Council on American-Islamic Relations
Encyclopedia
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is America's largest Muslim
civil liberties
advocacy organization that deals with civil advocacy and promotes human rights
. It is headquartered on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
, with regional offices nationwide.
Through media relations, lobbying, and education, CAIR presents an Islamic perspective on issues of importance to the American public, and seeks to empower the American Muslim community and encourage its social and political activism. Annual banquets, through which CAIR raises the majority of its funds, are attended by American politicians, statesmen, interfaith leaders, activists and media personalities.
In 2007 the organization was named, along with 245 others, by U.S. Federal prosecutors in a list of unindicted co-conspirators and/or joint venturers in a Hamas funding case involving the Holy Land Foundation
, which caused the FBI to cease working with CAIR outside of criminal investigations due to its designation. A federal appeals court removed the label for all parties and sealed the list on October 20, 2010, ruling the designation was the result of "simply an untested allegation of the Government, made in anticipation of a possible evidentiary dispute that never came to pass."
is "to enhance understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding".
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. Its stated core principles include supporting freedom of religion
, protecting all Americans' civil rights, and encouraging inter-faith dialogue. CAIR believes that "the active practice of Islam strengthens the social and religious fabric of our nation."
CAIR is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with affiliates in 20 states (many of which manage multiple offices), and 33 chapters in the US and Canada (CAIR-CAN). CAIR and its affiliates are managed by board members from 50 American cities, and combined employ more than 70 full-time staff, serving millions of American Muslims. CAIR annual report
s are available to all members and donors, as well as internet users online.
(IAP)—Omar Ahmad
(IAP President; became CAIR President), Nihad Awad
(IAP PR Director; became CAIR Secretary & Treasurer), and Rafeeq Jaber (IAP Chicago Chapter President; became CAIR Vice President). Also, Ibrahim Hooper
, who assisted Awad's media efforts, became CAIR's communications director.
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
, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger
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. CAIR opened its first chapter in the San Francisco Bay area.
In 1995, CAIR handled its first case of hijab
(the headscarf traditionally worn by Muslim women) discrimination, in which a Muslim employee was denied the right to wear hijab; this type of complaint is now 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 more harassment and hate crime
s; 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 contains descriptions of news, bias incidents or hate speech and hate crimes, often followed by information as to who 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 probable cause was mechanical.
In 1997 CAIR objected to the production of sneaker 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.
", which its considers to be consistent with its general approach to terrorism. CAIR published a paid advertisement in the Washington Post condemning 9/11 and terrorism in general.
CAIR increased its advocacy work again after the September 11 attacks. In October 2001 CAIR stated that it was opposed to the US's Afghan campaign. 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 three-fold increase over the prior year. The reports included beatings, death threats, abusive police practices, and employment and airline-related discrimination." In its 2002 civil rights report, CAIR concluded that "the status of Muslim civil rights has deteriorated sharply", and complained that "the sweeping actions of the government have disturbed the lives of individuals and ethnic and religious communities." The largest percentage of complaints had to do with alleged profiling of Muslims at US airports.
CAIR has conducted investigations, issued reports, held press conferences, filed lawsuits, and organized political action to protest aspects of U.S. counterterrorism policy.
From 2002–2004 CAIR organized the Library Project, an effort to "put quality materials about Islam in all 17,000 public libraries in the United States." The initiative 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. As of December 2004, CAIR received 7804 sponsorships for the $150 set. The initiative was funded with an initial $500,000 matching contribution from Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud
, whose donation to the Twin Towers Fund was refused by then-Mayor Rudy Guliani because it came with a letter attributing US support for Israel for the 9/11 attacks.
In 2003 CAIR employee Randall "Ismael" Royer was arrested for his role in the Northern Virginia jihad terrorist network.
In 2004 CAIR launched a "Not In the Name of Islam" petition in order to "disassociate the faith of Islam from the violent acts of a few Muslims." It encouraged Islamic organizations, mosques, and individuals to sign it. The petition repudiated terrorism and any group that committed such acts, citing a portion of the Quran that told believers to stand for justice even if it was against friends or family. The petition was posted on CAIR's homepage
, and garned over 690,000 signatures before being taken down in a sitewide renovation in 2007.
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 martyr
s." 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. Nearly 34,000 Americans requested a copy.
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.
California Senator Barbara Boxer
in December 2006 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 300 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-conspirator
s, 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 response, National Association of Muslim Lawyers
and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, saying that the move to list the largest Muslim organizations in America as unindicted co-conspirators was an effort to smear the entire Muslim community. They also stated that the list breached the department’s own guidelines against releasing the names of unindicted co-conspirators.
The Investigative Project on Terrorism reported that on August 7, 2007, a Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI) agent testified at the Holy Land Foundation trial that CAIR was "listed as a member of the Muslim Brotherhood
's Palestine Committee", that it had received money from the Foundation (conflicting with Nihad Awad's Congressional testimony), and that co-founders Awad and Omar Ahmad were "listed as individual members [of] the Brotherhood Palestine Committee in America."
On October 22, 2007, the Holy Land Foundation trial ended in a mistrial. CAIR stated that the reason for the mistrial, and no convictions on any of the charges, was that the charges were built on "fear, not facts."
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-NC), Trent Franks
(R-AZ), John Shadegg
(R-AZ), and Paul Broun
(R-GA) wrote Attorney General
Eric Holder
on October 21, 2009, that they were very concerned about CAIR's relationships with terrorist groups, and requesting that the Department of Justice
(DOJ) provide each Congressman 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-CA), "appalled", said "I urge the rest of my colleagues to join me in denouncing this witch hunt." She was echoed by Keith Ellison
(D-MN), 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-OK) and Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-NC), then wrote IRS Commissioner Douglas H. Shulman
on November 16, 2009, asking that CAIR be investigated for excessive lobbying and failing to register as a lobbying organization.
