Monday, April 30, 2012


HADITH OF THE DAY: LOVE EACH OTHER AND ENMITY WILL DISAPPEAR - TOP
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Shake hands and rancor will disappear. Give presents to each other and love each other, and enmity will disappear."
Al-Muwatta, Volume 47, Hadith 16
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VIDEO: EXCLUSIVE CAIR INTERVIEW WITH U.S. MUSLIM WHO SAYS HE WAS TORTURED AT BEHEST OF FBI - TOP
Yonas Fikre spoke to CAIR attorneys via Skype from Sweden. Watch the video here.
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CAIR: US MUSLIM SAYS 'I WAS TORTURED AT FBI'S BEHEST IN UAE' - TOP
Malin Rising, Associated Press, 4/18/12
STOCKHOLM (AP) -- A Muslim American seeking asylum in Sweden claimed Wednesday he was detained at the U.S. government's request while in the United Arab Emirates last summer, tortured in custody and interrogated about the activities of a Portland, Oregon, mosque. (More)
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CAIR: OREGON MUSLIM JAILED AND TORTURED BECAUSE HE REFUSED TO BECOME FBI INFORMANT - TOP
Willamet Week, 4/18/12
A Muslim man from Oregon says he was imprisoned and tortured for 106 days last year in the United Arab Emirates after he refused to become a U.S. government informant and answer agents' questions about Portland's largest mosque.
Yonas Fikre, 33, tells WW that Emirates officials denied him sleep, kept him in a freezing cell, beat him with wooden sticks and plastic pipes, and threatened to kill him if he didn't cooperate with U.S. agents.
A U.S. citizen, Fikre says his captors repeatedly grilled him with the same questions Portland-based law enforcement agents had asked him a year earlier about his mosque, the Islamic Center of Portland, Masjed As-Saber. ...
If Fikre's story is true, it appears to be a twist on the U.S.'s use of "extraordinary renditions," the practice of transferring captured suspects to countries lacking human rights standards.
In this case, Fikre was allegedly held and tortured in an Arab country and told he couldn't fly to the U.S. until he cooperated with investigators. Human rights lawyers call the practice "proxy detention" or "rendition lite."
"Yonas' case highlights a new trend we think we are seeing from Portland, where third parties are doing what would be illegal or unconstitutional if done by U.S. agents," says Gadeir Abbas, a lawyer for the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "You can't just deprive someone of their liberty to return home, especially without due process. It isn't consistent with the concept of citizenship." (More)
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CAIR: PORTLAND MUSLIM CLAIMS FBI INVOLVEMENT IN HIS TORTURE, DETENTION OVERSEAS - TOP
Helen Jung, The Oregonian, 4/18/12
A Portland man now in Sweden is accusing the FBI of orchestrating three months of interrogations and torture after he refused to act as an informant at a local mosque.
Yonas Fikre, 33, alleges that he was beaten on the soles of his feet, threatened and forced into "stress positions" by unidentified interrogators, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The Washington, D.C.-based civil rights group and Fikre's attorney have written a letter asking the U.S. Justice Department to investigate the claims.
Fikre is the fourth Portland-area man in less than a year to accuse the FBI of high-pressure tactics and civil rights violations. The men, all Muslims who have attended Portland's largest mosque, allege the agency ordered their detentions while they traveled overseas and had them placed on the government's no-fly list as leverage.
The men include Portland State University student Michael Migliore; Portland grocer Mustafa Elogbi and Tigard businessman Jamal Tarhuni. None of them have been charged with a crime. (More)
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CAIR: LETTER TO DOJ ABOUT ALLEGED PROXY DETAINEE YONAS FIKRE - TOP
Nick Baumann, Mother Jones, 4/18/12
Earlier this week, I broke the story of Yonas Fikre, a 33-year-old Muslim American from Oregon who claims that he was detained and tortured in the United Arab Emirates on behalf of the US government. Fikre is now in Sweden, where he and his lawyers were scheduled to hold a press conference on Wednesday morning. On Wednesday, Portland's Willamette Week and Oregonian published stories on Fikre's ordeal. Oregon Public Broadcasting adds the detail that Fikre has applied for asylum in Sweden.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations, which has been helping Fikre, has given me a copy of a letter the group sent to Thomas Perez, the head of the Justice Department's civil rights division, describing Fikre's ordeal, asking that Perez investigate "whether Mr. Fikre was detained and tortured at the behest of any agent of the U.S. government," and demanding that he be allowed to return to the United States without "further unconstitutional interference." You can read it here: (More)
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AMERICAN SEEKS POLITICAL ASYLUM IN SWEDEN, ALLEGING TORTURE, FBI COERCION - TOP
Kari Huus, msnbc.com, 4/18/12
An American citizen who alleges that he was detained and tortured overseas at the behest of the U.S. government -- and is now marooned as a result of the U.S. no-fly list -- has filed for political asylum in Sweden, he announced with his lawyers on Wednesday.
