Monday, September 10, 2012


Register TODAY for CAIR's September 29th leadership training conference and annual banquet at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Va. In past years, the leadership conference and banquet were both sold out. No tickets will be sold at the door, so reserve your place RIGHT AWAY.
With the theme "Upholding Our Constitution, Defending Our Faith," the September 29th evening banquet will feature the Rev. Al Sharpton, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) and Imam Siraj Wahhaj as keynote speakers. Comedian Azhar Usman will provide entertainment.
Preceding the banquet, CAIR will host its day-long conference starting at 9 a.m. Registration is required for the conference, which features the following workshops from top trainers in their fields:
* Answering Tough Questions About Sharia 
Learn how to respond effectively to the "hot button" attacks on Islamic principles that are employed by the growing Islamophobia industry in America. . . (SEE MORE)
MEDIA ADVISORY
CAIR-WA: Seattle Muslims' Car Targeted by Hate Vandalism
Muslim civil rights group to call for bias crime investigation
(SEATTLE, WA, 9/6/12) – On Friday, September 7, the Washington state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-WA) will hold a news conference in Seattle to call for a bias crime investigation of hate graffiti, including the slurs "sand n**gers," "doon [sic] coons," scrawled on a rental vehicle used by a group of Seattle-area Muslims on a recent vacation trip to Chelan, Wash. The vehicle was also physically vandalized with numerous scratches.
[NOTE: "Sand n**ger" is a slur used to target those perceived to be Muslim or Arab-American. "Doon coon" is an apparent reference to the stereotypical belief that all Muslims originate in deserts, therefore the misspelled reference to "dunes."]
The Muslims believe the hate incident may have been triggered by a group prayer offered in a public area and the Islamic head covering (kufi) worn by one of the vacationers.
WHAT: CAIR-WA News Conference to Call for Hate Crime Probe of Alleged Bias Incident
WHEN: Friday, September 7, 10 a.m. (Pacific)
WHERE: CAIR-WA Seattle Office, 316 Maynard Avenue South, Suite 112A, Seattle, WA
CONTACT: CAIR-WA Executive Director Arsalan Bukhari, 206-367-4081, 206-931-3655, E-Mail: abukhari@cair.com
At the news conference, CAIR-WA will also reveal details of an incident in which a Seattle-area Muslim woman alleges that she was assaulted because of her Islamic head scarf.
Last week, CAIR's Minnesota chapter called for an investigation of a suspicious fire outside a mosque in South Minneapolis. Muslim graves in Illinois were also desecrated with hate graffiti for the second time in one month.
CAIR: Muslim Grave Site Vandalized Again (Chicago Trib)
CAIR has seen an increase in hate incidents targeting American Muslims in the aftermath of the deadly attack on a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.
Recent incidents included shots fired at a mosque in Morton Grove, Ill., an acid bomb thrown at an Islamic school in Lombard, Ill., a mosque burned to the ground in Joplin, Mo., vandals spraying an Oklahoma mosque with paintballs, pig legs thrown at a mosque site in California, and a firebomb thrown at a Muslim family's home in Panama City, Fla.
Muslim individuals and institutions are being asked to review advice on security procedures in CAIR's "Community Security and Safety Tips."
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
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CONTACT: CAIR-WA Executive Director Arsalan Bukhari, 206-367-4081, 206-931-3655, E-Mail: abukhari@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CAIR Releases Profile of Islamophobe Pamela Geller
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 9/10/12) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today released the second in a series of Islamophobe profiles documenting the individuals and organizations involved in spreading anti-Muslim bias in the United States.
This profile examines Pamela Geller, the "caustic mouthpiece" of the Islamophobia movement. She was cited today in an exclusive report by Reuters news agency exposing the American anti-Islam groups that support the extremist anti-Muslim views of Dutch politician Geert Wilders. Geller is also the person behind anti-Islam public advertisementsgoing up in cities nationwide.
CAIR's profile of Geller states in part:
"Geller's organization Stop the Islamization of America (SIOA) is designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which also named Geller as a member of the 'anti-Muslim inner circle.' The United States Patent and Trademark Office refused to grant SIOA a trademark because: 'The applied-for mark refers to Muslims in a disparaging manner because by definition it implies that conversion or conformity to Islam is something that needs to be stopped or caused to cease.'
"SIOA is an outgrowth of a similar group in Europe that seeks to block the construction of mosques on that continent. Its sister organization, Stop the Islamization of Europe, 'considers Islamophobia to be the height of common sense.'"
CAIR's Islamophobia Watch Department earlier produced a profile of David Yerushalmi, as well as an analysis of Rep. Peter King's anti-Muslim congressional hearings.
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Legislative Director Corey Saylor, 202-384-8857, E-Mail: csaylor@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Coordinator Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, E-Mail: rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com; CAIR Communications Manager Amina Rubin, 202-341-4171, arubin@cair.com



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CAIR: Record Number of Muslim Delegates at DNC
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 9/4/12) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today said that this year's Democratic National Convention (DNC) will host a record number of American Muslim delegates representing some 20 states.
CAIR said recent estimates place the number of Muslim delegates at more than 100, up from 43 Muslim and Arab-American delegates at the 2008 Democratic convention, and 25 at the 2004 convention.
"The more than doubling of Muslim delegates at this year's Democratic National Convention is a direct result of their hard work and grassroots organizing within the Democratic Party," said CAIR Government Affairs Coordinator Robert McCaw. "It is also a sign of the American Muslim community's growing civic engagement and acceptance in the Democratic Party."
He said that only a handful of Muslim delegates attended this year's Republican National Convention (RNC), during which the RNC adopted a platform plank targeting the religious practices of Muslims.
On September 6, the American Muslim Democratic Caucus will hold a press conference at the convention. The event will be co-hosted by Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) and Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN).
CAIR recently announced the formation of a national partnership with the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) to coordinate voter empowerment and election activities.
In the run-up to the election, CAIR has engaged in a year-long political empowerment campaign focused on ensuring that American Muslims are actively participating in the 2012 election cycle and are connecting with candidates, volunteering in campaigns, registering to vote, hosting candidate forums, and mobilizing community members to vote.
McCaw noted that with large concentrations of Muslim voters in key swing states such as Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, the American Muslim community has the potential to be influential in determining the next president of the United States.
* In the 2000 election, a Muslim political action coalition encouraged Muslims to vote for then-candidate George W. Bush, in part because of his public stand against the use of secret evidence in the nation's courts.
* In 2004, Muslims concerned about the erosion of civil rights in the post-9/11 era were urged to vote for Sen. John Kerry.
* In 2008, an American Muslim Taskforce on Civil Rights and Elections (AMT) poll indicated that almost 90 percent of American Muslim voters picked Barack Obama.
Past surveys indicate that Muslim voters are religiously diverse, well integrated in American society, politically active, and support candidates of any party who address their concerns.
Domestic issues listed as most important by American Muslim voters include education, civil rights, health care, and the economy.
[NOTE: CAIR is a non-partisan, tax-exempt organization that does not endorse candidates, but does encourage voter registration, voter education, get-out-the-vote campaigns, and other forms of positive engagement in our nation's political process.)
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
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CONTACT: CAIR Government Affairs Coordinator Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, E-Mail: rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com; CAIR Communications Manager Amina Rubin, 202-488-8787, 202-341-4171, E-Mail: arubin@cair.com
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