American Islamic Congress
Encyclopedia
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
based in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. According to the organization's website, it is "dedicated to building interfaith and interethnic understanding." It was founded in November 2001 by a diverse group of American Muslims to promote tolerance following the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
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The organization is based in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and also maintains bureaus in Boston, Massachusetts Cairo, Egypt and Basra
Basra
Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. Its Executive Director is Zainab Al-Suwaij.
The American Islamic Congress started a student-led initiative two years ago dubbed "Project Nur." Project Nur has over 25 chapters in campuses across the nation, and is rapidly expanding. The chapters work to combat stereotypes and promote inter-faith understanding on college campuses.
In June 2010, AIC launched a blog focusing on women's right in the Middle East. The blog, called "Drafting a New Story: Women's Rights in the Middle East" features new stories, political cartoons, video interviews, and artwork with an emphasis on women's rights.
The AIC also holds an annual essay writing contest focused on civil rights in the Middle East, the Dream Deferred Essay Contest
Dream Deferred Essay Contest
Hands Across the Mideast Support Alliance , an American Islamic Congress initiative, holds an annual essay contest focusing on civil rights in the Middle East. The Dream Deferred Essay Contest was inspired by a Langston Hughes poem, What happens to a dream deferred? The poem helped inspire and...
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