Yonas Fikre, 33, says he spent more than three months in a Dubai detention center in 2011. In a lengthy Skype interview with msnbc.com, he described sleeping on the concrete floor of a frigid jail cell, and enduring regular interrogation, beatings and stress positions that caused him to collapse or black out.
He was released in September, he says, but is just now going public with his story.
Fikre's ordeal took place outside the United States -- far from his home in Portland, Ore. -- but he and his American lawyer say they believe it was orchestrated by the FBI in connection with an investigation in Portland. And they maintain that Fikre's inclusion on the no-fly list -- which bars him from boarding U.S.-bound flights -- has been used as a tool to coerce information, not because he presents a risk to U.S. flights. (More)
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GOOD NEWS: MISSOURI JAIL TO REVIEW HIJAB POLICY (CAIR-ST. LOUIS) - TOP
Jennifer Mann, St. Louis Post Dispatch, 4/18/12
The head of the county jail said Tuesday that his staff acted appropriately in ordering a Muslim woman to remove her religious head scarf when she was booked earlier this year.
But in light of concerns by a civil rights group, Herb Bernsen, director of St. Louis County Justice Services, said he will revisit policies "to try to work out a solution that would satisfy both our security needs and individual religious concerns."
He said he will discuss it with the St. Louis Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, an advocacy organization that raised concerns about the woman's constitutional rights.
Told of Bernsen's comments, the group's executive director, Faizan Syed, said, "That would be absolutely wonderful; we'd love to work with them. This is an incident that happened, but I believe we can learn from it." (More)
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VIDEO: MUSLIM WOMAN FORCED TO REMOVE HEADSCARF IN JAIL (CAIR-ST. LOUIS)- TOP
ST. LOUIS, MO (KPLR) -- A Muslim group is calling for an apology from the St. Louis County Department of Justice Services. A young Muslim woman, arrested in January on a vehicle violation, was forced to remove her head scarf in front of men during a security check at the County Jail.
The head scarf, known as a hijab, is considered a requirement in public under the Islamic religion. "I don't think they understood that when you take that off it is as if you are undressing the person in public," said Faizan Syed, executive director of CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) in St. Louis. (More)
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CAIR: MICH. MUSLIM SUING GOVERNMENT SAYS HE WAS 'TREATED LIKE A CRIMINAL' - TOP
J. Patrick Pepper, Press and Guide, 4/18/12
DETROIT -- Domestic security agencies and officers on Friday were sued over allegations of routine improper questioning and detainment of U.S. citizens because they are Muslims.
The suit seeks an injunction against an alleged pattern of Muslim Americans being singled out for lengthy questioning about their religious practices and places of worship during security screening at borders and airports. Named as defendants are the directors of the FBI, the U.S. Customs Border Patrol and the Transportation Security Administration as well as those agencies and individual officers and agents within them.
The local chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations filed the lawsuit on behalf of four men, but officials with the civil rights group said the allegations are indicative of a larger problem.
"Since the tragedy of 9/11 we've seen a steady erosion of the civil liberties of American Muslims and American citizens in general," said Dawud Walid, executive director of CAIR-Michigan. "What troubles us most about this case is that we tried exhausting all measures to get this type of religious questioning stopped before we came to the courts." (More)
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VIDEO: DALLAS MEN SAY IHOP FIRED THEM BECAUSE THEY ARE MUSLIM - TOP
ABC News, 4/18/12
Pancake chain accused of firing four Arab men based on their national origin. Watch thevideo.
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U.S. TROOPS POSED WITH BODY PARTS OF AFGHAN BOMBERS - TOP
David Zucchino, Los Angeles Times, 4/18/12
A few months later, the same platoon was dispatched to investigate the remains of three insurgents who Afghan police said had accidentally blown themselves up. After obtaining a few fingerprints, they posed next to the remains, again grinning and mugging for photographs. (More)
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CAIR-PA 'Concerned' About Temple Univ. Anti-Islam Hate Event 
Muslim civil rights organization supports students challenging hate speech
(PHILADELPHIA, PA, 4/19/12) -- The Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Philadelphia) today expressed concern about the hostile learning environment that may result from an upcoming event at Temple University featuring a speaker who claims Islam is a "poison to a society" and others who are leaders of organizations designated as anti-Muslim hate groups and who were cited by Norwegian mass murderer Anders Breivik.