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 setup 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.
Hours after it was announced by President Barack Obama
that Osama bin Laden had been killed, CAIR put out a statement: "We join our fellow citizens in welcoming the announcement that Osama bin Laden has been eliminated as a threat to our nation and the world through the actions of American military personnel. As we have stated repeatedly since the 9/11 terror attacks, bin Laden never represented Muslims or Islam. In fact, in addition to the killing of thousands of Americans, he and Al Qaeda caused the deaths of countless Muslims worldwide. We also reiterate President Obama's clear statement tonight that the United States is not at war with Islam."
In June 2011, CAIR lost its federal tax-exempt status for failure to file the appropriate 990 forms for the previous three years. (This does not apply to the local chapters, however.) A spokesman blamed it on an incorrect filing.
CAIR officials are often interviewed by major national, local, and international media on news programs involving Muslims in America. In five years CAIR officials were cited over 11,000 times by media, including CNN
, MSNBC
, BBC
, ABC
, Fox
, NBC
, CBS
, Washington Post, USA Today
, and the New York Times. Editorials written by CAIR officials are published nationwide.
, governors, mayors, members of state legislatures, and county commissioners. Several CAIR affiliates have received proclamations and citations from mayors and county commissioners. The organization itself has received praise from congressmen and women to top military officials such as General Wesley Clark
, who "applaud[ed] its efforts to ensure that all Americans…are treated equally and given the same constitutional rights." CAIR also regularly meets with national, state, and local law enforcement officials including the Department of Homeland Security.
CAIR has conducted diversity/sensitivity training
on Islam and Muslims for the FBI, US Armed Forces, several local and state law enforcement agencies, and many U.S. corporations. CAIR works in close cooperation with other civic and civil liberties groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union
, Amnesty International
, NAACP, Hispanic Unity, Organization of Chinese Americans
, Japanese American Citizens League
, Sikh Mediawatch, Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
, and Resource Task Force. CAIR has also formed a partnership with the National Council of Churches
and held discussions with representatives of the National Association of Evangelicals
. In 2003, the Ohio
chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union
gave its annual Liberty Flame Award to the Ohio chapter of CAIR "for contributions to the advancement and protection of civil liberties."
CAIR is also a member of the American Muslim Political Coordination Council (AMPCC), created in 1999, along with the American Muslim Alliance (AMA), American Muslim Council
(AMC), and Muslim Public Affairs Council
(MPC). AMPCC's primary concern is to coordinate the member organizations on activism and lobbying.
Reverend Jesse Jackson
was a keynote speaker at CAIR's 15 annual banquet.
, have alleged ties between the CAIR founders and Hamas
. The founders, Omar Ahmad and Nihad Awad, had earlier been officers of the Islamic Association of Palestine
(IAP), described by a former FBI analyst and US Treasury Department intelligence official as "intimately tied to the most senior Hamas leadership." Both Ahmad and Awad participated in a meeting held in Philadelphia on October 3, 1993, that involved senior leaders of Hamas, the Holy Land Foundation (which was designated in 1995 by Executive Order, and later convicted in court, as an organization that had raised millions of dollars for Hamas) , and the IAP. Based on electronic surveillance of the meeting, the FBI reported that "the participants went to great length and spent much effort hiding their association with the Islamic Resistance Movement [Hamas]." Participants at the meeting discussed forming a "political organization and public relations
" body, "whose Islamic hue is not very conspicuous."
Critics also point to a July 1994 meeting identifying CAIR as one of the four U.S. organizations comprising the working organizations of the Palestine Committee of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood
, the parent organization and supporter of Hamas. At a 1994 meeting at Barry University
, Awad said that he was "in support of the Hamas movement". CAIR has responded by noting that Hamas was only designated a terrorist organization in January 1995 and did not commit its first wave of suicide bombings until late 1994, after Awad made the comment.
Daniel Pipes
and investigative reporter Steven Emerson
accuse CAIR of being a front for Hamas, having ties to terrorism, as well as "offering a platform to conspiratorial Israel-bashers." The Anti-Defamation League
and Emerson have also accused CAIR of having a long record of propagating antisemitic propaganda. Journalist Jake Tapper
criticizes CAIR for refusing to condemn specifically Osama bin Laden and Islamic extremism, but rather making only vague and generic criticisms.
Furthermore, critics point to a statement made by Omar Ahmad
(a joint founder of CAIR) in 1998 in which he said that Muslim American "have a duty to deliver the message of Islam" and that "Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant." Robert Spencer has argued that Ahmad's statement is the "same goal that Osama bin Laden has, to Islamize the US."
Pipes has accused CAIR of demanding that a billboard declaring Osama bin Laden "the sworn enemy" be brought down in 1998 as "offensive to Moslems", denying bin Laden's responsibility for the Africa embassy bombings, calling the conviction of the 1993 World Trade Center bombers "a travesty of justice," calling the conviction of the blind Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman a "hate crime", calling the extradition order of suspected Hamas terrorist Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook "anti-Islamic", calling President Bush's closing of the Holy Land Foundation for collecting money used to support Hamas "unjust" and "disturbing", praising and defending convicted murderer H. Rap Brown
as well as convicted attempted murderer Adnan Chaudhry, and their LA office head calling Israelis "zionazis"; he also quotes the FBI's former chief of counterterrorism Steven Pomerantz saying that CAIR "effectively" gives aid to international terrorist groups.
CAIR raised suspicions by raising its annual budget of around $3 million (as of 2007) in part through large donations from people and foundations identified with Arab governments. The article further suggests that because CAIR's Washington chapter has repeatedly issued controversial statements, it has been difficult "for senior government officials to associate with the group."
