word for "Allah". As part of an agreement reached between CAIR officials and Nike representatives, Nike apologized to the Muslim community, recalled the products carrying the design, launched an investigation as to how the logo came about, and built a number of children's playgrounds near some Islamic centers in America.

In 1997, as depictions of Muhammad are seen as blasphemous by some Muslims, CAIR wrote to United States Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist requesting that the sculpted representation of Muhammad on the north frieze inside the Supreme Court building be removed or sanded down. About the request, CAIR spokesman Nihad Awad said, "We believe the court had good intention by honoring the prophet, so we appreciate that. We want to be flexible, and we're willing to pay for the changes ourselves." The court rejected CAIR's request in the end.

Post-9/11 (2001–present)

CAIR strongly condemned the 9/11 terrorist attacks and has a long history of condemning and combating extremism. In October 2001, CAIR opposed the United States invasion of Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks. By January 2002, four months after the attacks, the CAIR said that it had received 1,658 reports of discrimination, profiling, harassment, and physical assaults against persons appearing Arab or Muslim, a threefold increase over the prior year. The reports included beatings, death threats, abusive police practices, and employment and airline-related discrimination."

A CAIR initiative funded in part by a $500,000 donation from Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud sent a set of 18 books and tapes to public libraries written by Muslim and non-Muslim authors on Islamic history and practices, as well as an English translation of the Quran.

In 2005, CAIR coordinated the joint release of a fatwa by 344 American Muslim organizations, mosques, and imams nationwide that stated: "Islam strictly condemns religious extremism and the use of violence against innocent lives. There is no justification in Islam for extremism or terrorism. Targeting civilians' life and property through suicide bombings or any other method of attack is haram or forbidden—and those who commit these barbaric acts are criminals, not martyrs." The fatwa cited passages from the Quran and hadith that prohibit violence against innocent people and injustice, and was signed by the Fiqh Council of North America. Authors Kim Ezra Shienbaum and Jamal Hasan felt it did not go far enough in that it did not address attacks on military targets.

Also in 2005, following the Qur'an desecration controversy of 2005 at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, CAIR initiated an "Explore the Quran" campaign, aimed at providing free copies of the Quran to any person who requested it.

In 2006, during the protests over cartoons depicting Muhammad, CAIR responded by launching an educational program "Explore the Life of Muhammad", to bring "people of all faiths together to learn more about the Islamic Prophet Muhammad and to use mutual understanding as a counterweight to the tensions created by the cartoon controversy". It provided free copies of a DVD or book about the life of Muhammad to any person who requested it. Almost 16,000 Americans requested materials.

In June 2006, CAIR announced a $50 million project to create a better understanding of Islam and Muslims in the US. ($10 million per year for five years), in a project to be spearheaded by Paul Findley, a former US Congressman.

Also in 2006, CAIR sent a group of representatives to Iraq to urge kidnappers to release American journalist Jill Carroll. Carroll was eventually released unharmed.

in December 2006, California Senator Barbara Boxer withdrew a "certificate of accomplishment" originally given to former CAIR official Basim Elkarra after Boxer's staff looked into CAIR, and she became concerned about some of CAIR's past statements and actions, and statements by some law enforcement officials that it provides aid to international terrorist groups.

In May 2007, the U.S. filed an action against the Holy Land Foundation (the largest Muslim charity in the United States at the time) for providing funds to Hamas, and federal prosecutors filed pleadings. Along with 245 other organizations, they listed CAIR (and its chairman emeritus, Omar Ahmad), Islamic Society of North America (largest Muslim umbrella organization in the United States), Muslim American Society and North American Islamic Trust as unindicted co-conspirators, a legal designation that can be employed for a variety of reasons including grants of immunity, pragmatic considerations, and evidentiary concerns. While being listed as co-conspirator does not mean that CAIR has been charged with anything, the organization was concerned that the label will forever taint it.