The April 23 "Islamic Apartheid Conference" features Nonie Darwish, a notorious Islamophobe who has stated that Islam must be "annihilated."
In a video of Darwish speaking at a protest in Florida, she states: "Islam is a poison to a society ... Islam should be feared, and should be fought, and should be conquered, and defeated, and annihilated, and it's going to happen. Ladies and gentlemen, Islam is going to be brought down ... Because Islam is based on lies and it's not based on the truth. I have no doubt whatsoever that Islam is going to be destroyed."
Video: Nonie Darwish Says Islam Should be 'Annihilated' 

"Everyone, even haters, has a right to free speech," said CAIR-Philadelphia Civil Rights Director and Staff Attorney Amara S. Chaudhry. "Those of us who challenge bigotry must exercise our First Amendment right to speak out against hate speech -- especially speech that may encourage others to commit violent acts."
"Hate speech should be relegated to the fringes of our society, not given a platform at a prestigious university," said CAIR-Philadelphia Executive Director Moein Khawaja. "We are concerned about the hostile learning environment that may be created for Muslim students and staff by the hosting of this hate event."
He said the Islamophobic speakers have a First Amendment right to express their hate-filled views, but the university has no obligation to help promote extremism, and those who seek mutual understanding also have a right to peaceful protest.
Khawaja noted that Nonie Darwish told the New York Times: "A mosque is not just a place for worship. It's a place where war is started, where commandments to do jihad start, where incitements against non-Muslims occur. It's a place where ammunition was stored."
The rally at which Darwish called for the annihilation of Islam was sponsored by the hate group Stop Islamization of America (SIOA). SIOA, which has been designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, is headed by two of the other speakers at the event, Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer. Spencer heads yet another organization designated as a hate group by the SPLC.
Geller bragged online that she uses a Quran, Islam's holy text, as a doorstop. Two hotels, one in Texas and another in Tennessee, dropped scheduled events that featured Geller as a speaker. Her hate blog was cited by the terrorist who went on a killing spree last year in Norway.
Geller has claimed that "Hitler and the Nazis were inspired by Islam" and that Islam "mandates" lies and deception. She has also posted images on her blog that include a fake photograph of then Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan in a Nazi uniform, another fake image of President Obama urinating on an American flag, and drawings purporting to depict Islam's Prophet Muhammad as a pig.
One image posted by Geller, headlined "Piss Be Upon Him," showed one of the controversial Danish cartoons of the prophet covered in urine. ("Piss Be Upon Him" is designed to mock the traditional phrase "Peace Be Upon Him" that Muslims use when mentioning any prophet of God.) In a 2010 blog entry, Geller posted a video claiming that Muslims engage in bestiality.
A prominent New York law firm recently canceled an event featuring Robert Spencer. The event would have promoted Spencer's claim that Islam's Prophet Muhammad may never have existed.
"Fear, Inc.," a recent report by the Center for American Progress, revealed that "[Norwegian mass murderer Anders Breivik] cited Robert Spencer, one of the anti-Muslim misinformation scholars we profile in this report, and his blog, Jihad Watch, 162 times in his manifesto."
Breivik is currently on trial for mass murder in Norway.
The SPLC named Spencer as part of the nation's "Anti-Muslim Inner Circle."
The independent national media watch group Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) identified Spencer as one of "Islamophobia's Dirty Dozen" who systematically "spread fear, bigotry, and misinformation."
In its report, FAIR said, "By selectively ignoring inconvenient Islamic texts and commentaries, Spencer concludes that Islam is innately extremist and violent."

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-Philadelphia Executive Director Moein Khawaja, (215) 592-0509, mkhawaja@cair.com; CAIR-Philadelphia Outreach & Communications Director, Rugiatu Conteh, (215) 592-0509, rconteh@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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Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich: In Recognition of the Council on American-Islamic Relations
"For the past ten years, CAIR Ohio has played an instrumental role in helping to bridge the divides between Greater Cleveland's diverse communities."