Some Muslims criticize CAIR for being overly conservative from a religious standpoint, for example by taking the disputed position that all Moslem women are required to veil their hair.
Neuroscientist
and best-selling author Sam Harris
, noted mainly for his contribution to the New Atheism
movement, criticized CAIR by doubting their legitimacy saying CAIR is "an Islamist public relations firm posing as a civil-rights lobby".
The organization has also been criticized for its lawsuit seeking to overturn Oklahoma State Question 755, a proposition that would prevent Shari'a law in that state. CAIR's Oklahoma director filed the suit, which he says unfairly targets Muslims and is in violation of the First Amendment
.
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 with Robert Mueller
. The letter also said, in part, "I am pleased to send to Your Excellency in my name most solemn assurances of thanks and appreciation for the efforts you exert in the service of Islam, Muslims and all mankind through your initiative to teach Islam, spread the culture of Islam, and solve disputes, for which you are known internationally." Steven Emerson
called the funding request "hypocritical." while CAIR spokesman, Ibrahim Hooper
, said that the organization 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
, essentially guilt by association
." At that time (prior to the Holy Land trial), the Times called efforts to link the organization to Hamas and Hezbollah "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" although the article goes on to cite the suspicious background of some of CAIR's donors as a source of contention within members of the organization itself. The Times also noted that even though a handful of its former members had faced prosecution, no criminal charge
s had at the time ever been linked to CAIR.
CAIR also says that accusations against it have their roots in its refusal to endorse the U.S.'s blanket condemnation of Hezbollah and Hamas, though it says it did criticize Hamas for civilian deaths.
Senator 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. "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 ethnic profiling," said Maya Harris
, executive director of the ACLU of Northern California.
was published in October 2009. According to the Charlotte Observer, it portrays CAIR "as a subversive organization allied with international terrorists."
Consequently, CAIR brought a federal civil lawsuit against Dave Gaubatz and his son (who had obtained the book's CAIR source documents as a CAIR intern) for allegedly stealing the documents. 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 Mr. Gaubatz's book.
Gaubatz agreed in early November to return more than 12,000 pages of disputed CAIR records while the judge considered the lawsuit, but in late November before he could do so the U.S. Government, which previously had no role in the lawsuit, filed a motion in the case under seal
, and FBI agents served the Gaubatzes' attorneys with a grand jury
subpoena
demanding the CAIR records.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
civil liberties
Civil liberties
Civil liberties are rights and freedoms that provide an individual specific rights such as the freedom from slavery and forced labour, freedom from torture and death, the right to liberty and security, right to a fair trial, the right to defend one's self, the right to own and bear arms, the right...
advocacy organization that deals with civil advocacy and promotes human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
. It is headquartered on Capitol Hill 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....
, with regional offices nationwide.
Through media relations, lobbying, and education, CAIR presents an Islamic perspective on issues of importance to the American public, and seeks to empower the American Muslim community and encourage its social and political activism. Annual banquets, through which CAIR raises the majority of its funds, are attended by American politicians, statesmen, interfaith leaders, activists and media personalities.
In 2007 the organization was named, along with 245 others, by U.S. Federal prosecutors in a list of unindicted co-conspirators and/or joint venturers in a Hamas funding case involving the Holy Land Foundation
Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development
The Holy Land Foundation was the largest Islamic charity in the United States. Headquartered in Richardson, Texas, it was originally known as Occupied Land Fund....
, which caused the FBI to cease working with CAIR outside of criminal investigations due to its designation. A federal appeals court removed the label for all parties and sealed the list on October 20, 2010, ruling the designation was the result of "simply an untested allegation of the Government, made in anticipation of a possible evidentiary dispute that never came to pass."
Mission and offices
CAIR's mission statementMission statement
A mission statement is a statement of the purpose of a company or organization. The mission statement should guide the actions of the organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a path, and guide decision-making...
is "to enhance understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding".
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. Its stated core principles include supporting freedom of religion
Freedom of religion
Freedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance; the concept is generally recognized also to include the freedom to change religion or not to follow any...
, protecting all Americans' civil rights, and encouraging inter-faith dialogue. CAIR believes that "the active practice of Islam strengthens the social and religious fabric of our nation."
CAIR is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with affiliates in 20 states (many of which manage multiple offices), and 33 chapters in the US and Canada (CAIR-CAN). CAIR and its affiliates are managed by board members from 50 American cities, and combined employ more than 70 full-time staff, serving millions of American Muslims. CAIR annual report
Annual report
An annual report is a comprehensive report on a company's activities throughout the preceding year. Annual reports are intended to give shareholders and other interested people information about the company's activities and financial performance...
s are available to all members and donors, as well as internet users online.
Early years (1994–2001)
CAIR was founded in June 1994 by three officers of the Islamic Association of PalestineIslamic Association of Palestine
Islamic Association of Palestine was an Islamist organization that raised money in the United States for Hamas. It described itself as "a not-for-profit, public-awareness, educational, political, social, and civic, national grassroots organization dedicated to advancing a just, comprehensive, and...
(IAP)—Omar Ahmad
Omar Ahmad
Omar Ahmad is the co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations , a Washington D.C.-based Muslim civil rights organization.He had been the chairman of CAIR's board of directors since its founding in 1994, but stepped down from that position in May 2005...
(IAP President; became CAIR President), Nihad Awad
Nihad Awad
Nihad Awad is the Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations .- Early life :Nihad Awad was born in Amman New Camp, a Palestinian refugee camp in Amman, Jordan. He studied at Second Amman Preparatory School for Boys, located at the camp and belongs to UNRWA, and at Salaheddine...