In 2007, the organization was named, along with 245 others, by U.S. Federal prosecutors in a list of unindicted co-conspirators or joint venturers in a Hamas funding case involving the Holy Land Foundation, which in 2009, caused the FBI to cease working with CAIR outside of criminal investigations due to its designation. CAIR was never charged with any crime, and it complained that the designation had tarnished its reputation. It has also been criticized for allegedly publishing propaganda

On October 22, 2007, the Holy Land Foundation trial ended in a mistrial. All defendants were convicted upon retrial in 2008.

In 2008, the FBI discontinued its long-standing relationship with CAIR. Officials said the decision followed the conviction of the HLF directors for funneling millions of dollars to Hamas, revelations that Nihal Awad had participated in planning meetings with HLF, and CAIR's failure to provide details of its ties to Hamas. During a 2008 retrial of the HLF case, FBI Special Agent Lara Burns labeled CAIR "a front group for Hamas". In January 2009, the FBI's DC office instructed all field offices to cut ties with CAIR, as the ban extended into the Obama administration.

U.S. Congressmen Sue Myrick (R-N.C.), Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), John Shadegg (R-Ariz.), and Paul Broun (R-Ga.) wrote Attorney General Eric Holder on October 21, 2009, that they were concerned about CAIR's relationships with terrorist groups, and requesting that the Department of Justice (DOJ) provide a summary of DOJ's evidence and findings that led DOJ to name CAIR an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terrorism trial. The four Congressmen also wrote House of Representatives Sergeant at Arms Wilson Livingood a letter the same day asking that he work with members of the House Judiciary, Homeland Security, and Intelligence Committees to determine if CAIR was successful in placing interns in the committees' offices, to review FBI and DOJ evidence regarding CAIR's Hamas ties, and to determine whether CAIR is a security threat. Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.), "appalled", said "I urge the rest of my colleagues to join me in denouncing this witch hunt." She was echoed by Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress, in a speech that included a statement by the House's Tri-Caucus. The four Republican Congressmen, joined by Senator Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), then wrote IRS Commissioner Douglas H. Shulman on November 16, 2009, asking that CAIR be investigated for "excessive lobbying". CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper welcomed the scrutiny from Republican lawmakers, and said, "We've always stayed within our legal limits . If anything, we don't have enough staff to lobby as much as we legally can."

CAIR condemned the Fort Hood shooting and expressed prayers for the victims and condolences for their families.

CAIR pointed to an arrest of five men in Pakistan on December 10, 2009, as a "success story" between Muslims and Muslim community organizations (like CAIR) and American law enforcement authorities. When the five men left Washington for Karachi on November 28, the families of the men discovered an extremist videotape. Worried, they contacted CAIR, which set up a meeting with the FBI on December 1, and the families shared their sons' computers and electronic devices with FBI agents. A U.S. law enforcement official described them as models of cooperation. CAIR hoped the event would ease "strained" relations of American Muslims with the FBI.

In January 2012, CAIR's Michigan chapter took a stance along with the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee in defending four Muslim high school football players accused of attacking a quarterback during a game. The players were allegedly targeted for criminal prosecution over the attack because of their ethnic origin. A judge later dropped the charges after deciding they had no merit.

CAIR has opposed proposed United States legislation and executive orders which would have designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization, saying that such a designation would "inevitably be used in a political campaign to attack those same groups and individuals, to marginalize the American Muslim community and to demonize Islam".

In 2021 the director of the San Francisco branch of CAIR, Zahra Billoo, gave a speech in which she denounced a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and stated that "We need to pay attention" to the ADL and Hillel, "because just because they are your friends today, doesn't mean that they have your back when it comes to human rights." Later on in her speech, Billoo told the audience to "know your enemies". Her remarks prompted Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the ADL, to accuse Billoo of promoting white supremacist rhetoric. On December 11, CAIR responded by defending Billoo's remarks.

Projects and media

Local CAIR chapters such as the Michigan chapter organized a "Remember Through Service" campaign which was a video and billboard media campaign which featured positive representations of Muslim-Americans including a Muslim first responder during the September 11 World Trade Center events.