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Missouri Jail to Allow Hijab for Muslim Women
Muslim civil rights group thanks officials following meeting with community leaders
(ST. LOUIS, MO, 4/23/12) -- The St. Louis chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-St. Louis) today thanked county and law enforcement officials for agreeing to provide religious accommodation for Muslim women who wear an Islamic headscarf, or "hijab," and are held in the St. Louis County Jail in Clayton, Mo.
CAIR-St. Louis made that request for accommodation after a Muslim woman who was jailed recently for several hours because of an unpaid traffic ticket reported that an officer forcibly removed her hijab. Based on that request, Director of St. Louis County Justice Services Herb Bernsen said he would review existing policies "to try to work out a solution that would satisfy both our security needs and individual religious concerns."
In a meeting today that included Bernsen, Chief of Police for the St. Louis County Police Department Colonel Tim Fitch, a representative of CAIR-St. Louis, Muslim community leaders, and other law enforcement and county officials, it was agreed that any Muslim woman wearing hijab would be screened by a female officer in a private area and would have her scarf returned following that screening.
A letter of apology will also be sent to the woman whose hijab was removed.
"We thank all those involved in discussing this issue for their goodwill and flexibility in meeting both the religious needs of those held in the jail and the legitimate safety and security needs of the facility," said CAIR-St. Louis Executive Director Faizan Syed.
Syed said a similar policy on religious accommodation could be adopted by other area jails.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently refused to overturn a lower court ruling that said a Muslim woman "had the right to wear the scarf unless jailers could show it was a security risk."
In that case, the Muslim woman's suit cited the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), which prohibits state and local governments from imposing "a substantial burden on the religious exercise of a person residing in or confined to an institution."
CAIR's Minnesota chapter (CAIR-MN) helped resolve a similar case in which a Muslim woman sought to exercise her religious rights while in jail.
The Washington-based group offers an educational toolkit, called "A Correctional Institution's Guide to Islamic Religious Practices," to help correctional officers gain a better understanding of Islam and Muslims.
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-St. Louis Executive Director Faizan Syed, 636-207-8882, E-Mail:fsyed@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com

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CAIR SEEKS HATE CRIME PROBE OF THREATS SENT TO N.C. MOSQUES - TOP
Hate mail author uses racial slurs, has 'no problem killing Muslims'
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 4/24/12) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called on state law enforcement authorities and the FBI to investigate threatening letters sent to a number of North Carolina mosques as possible hate crimes.
CAIR said the Islamic Center of Charlotte, N.C., and other mosques in that state received hate letters filled with racial slurs and stating the author has "no problem killing Muslims." At least one of the letters was mailed from Apex, N.C. The FBI has been notified of the letters.
"Threats to our nation's mosques deserve the same law enforcement attention as threats to any other houses of worship," said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. "State and national law enforcement authorities should not wait until threats turn into actual violence."
He noted that CAIR's Iowa chapter recently called on the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate a letter with "very threatening" language and containing a mysterious powder that was sent to a Muslim representative in the Iowa House.
Hooper said CAIR is asking members of the Muslim community to review security procedures using advice contained in its "Muslim Community Safety Kit."
A number of recent reports have documented the growth and promotion of Islamophobia nationwide.
CAIR: Same Hate, New Target 
Center for American Progress: Fear, Inc. 
Southern Poverty Law Center: Jihad Against Islam 
People for the American Way: The Right-Wing Playbook on Anti-Muslim Extremism
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
CONTACT: CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, E-Mail: ihooper@cair.com; CAIR Communications Manager Amina Rubin, 202-488-8787, 202-341-4171, E-Mail: arubin@cair.com
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CAIR: CALIF. MUSLIMS TO VISIT JAPANESE-AMERICAN INTERNMENT CAMP - TOP
(ANAHEIM, CA, 4/24/12) -- On Saturday, April 28, the California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CA), in cooperation with the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR), will take a group of Muslims to attend the 43rd Annual Pilgrimage to the 'Manzanar War Relocation Center' -- one of 10 internment camps that held some 10,000 innocent Japanese-American men, women, and children from the West Coast during World War II. Manzanar was the first camp to be established.
This year's pilgrimage will also commemorate the 70th anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's signing of Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, authorizing the unjust incarceration of Japanese Americans.
The daylong program will feature talks by camp survivors and their children, and by interfaith leaders and activists at the Manzanar cemetery. Keynote address will be delivered by Mitchell T. Maki, vice provost of academic affairs at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Maki was the lead author of "Achieving the Impossible Dream: How Japanese Americans Obtained Redress," a detailed case study of the passage of the 1988 Civil Liberties Act, which documents the course of the redress movement from its roots during World War II.