(IAP PR Director; became CAIR Secretary & Treasurer), and Rafeeq Jaber (IAP Chicago Chapter President; became CAIR Vice President). Also, Ibrahim Hooper
Ibrahim Hooper
Ibrahim Hooper , a convert to Islam, is the National Communications Director and spokesperson for the Council on American-Islamic Relations , a Washington D.C.-based Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization.-Early life:...
, who assisted Awad's media efforts, became CAIR's communications director.
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
True Lies
True Lies is a 1994 American action-comedy film directed by James Cameron and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton, Tia Carrere, Charlton Heston, and Art Malik. Eliza Dushku also appears in the film in one of her first major film roles...
, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
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. CAIR opened its first chapter in the San Francisco Bay area.
In 1995, CAIR handled its first case of hijab
Hijab
The word "hijab" or "'" refers to both the head covering traditionally worn by Muslim women and modest Muslim styles of dress in general....
(the headscarf traditionally worn by Muslim women) discrimination, in which a Muslim employee was denied the right to wear hijab; this type of complaint is now 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
Oklahoma City bombing
The Oklahoma City bombing was a terrorist bomb attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. It was the most destructive act of terrorism on American soil until the September 11, 2001 attacks. The Oklahoma blast claimed 168 lives, including 19...
of the Murrah Federal Building. Following the attack, Muslim-Americans were subjected to more harassment and hate crime
Hate crime
In crime and law, hate crimes occur when a perpetrator targets a victim because of his or her perceived membership in a certain social group, usually defined by racial group, religion, sexual orientation, disability, class, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, gender identity, social status or...
s; 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
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
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 contains descriptions of news, bias incidents or hate speech and hate crimes, often followed by information as to who readers may contact to influence resolution of an issue. CAIR also held its first voter registration drive
Voter registration drive
A voter registration drive is an effort, often undertaken by a political campaign, political party, or other outside groups , that seeks to register to vote those who are eligible but not registered...
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
TWA Flight 800
Trans World Airlines Flight 800 , a Boeing 747-131, exploded and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean near East Moriches, New York, on July 17, 1996, at about 20:31 EDT, 12 minutes after takeoff, killing all 230 persons on board. At the time, it was the second-deadliest U.S...
. Their research showed 138 uses of the terms "Muslim" and "Arab" in the 48 hours after the crash in Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
, UPI
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
, and AP
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
articles covering the incident. The official NTSB report said that the probable cause was mechanical.
In 1997 CAIR objected to the production of sneaker made by Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
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.
Post-9/11 (2001–present)
CAIR joined other Muslim groups in condemning the September 11 attacks in 2001 "within hours of the first plane crashing into the World Trade CenterWorld Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
", which its considers to be consistent with its general approach to terrorism. CAIR published a paid advertisement in the Washington Post condemning 9/11 and terrorism in general.
CAIR increased its advocacy work again after the September 11 attacks. In October 2001 CAIR stated that it was opposed to the US's Afghan campaign. 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 three-fold increase over the prior year. The reports included beatings, death threats, abusive police practices, and employment and airline-related discrimination." In its 2002 civil rights report, CAIR concluded that "the status of Muslim civil rights has deteriorated sharply", and complained that "the sweeping actions of the government have disturbed the lives of individuals and ethnic and religious communities." The largest percentage of complaints had to do with alleged profiling of Muslims at US airports.
CAIR has conducted investigations, issued reports, held press conferences, filed lawsuits, and organized political action to protest aspects of U.S. counterterrorism policy.
From 2002–2004 CAIR organized the Library Project, an effort to "put quality materials about Islam in all 17,000 public libraries in the United States." The initiative 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. As of December 2004, CAIR received 7804 sponsorships for the $150 set. The initiative was funded with an initial $500,000 matching contribution from Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud
Al-Waleed bin Talal
Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal is a Saudi Arabian billionaire and member of the Saudi royal family. He is the nephew of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. An entrepreneur and international investor he has amassed a fortune through investments in real estate and the stock market.He is founder and CEO of...
, whose donation to the Twin Towers Fund was refused by then-Mayor Rudy Guliani because it came with a letter attributing US support for Israel for the 9/11 attacks.
In 2003 CAIR employee Randall "Ismael" Royer was arrested for his role in the Northern Virginia jihad terrorist network.
In 2004 CAIR launched a "Not In the Name of Islam" petition in order to "disassociate the faith of Islam from the violent acts of a few Muslims." It encouraged Islamic organizations, mosques, and individuals to sign it. The petition repudiated terrorism and any group that committed such acts, citing a portion of the Quran that told believers to stand for justice even if it was against friends or family. The petition was posted on CAIR's homepage
Homepage
A home page or homepage has various related meanings to do with web sites:* It most often refers to the initial or main web page of a web site, sometimes called the front page ....
, and garned over 690,000 signatures before being taken down in a sitewide renovation in 2007.
In 2005 CAIR coordinated the joint release of a fatwa
Fatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
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
Haraam
Haraam is an Arabic term meaning "forbidden", or "sacred". In Islam it is used to refer to anything that is prohibited by the word of Allah in the Qur'an or the Hadith Qudsi. Haraam is the highest status of prohibition given to anything that would result in sin when a Muslim commits it...
or forbidden—and those who commit these barbaric acts are criminals, not martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
s." 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
Fiqh Council of North America
The Fiqh Council of North America is an association of Muslims who interpret Islamic law on the North American continent.Its 18 members issue religious rulings, resolve disputes, and answer questions relating to the Islamic faith...
. 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
Qur'an desecration controversy of 2005
The 2005 Qur'an desecration controversy began when Newsweek's April 30 issue contained a report asserting that United States prison guards or interrogators had deliberately damaged a copy of Islam's holiest book, the Qur'an....
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. Nearly 34,000 Americans requested a copy.