Litigation

Workplace discrimination

One of the largest categories of cases CAIR deals with is workplace discrimination. CAIR has filed successful civil rights litigation on behalf of Muslim Americans who suffered employment discrimination due to their religion, including police officers and hospital workers. CAIR also filed an amicus brief on behalf of the plaintiff to the Supreme Court of the United States for Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, in which the Court ruled 8-1 that refusing to hire a woman because she may wear her hijab at the workplace amounts to religious discrimination in hiring.

Local government

In 2012, after the City Council in St. Anthony, Minnesota, voted 4–1 to reject a building plan for the Abu-Huraira Islamic Center, CAIR began legal proceedings and urged the federal government to investigate the city for violating the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. In 2014, the city agreed to a settlement after a federal lawsuit was opened against them, allowing the Abu-Huraira Islamic Center to begin services. CAIR also helped the American Islamic Center (AIC) file a complaint against the city of Des Plaines, Illinois, to the US Department of Justice, after the city refused to allow the AIC to operate its place of worship. After a federal suit was filed, the city agreed to pay $580,000 to the AIC in a settlement agreement.

In 2012, CAIR successfully filed suit striking down State Question 755, a ban on Sharia law in Oklahoma on grounds that it violated the First Amendment right to free exercise of religion

In 2017, CAIR secured an $85,000 settlement for Kirsty Powell, whose hijab was forcibly removed by police while in custody.

Federal government

CAIR has been involved in legal action against the US Government on several occasions. In 2003, CAIR along with the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee filed suit in Muslim Community Association of Ann Arbor v. Ashcroft, which challenged the constitutionality of the USA PATRIOT Act. The case forced Congress to make substantial changes to Section 215 of the act, which helped it avoid being in violation of the First Amendment and had the effect of resolving the lawsuit. CAIR also filed amicus briefs against US President Donald Trump over Executive Order 13769 and Executive Order 13780, which banned all travellers and temporary visa holders of 7 Muslim-majority countries, as well as all refugees, from entering the United States. CAIR began maintaining a group of immigration lawyers in Chicago O'Hare airport after Executive Order 13769 went into effect and caused the immediate revocation of over 100,000 temporary visas.

CAIR litigated on behalf of Gulet Mohamed, a 19-year-old Virginia teenager who was kidnapped and tortured in Kuwait after the FBI placed him on a no-fly list. CAIR argued successfully that the teen's placement on the US no-fly list was "patently unconstitutional" and that Mohamed had a constitutional right to come home.

Muslim Mafia lawsuit

The 2009 book Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld That's Conspiring to Islamize America by Paul David Gaubatz and Paul Sperry portrays CAIR "as a subversive organization allied with international terrorists".

Consequently, CAIR brought a federal civil lawsuit in 2009 against Dave Gaubatz and his son for allegedly stealing documents, which were used in the making of Gaubatz's book. U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly concluded that the Gaubatzs "unlawfully obtained access to, and have already caused repeated public disclosure of, material containing CAIR's proprietary, confidential and privileged information," which CAIR says included names, addresses, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of CAIR employees and donors. As a result, the judge ordered Gaubatz to remove certain documents from his website. Judge Kollar-Kotelly also said that CAIR's employees have reported a dramatic increase in the number of threatening communications since the release of Gaubatz's book.

Operations

CAIR's literature describes the group as promoting understanding of Islam and protecting Muslim civil liberties. It has intervened on behalf of many American Muslims who claim discrimination, profiling, or harassment.

Controversies

Gender bias

A Florida CAIR chapter has been accused of ignoring misconduct involving its leaders. NPR reported: "When concerned parties brought allegations to senior CAIR officials in Washington, D.C., and Florida, former employees said, there was little, if any, follow-up action. They said leaders were aware of some of the allegations as early as 2016." NPR "interviewed 18 former employees at the national office and several prominent chapters who said there was a general lack of accountability when it came to perceived gender bias, religious bias or mismanagement".

Labor organizing

NPR's investigation reported that CAIR "thwart employees' efforts to unionize in the national office in 2016". "Service Employees International Union Local 500 said in filings Wednesday that the Council on American-Islamic Relations was trying to bust its effort to organize the civil rights group's staff. CAIR responded with a statement Thursday calling the charge 'meritless'."

Designation as terrorist organization by UAE

In November 2014, CAIR was designated a terrorist organization by the United Arab Emirates, which claimed that the organization has ties Muslim Brotherhood. UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash rejected criticism of the designation, saying that "The noise (by) some Western organizations over the UAE's terrorism list originates in groups that are linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and many of them work on incitement and creating an environment of extremism."

CAIR called the move "shocking and bizarre", and some international American terrorism analysts were also critical. The Washington Post wrote: "CAIR and the Muslim American Society are not alone in their shock. Diverse groups across Europe were also added to the list, leaving many observers perplexed at the scope and sheer scale of the list. Norway's foreign ministry publicly requested an explanation as to why one of the country's largest Islamic groups, the Islamic Organization, was included, and the U.S. State Department said they would be seeking more information from the U.A.E." In January 2015, CAIR said it would seek to appeal the designation in the UAE. CAIR has criticized UAE for targeting and detaining American Muslims, such as the civil rights attorney and human rights activist Asim Ghafoor, the former attorney of the Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post journalist assassination by agents of the Saudi government in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Ghafoor helped establish the organization Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), which has focused part of its work on human rights violations in the UAE. CAIR has claimed that "The real reason the UAE targeted Ghafoor became even clearer when Emirati media outlets began publishing unhinged, Islamophobic hit-pieces slandering him as a “terrorist” for his pro-democracy work with DAWN and other groups." It also argued that, "the UAE’s history targeting American Muslims as part of its effort to spread secular authoritarianism throughout the Middle East."

In an interview with Bret Baier of Fox News, UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan was asked about the designation of CAIR as a terrorist group, in which he responded:

Our threshold is quite low when we talk about extremism. We cannot accept incitement or funding when we look at some of these organisations. For many countries, the definition of terror is that you have to carry a weapon and terrorise people. For us, it's much beyond that; we cannot tolerate even the smallest, tiniest amount of terrorism.

The United States government has not listed CAIR as a terrorist organization.

LGBT rights

In 2016, in the wake of the Pulse nightclub shooting, CAIR representatives met with LGBT leaders to condemn the attack, gather in solidarity, and voice their support for LGBT rights. CAIR Sacramento director Basim Elkarra also released a statement offering “support and allyship to the LGBTQ community, which has been a faithful ally against Islamophobia.” CAIR director Nihad Awad also voiced his support, saying that American “Muslims stand united” with the LGBT community.

In Michigan, CAIR voiced concerns over an amendment to the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, advocating that the amendment's LGBT rights provisions include faith protections.

CAIR and several other Muslim organizations have opposed mandatory “sexually-themed lessons” in Montgomery County, Maryland. These lessons include LGBT-inclusive content. CAIR issued a statement saying parents should be notified in advance so their children can opt-out of “sexually-themed content.” CAIR released a statement saying that “Schools should respect their authority by restoring the option to opt their children out of reading sexually-themed content or participating in sexually-themed lessons and discussions, without any adverse consequences.

Reception

Praise

U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer's 2006 decision to withdraw a "certificate of accomplishment" originally given to former CAIR official Basim Elkarra on grounds of suspicions about the organization's background "provoked an outcry from organizations that vouch for the group's advocacy, including the ACLU and the California Council of Churches." Maya Harris, executive director of the ACLU of Northern California, criticized Senator Boxer's decision and added that CAIR has "been a leading organization that has advocated for civil rights and civil liberties in the face of fear and intolerance, in the face of religious and ethnic profiling."