In 2006, during the protests over cartoons depicting Muhammad
Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy
The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy began after 12 editorial cartoons, most of which depicted the Islamic prophet Muhammad, were published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten on 30 September 2005...
, 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
Paul Findley
Paul Findley is a former United States Representative from Illinois, representing its 20th District. A Republican, he was first elected in 1961. Findley lost his seat in 1982 to current United States Senator Dick Durbin. Findley attended Illinois College and is a member of Phi Alpha Literary Society...
, a former US Congressman.
California Senator Barbara Boxer
Barbara Boxer
Barbara Levy Boxer is the junior United States Senator from California . A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives ....
in December 2006 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 300 other organizations, they listed CAIR (and its chairman emeritus, Omar Ahmad
Omar Ahmad
Omar Ahmad is the co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations , a Washington D.C.-based Muslim civil rights organization.He had been the chairman of CAIR's board of directors since its founding in 1994, but stepped down from that position in May 2005...
), Islamic Society of North America
Islamic Society of North America
The Islamic Society of North America , based in Plainfield, Indiana, USA, is a Muslim umbrella group. It has been described in the media as the largest Muslim organization in North America.-History:...
(largest Muslim umbrella organization in the United States), Muslim American Society
Muslim American Society
The Muslim American Society is a nonprofit organization founded in 1993 that describes itself as an Islamic revival and reform movement....
and North American Islamic Trust
North American Islamic Trust
The North American Islamic Trust is a Saudi-backed organization based in Plainfield, Indiana, that owns Islamic properties and promotes waqf in North America...
as unindicted co-conspirator
Unindicted co-conspirator
An unindicted co-conspirator, or unindicted conspirator, is a person or entity that is alleged in an indictment to have engaged in conspiracy, but who is not charged in the same indictment...
s, 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 response, National Association of Muslim Lawyers
National Association of Muslim Lawyers
The National Association of Muslim Lawyers is an American lawyers' not-for-profit organization headquartered in Washington, DC. It was originally known as MuslimJD when it began in 1996 as an informal e-mail discussion group. It took the NAML name in 2000 after two successful conferences...
and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers is an American criminal defense organization. Their stated mission is to "Ensure justice and due process for persons accused of crime. Foster the integrity, independence and expertise of the criminal defense profession...
sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, saying that the move to list the largest Muslim organizations in America as unindicted co-conspirators was an effort to smear the entire Muslim community. They also stated that the list breached the department’s own guidelines against releasing the names of unindicted co-conspirators.
The Investigative Project on Terrorism reported that on August 7, 2007, a Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
(FBI) agent testified at the Holy Land Foundation trial that CAIR was "listed as a member of the Muslim Brotherhood
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
's Palestine Committee", that it had received money from the Foundation (conflicting with Nihad Awad's Congressional testimony), and that co-founders Awad and Omar Ahmad were "listed as individual members [of] the Brotherhood Palestine Committee in America."
On October 22, 2007, the Holy Land Foundation trial ended in a mistrial. CAIR stated that the reason for the mistrial, and no convictions on any of the charges, was that the charges were built on "fear, not facts."
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
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
Sue Myrick (R-NC), Trent Franks
Trent Franks
Trent Franks is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party.The district takes in the entire northwestern corner of the state, including Kingman and Lake Havasu City, but most of its vote is cast in the western Phoenix suburbs.-Early life, education and...
(R-AZ), John Shadegg
John Shadegg
John Barden Shadegg is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 1995 until 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party.The district, numbered as the 4th District before the 2000 Census, includes much of northern Phoenix....
(R-AZ), and Paul Broun
Paul Broun
Paul Collins Broun, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Republican Party and the Tea Party Caucus.-Early life, education and career:...
(R-GA) wrote Attorney General
United States Attorney General
The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...
Eric Holder
Eric Holder
Eric Himpton Holder, Jr. is the 82nd and current Attorney General of the United States and the first African American to hold the position, serving under President Barack Obama....
on October 21, 2009, that they were very concerned about CAIR's relationships with terrorist groups, and requesting that the Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
(DOJ) provide each Congressman 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
Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives Sergeant at Arms is an officer of the House with law enforcement, protocol, and administrative responsibilities. The Sergeant at Arms is elected at the beginning of each Congress by the membership of the chamber...
Wilson Livingood
Wilson Livingood
Wilson "Bill" Livingood , a 33-year veteran of the United States Secret Service, was elected Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives on January 4, 1995, for the 104th Congress, and subsequently re-elected through the current Congress.From Philadelphia, he grew up in Texas and...
a letter the same day asking that he work with members of the House Judiciary
United States House Committee on the Judiciary
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, administrative agencies and Federal law enforcement...
, Homeland Security
United States House Committee on Homeland Security
The U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives, the lower house of Congress. Its responsibilities include U.S...
, and Intelligence
United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
The United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence is a committee of the United States House of Representatives, currently chaired by Mike Rogers. It is the primary committee in the U.S...
Committees to determine if CAIR was successful in placing interns in the committees' offices, to review FBI and DOJ evidence regarding CAIR's Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
ties, and to determine whether CAIR is a security threat. Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez
Loretta Sanchez
Loretta Sanchez is the U.S. Representative for , and previously the 46th, serving since 2003. She is a member of the Democratic Party, and a member of the Blue Dog Coalition. The district lies in central Orange County....
(D-CA), "appalled", said "I urge the rest of my colleagues to join me in denouncing this witch hunt." She was echoed by Keith Ellison
Keith Ellison (politician)
Keith Maurice Ellison is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. The district centers on Minneapolis. He was re-elected in 2010. Ellison is a co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.He is the first Muslim to be elected to the...
(D-MN), 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
Tom Coburn
Thomas Allen "Tom" Coburn, M.D. , is an American politician, medical doctor, and Southern Baptist deacon. A member of the Republican Party, he currently serves as the junior U.S. Senator from Oklahoma. In the Senate, he is known as "Dr. No" for his tendency to place holds on and vote against bills...