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nicholas Kristof advocated for people to support and sign up as members of CAIR in response to the 2016 election of US President Donald Trump.

In 2016, the University of Saint Thomas named the Minnesota branch of CAIR as the winner of its Winds of Change Award at its Forum on Workplace Inclusion.

The Seattle chapter of the League of Women Voters awarded the Washington branch of CAIR one of its 2015 Champion of Voting and Civil Rights Awards, praising "their work encouraging voting and community involvement by members of the Muslim American community".

Criticism

December 2023, the Biden administration cut off contact with CAIR after its executive director stated he was "happy to see" Palestinians break Israel's siege on the Gaza Strip on October 7. Awad also stated that Palestinians "have the right to self-defense" but that Israel "as an occupying power" does not. According to a CAIR press release, during his speech, Awad had also stated that, "The hatred, the prejudice, the violence, the discrimination against Jews because of their faith or their life or their religious practices is a hateful mindset, behavior and action. We as human beings, as Muslims, as Palestinians, see it as evil the way it is, and should be condemned because antisemitism is a real phenomenon, a real evil, and it has to be rejected and combated by all people regardless of their faith tradition, ideology, or those people who have no ideology. It is an attack on humanity and should be clearly condemned by all people."

In response to the criticism from the Biden administration, Awad released a statement and held a press conference in which reiterate his opposition to and condemnation of all attacks on civilians, including the October 7th Hamas attack on Israel, claiming that this original remarks were taken out of context. He stated that, “Ukrainians, Palestinians and other occupied people have the right to defend themselves and escape occupation by just and legal means, but targeting civilians is never an acceptable means of doing so, which is why I have again and again condemned the violence against Israeli civilians on Oct. 7th and past Hamas attacks on Israeli civilians, including suicide bombings, all the way back to the 1990s—just as I have condemned the decades of violence against Palestinian civilians. “The average Palestinians who briefly walked out of Gaza and set foot on their ethnically cleansed land in a symbolic act of defiance against the blockade and stopped there without engaging in violence were within their rights under international law; the extremists who went on to attack civilians in southern Israel were not. Targeting civilians is unacceptable, no matter whether they are Israeli or Palestinian or any other nationality.”

Critics of CAIR have accused it of pursuing an Islamist agenda. CAIR denies these allegations. Zuhdi Jasser, a physician and Republican politician in Arizona, has criticized CAIR and argued that its agenda is focused on "victimization". Best-selling author and prominent critic of Islam, Sam Harris, criticized CAIR by saying the organization is "an Islamist public relations firm posing as a civil-rights lobby".

Some Muslims have criticized CAIR for taking a conservative religious approach on some issues. These critics claim that past statements by the organization, such as the claim that the headscarf is a religious requirement for Muslim women, often follow conservative Saudi religious doctrine and do not capture diverse religious perspectives. The claim that the headscarf is religious obligation upon Muslim women has been criticized by some Muslim scholars and academics, including Khaled Abou El Fadl.

Funding

CAIR has an annual budget of around $3 million (as of 2007). It states that while the majority of its funding comes from American Muslims, it accepts donations from individuals of any faith and also foreigners. In the past CAIR has accepted donations from individuals and foundations close to Arab governments. Within CAIR there is debate regarding foreign funding, and several CAIR branches have criticized the national office for accepting foreign donations.

In April 2011, Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va. cited a 2009 letter sent from CAIR's executive director, Nihad Awad, to Muammar Gaddafi asking Gaddafi for funding for a project called the Muslim Peace Foundation at a U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations sub-committee hearing. Steven Emerson called the funding request "hypocritical", while CAIR spokesman, Ibrahim Hooper, said that the Muslim Peace Foundation was Awad's personal initiative "unrelated to CAIR", that CAIR didn't receive any money from the Libyan government, and also that CAIR was one of the first American organizations to call for a no-fly zone to protect Libyan citizens from Gaddafi during the 2011 Libyan Civil War.

See also

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