(R-OK) and Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-NC), then wrote IRS Commissioner Douglas H. Shulman
Douglas H. Shulman
Douglas H. Shulman is the U.S. Commissioner of Internal Revenue. His nomination was confirmed by the full U.S. Senate on March 14, 2008 and he was sworn in on March 24, 2008...
on November 16, 2009, asking that CAIR be investigated for excessive lobbying and failing to register as a lobbying organization.
CAIR condemned the Fort Hood shooting
Fort Hood shooting
The Fort Hood shooting was a mass shooting that took place on November 5, 2009, at Fort Hood, the most populous U.S. military installation in the world, located just outside Killeen, Texas. In the course of the shooting, a single gunman killed 13 people and wounded 29 others...
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
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....
for Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
on November 28, the families of the men discovered an extremist videotape. Worried, they contacted CAIR, which setup 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.
Hours after it was announced by President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
that Osama bin Laden had been killed, CAIR put out a statement: "We join our fellow citizens in welcoming the announcement that Osama bin Laden has been eliminated as a threat to our nation and the world through the actions of American military personnel. As we have stated repeatedly since the 9/11 terror attacks, bin Laden never represented Muslims or Islam. In fact, in addition to the killing of thousands of Americans, he and Al Qaeda caused the deaths of countless Muslims worldwide. We also reiterate President Obama's clear statement tonight that the United States is not at war with Islam."
In June 2011, CAIR lost its federal tax-exempt status for failure to file the appropriate 990 forms for the previous three years. (This does not apply to the local chapters, however.) A spokesman blamed it on an incorrect filing.
Projects and media
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. It also sponsors voter registration drives and outreach, and interfaith relations with other religious groups in America.CAIR officials are often interviewed by major national, local, and international media on news programs involving Muslims in America. In five years CAIR officials were cited over 11,000 times by media, including CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
, BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, Washington Post, USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, and the New York Times. Editorials written by CAIR officials are published nationwide.
Partners and relationships
CAIR officials have met or regularly meet with current and former U.S. Presidents, members of their respective administrations, members of the United States CongressUnited States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, governors, mayors, members of state legislatures, and county commissioners. Several CAIR affiliates have received proclamations and citations from mayors and county commissioners. The organization itself has received praise from congressmen and women to top military officials such as General Wesley Clark
Wesley Clark
Wesley Kanne Clark, Sr., is a retired general of the United States Army. Graduating as valedictorian of the class of 1966 at West Point, he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford where he obtained a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and later graduated from the...
, who "applaud[ed] its efforts to ensure that all Americans…are treated equally and given the same constitutional rights." CAIR also regularly meets with national, state, and local law enforcement officials including the Department of Homeland Security.
CAIR has conducted diversity/sensitivity training
Sensitivity training
Sensitivity Training is a form of training that claims to make people more aware of their own prejudices, and more sensitive to others. According to its critics, it involves the use of psychological techniques with groups that its critics, e.g. G. Edward Griffin, claim are often identical to...
on Islam and Muslims for the FBI, US Armed Forces, several local and state law enforcement agencies, and many U.S. corporations. CAIR works in close cooperation with other civic and civil liberties groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
, Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
, NAACP, Hispanic Unity, Organization of Chinese Americans
Organization of Chinese Americans
Founded in 1973, the Organization of Chinese Americans is a national organization dedicated to advancing the social, political, and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Americans in the United States...
, Japanese American Citizens League
Japanese American Citizens League
The was formed in 1929 to protect the rights of Japanese Americans from the state and federal governments. It fought for civil rights for Japanese Americans, assisted those in internment camps during World War II, and led a successful campaign for redress for internment from the U.S...
, Sikh Mediawatch, Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs is a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, Ill., that works with diverse neighborhoods and community groups to battle discrimination, anti-Semitism, poverty and other forms of oppression...
, and Resource Task Force. CAIR has also formed a partnership with the National Council of Churches
National Council of Churches
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA is an ecumenical partnership of 37 Christian faith groups in the United States. Its member denominations, churches, conventions, and archdioceses include Mainline Protestant, Orthodox, African American, Evangelical, and historic peace...
and held discussions with representatives of the National Association of Evangelicals
National Association of Evangelicals
The National Association of Evangelicals is a fellowship of member denominations, churches, organizations, and individuals. Its goal is to honor God by connecting and representing evangelicals in the United States. Today it works in four main areas: Church & Faith Partners, Government Relations,...
. In 2003, the Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
gave its annual Liberty Flame Award to the Ohio chapter of CAIR "for contributions to the advancement and protection of civil liberties."
CAIR is also a member of the American Muslim Political Coordination Council (AMPCC), created in 1999, along with the American Muslim Alliance (AMA), American Muslim Council
American Muslim Council
The American Muslim Council is an Islamic organization and registered charity in the United States. Its headquarters is located in Chicago, Illinois....
(AMC), and Muslim Public Affairs Council
Muslim Public Affairs Council
The Muslim Public Affairs Council is a national American Muslim advocacy and public policy organization headquartered in Los Angeles and with offices in Washington D.C...
(MPC). AMPCC's primary concern is to coordinate the member organizations on activism and lobbying.
Reverend Jesse Jackson
Jesse Jackson
Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. is an African-American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as shadow senator for the District of Columbia from 1991 to 1997. He was the founder of both entities that merged to...
was a keynote speaker at CAIR's 15 annual banquet.
Criticism
Critics of CAIR, including six members of the U.S. House of Representatives and SenateUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, have alleged ties between the CAIR founders and Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
. The founders, Omar Ahmad and Nihad Awad, had earlier been officers of the Islamic Association of Palestine
Islamic Association of Palestine
Islamic Association of Palestine was an Islamist organization that raised money in the United States for Hamas. It described itself as "a not-for-profit, public-awareness, educational, political, social, and civic, national grassroots organization dedicated to advancing a just, comprehensive, and...
(IAP), described by a former FBI analyst and US Treasury Department intelligence official as "intimately tied to the most senior Hamas leadership." Both Ahmad and Awad participated in a meeting held in Philadelphia on October 3, 1993, that involved senior leaders of Hamas, the Holy Land Foundation (which was designated in 1995 by Executive Order, and later convicted in court, as an organization that had raised millions of dollars for Hamas) , and the IAP. Based on electronic surveillance of the meeting, the FBI reported that "the participants went to great length and spent much effort hiding their association with the Islamic Resistance Movement [Hamas]." Participants at the meeting discussed forming a "political organization and public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
" body, "whose Islamic hue is not very conspicuous."
Critics also point to a July 1994 meeting identifying CAIR as one of the four U.S. organizations comprising the working organizations of the Palestine Committee of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
, the parent organization and supporter of Hamas. At a 1994 meeting at Barry University
Barry University
Barry University is a private, Catholic university, which was founded in 1940 in Miami Shores, Florida, a suburb north of Downtown Miami. It is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami....
, Awad said that he was "in support of the Hamas movement". CAIR has responded by noting that Hamas was only designated a terrorist organization in January 1995 and did not commit its first wave of suicide bombings until late 1994, after Awad made the comment.
Daniel Pipes
Daniel Pipes
Daniel Pipes is an American historian, writer, and political commentator. He is the founder and director of the Middle East Forum and its Campus Watch project, and editor of its Middle East Quarterly journal...
and investigative reporter Steven Emerson
Steven Emerson
Steven Emerson, is an American journalist and author, who writes about national security, terrorism, and Islamic extremism.Emerson is the author of six books, and co-author of two more. His television documentary Jihad in America won the 1994 George Polk Award for best Television Documentary, and...
accuse CAIR of being a front for Hamas, having ties to terrorism, as well as "offering a platform to conspiratorial Israel-bashers." The Anti-Defamation League
Anti-Defamation League
The Anti-Defamation League is an international non-governmental organization based in the United States. Describing itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", the ADL states that it "fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects...
and Emerson have also accused CAIR of having a long record of propagating antisemitic propaganda. Journalist Jake Tapper
Jake Tapper
Jacob Paul "Jake" Tapper is an American print and television journalist, currently the senior White House correspondent for ABC News in Washington, D.C...
criticizes CAIR for refusing to condemn specifically Osama bin Laden and Islamic extremism, but rather making only vague and generic criticisms.
Furthermore, critics point to a statement made by Omar Ahmad
Omar Ahmad
Omar Ahmad is the co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations , a Washington D.C.-based Muslim civil rights organization.He had been the chairman of CAIR's board of directors since its founding in 1994, but stepped down from that position in May 2005...
(a joint founder of CAIR) in 1998 in which he said that Muslim American "have a duty to deliver the message of Islam" and that "Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant." Robert Spencer has argued that Ahmad's statement is the "same goal that Osama bin Laden has, to Islamize the US."
Pipes has accused CAIR of demanding that a billboard declaring Osama bin Laden "the sworn enemy" be brought down in 1998 as "offensive to Moslems", denying bin Laden's responsibility for the Africa embassy bombings, calling the conviction of the 1993 World Trade Center bombers "a travesty of justice," calling the conviction of the blind Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman a "hate crime", calling the extradition order of suspected Hamas terrorist Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook "anti-Islamic", calling President Bush's closing of the Holy Land Foundation for collecting money used to support Hamas "unjust" and "disturbing", praising and defending convicted murderer H. Rap Brown
H. Rap Brown
Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin , also known as H. Rap Brown, was chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in the 1960s, and during a short lived alliance between SNCC , later the Justice Minister of the Black Panther Party...
as well as convicted attempted murderer Adnan Chaudhry, and their LA office head calling Israelis "zionazis"; he also quotes the FBI's former chief of counterterrorism Steven Pomerantz saying that CAIR "effectively" gives aid to international terrorist groups.
CAIR raised suspicions by raising its annual budget of around $3 million (as of 2007) in part through large donations from people and foundations identified with Arab governments. The article further suggests that because CAIR's Washington chapter has repeatedly issued controversial statements, it has been difficult "for senior government officials to associate with the group."
Some Muslims criticize CAIR for being overly conservative from a religious standpoint, for example by taking the disputed position that all Moslem women are required to veil their hair.
Neuroscientist
Neuroscientist
A neuroscientist is an individual who studies the scientific field of neuroscience or any of its related sub-fields...
and best-selling author Sam Harris
Sam Harris (author)
Sam Harris is an American author, and neuroscientist, as well as the co-founder and current CEO of Project Reason. He received a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Stanford University, before receiving a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA...
, noted mainly for his contribution to the New Atheism
New Atheism
New Atheism is the name given to a movement among some early-21st-century atheist writers who have advocated the view that "religion should not simply be tolerated but should be countered, criticized, and exposed by rational argument wherever its influence arises." New atheists argue that recent...
movement, criticized CAIR by doubting their legitimacy saying CAIR is "an Islamist public relations firm posing as a civil-rights lobby".
The organization has also been criticized for its lawsuit seeking to overturn Oklahoma State Question 755, a proposition that would prevent Shari'a law in that state. CAIR's Oklahoma director filed the suit, which he says unfairly targets Muslims and is in violation of the First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
.
In April 2011, Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va. cited a 2009 letter sent from CAIR's executive director, Nihad Awad, to Muammar Gaddafi
Muammar Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi or "September 1942" 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011.He seized power in a...
asking Gaddafi for funding for a project called the Muslim Peace Foundation at a U.S. House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
Appropriations sub-committee hearing with Robert Mueller
Robert Mueller
Robert Swan Mueller III is the 6th and current Director of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation .-Early life:...
. The letter also said, in part, "I am pleased to send to Your Excellency in my name most solemn assurances of thanks and appreciation for the efforts you exert in the service of Islam, Muslims and all mankind through your initiative to teach Islam, spread the culture of Islam, and solve disputes, for which you are known internationally." Steven Emerson
Steven Emerson
Steven Emerson, is an American journalist and author, who writes about national security, terrorism, and Islamic extremism.Emerson is the author of six books, and co-author of two more. His television documentary Jihad in America won the 1994 George Polk Award for best Television Documentary, and...
called the funding request "hypocritical." while CAIR spokesman, Ibrahim Hooper
Ibrahim Hooper
Ibrahim Hooper , a convert to Islam, is the National Communications Director and spokesperson for the Council on American-Islamic Relations , a Washington D.C.-based Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization.-Early life:...
, said that the organization 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
Responses to criticisms
CAIR suggested that "the statements and agendas of our detractors will show that they represent the extremes in our society." CAIR also stated on its website that in 2004 an FBI agent said "false claims originate from one or two biased sources," and that a senior FBI official said CAIR would just have to live with them. In early 2007, the New York Times wrote that "more than one [U.S. government official] described the standards used by critics to link CAIR to terrorism as akin to McCarthyismMcCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by...
, essentially guilt by association
Guilt by Association
Guilt by Association can refer to:* Association fallacy - sometimes called "guilt by association".* Guilt by Association Vol. 1 - album by Engine Room Recordings.* Guilt by Association Vol. 2 - album by Engine Room Recordings....
." At that time (prior to the Holy Land trial), the Times called efforts to link the organization to Hamas and Hezbollah "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" although the article goes on to cite the suspicious background of some of CAIR's donors as a source of contention within members of the organization itself. The Times also noted that even though a handful of its former members had faced prosecution, no criminal charge
Criminal charge
A criminal charge is a formal accusation made by a governmental authority asserting that somebody has committed a crime. A charging document, which contains one or more criminal charges or counts, can take several forms, including:* complaint...
s had at the time ever been linked to CAIR.
CAIR also says that accusations against it have their roots in its refusal to endorse the U.S.'s blanket condemnation of Hezbollah and Hamas, though it says it did criticize Hamas for civilian deaths.
Senator 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. "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 ethnic profiling," said Maya Harris
Maya Harris
Maya Harris is Vice President for Peace & Social Justice at the Ford Foundation. She was named to that position in June 2008. Prior to joining the Ford Foundation, she served as the Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California...
, executive director of the ACLU of Northern California.
Litigation
A book entitled Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld That's Conspiring to Islamize America by Paul David Gaubatz and Paul SperryPaul Sperry
Paul E. Sperry is a conservative pundit, author, investigative journalist, and Stanford University Hoover Institute media fellow. In the wake of the Fort Hood Shooting, he gave an interview to Coast to Coast AM on November 7, 2009, about his co-authored book Muslim Mafia.-Clinton incident:In 1999,...
was published in October 2009. According to the Charlotte Observer, it portrays CAIR "as a subversive organization allied with international terrorists."
Consequently, CAIR brought a federal civil lawsuit against Dave Gaubatz and his son (who had obtained the book's CAIR source documents as a CAIR intern) for allegedly stealing the documents. 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
Privilege (evidence)
An evidentiary privilege is a rule of evidence that allows the holder of the privilege to refuse to provide evidence about a certain subject or to bar such evidence from being disclosed or used in a judicial or other proceeding....
," 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.
Gaubatz agreed in early November to return more than 12,000 pages of disputed CAIR records while the judge considered the lawsuit, but in late November before he could do so the U.S. Government, which previously had no role in the lawsuit, filed a motion in the case under seal
Record sealing
Record sealing is the practice of sealing or, in some cases, destroying court records that would otherwise be publicly accessible as public records. The term is derived from the tradition of placing a seal on specified files or documents that prevents anyone from reviewing the files without...
, and FBI agents served the Gaubatzes' attorneys with a grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
subpoena
Subpoena
A subpoena is a writ by a government agency, most often a court, that has authority to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of subpoena:...
demanding the CAIR records.
See also
- American-Arab Anti-Discrimination CommitteeAmerican-Arab Anti-Discrimination CommitteeThe American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee states that it is the largest Arab American grassroots civil rights organization in the United States. According to its web page it is open to people of all backgrounds, faiths and ethnicities and has over 40 chapters in 24 states and members in all...
- American Muslim CouncilAmerican Muslim CouncilThe American Muslim Council is an Islamic organization and registered charity in the United States. Its headquarters is located in Chicago, Illinois....
- Arab American InstituteArab American InstituteFounded in 1985, the Arab American Institute is a non-profit membership organization based in Washington D.C. that focuses on the issues and interests of Arab-Americans nationwide. James Zogby, brother of pollster John Zogby, is founder and president of the AAI....
- Canadian Council on American-Islamic RelationsCanadian Council on American-Islamic RelationsThe Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations is a national Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization in Canada. CAIR-CAN is an Ottawa-based, nonprofit organization with a grassroots membership...
- Islamic Information Center (IIC)
- Muslim Public Affairs CouncilMuslim Public Affairs CouncilThe Muslim Public Affairs Council is a national American Muslim advocacy and public policy organization headquartered in Los Angeles and with offices in Washington D.C...
- Muslim American SocietyMuslim American SocietyThe Muslim American Society is a nonprofit organization founded in 1993 that describes itself as an Islamic revival and reform movement....