The keynote address will be followed by an interfaith prayer service involving Buddhist, Christian, Muslim and other faiths. Participants will also learn Ondo dancing and enjoy a performance by UCLA Kyodo Taiko. (More)
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DEADLINE EXTENDED TO MAY 4: APPLY FOR ISF-CAIR SCHOLARSHIP - TOP

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

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

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

Each eligible applicant must be:
  • Muslim or an active member of the Muslim community;
  • Currently attending a four-year university in the U.S.;
  • Majoring in public policy, law or a related field;
  • Maintaining a minimum 3.4 grade point average;
  • A citizen or permanent resident of the U.S.;
  • An undergraduate (junior/senior) or of graduate standing.
For more information, click here.
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CAIR-CT REP JOINS PANEL ON RACIAL PROFILING - TOP
Susan Campbell, Hartford Courant, 4/23/12
Come listen to "Racial Profiling: Islamophobia, East Haven, and the School-to-Prison Pipeline" at 7 p.m. Wednesday at St. Joseph College's Mercy Hall Crystal Room.
The panel, sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut, Greater Hartford chapter, and the St. Joseph College School of Humanities and Social Sciences, includes:
  • Michael Lawlor, Under Secretary for criminal justice policy and planning for the state Office of Policy and Management
  • Mongi Dhaoudi, executive director of the Connecticut chapter of the Council of American-Islamic Relations
  • Hannah Benton, staff attorney at Center for Children's Advocacy
  • Khalilah L. Brown-Dean, associate professor of political science, Quinnipiac University.
The moderator is Todd Fernow, University of Connecticut School of Law professor, and director of the Criminal Law Clinic.
The program is free and open to the public. (More)
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VIDEO: CAIR-CA REP DISCUSSES EROSION OF CIVIL LIBERTIES IN WAR ON TERROR- TOP
Topic: Eroding Civil Liberties: From the War on Drugs to the War on Terror
Speaker: Zahra Billoo, CAIR-Northern California Executive Director
April 21, 2012
Booth Auditorium
UC Berkeley Boalt Law School
Watch Zahra's talk here.
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CAIR-ST. LOUIS: JAIL CHANGES POLICIES TO ADDRESS MUSLIM RELIGIOUS CONCERNS (POST-DISPATCH) - TOP
Jennifer Mann, Post-Dispatch, 4/24/12
The St. Louis County jail has decided to change its search policies after hearing from Muslim leaders who were upset over the forced removal of a woman's religious headscarf earlier this year.
From now on, a woman wearing a hijab will be allowed to go into a private room to have the headscarf searched, then will be allowed to put it back on for the rest of the time that she is held at the jail -- at least for as long as jailers are processing her arrest. The jail is still researching how to handle the issue with inmates who are housed there long-term.
The hijab is used by some Muslim women to cover the neck and head when in public or in the presence of males aside from their husbands.
The St. Louis Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations had raised concerns about jail policy last week after learning that Basra Noor, 23, of Ballwin, had hers taken despite her protests after she was arrested Jan. 24 near a West County mosque because of a warrant for an expired car registration.
That prompted a meeting Monday between the group and other Muslim leaders and police and jail officials. (More)
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CAIR: MISSOURI COUNTY JAIL TO ALLOW MUSLIM HEADSCARVES (AP) - TOP
Associated Press, 4/24/12
CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) - The St. Louis County jail has adopted a new policy that will let spare Muslim women from having religious headscarves removed in front of male inmates and staff. (More)
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CAIR-CAN: CITY HATE CRIMES TRIPLE NATIONAL AVERAGE: REPORT - TOP
Nick Ashdown, Ottowa Citizen, 4/24/12
Ottawa's rate of reported hate crimes was more than three times higher than the national average in 2010, states a new Statistics Canada report.
The report included all police-reported criminal incidents that were determined to be motivated by hate toward an identifiable group. As in previous years, the most common type of hate crime was mischief, representing 56 per cent of all incidents. This often includes acts of vandalism. ...
Perry and Mendes both said Ottawa Police and grassroots community groups in Ottawa are doing a good job creating an atmosphere where more hate crimes are reported. "They're really campaigning hard," Perry said.
One such community group is the Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CAN). "We encourage Canadian Muslims to report hate crimes," said Ihsaan Gardee, the executive director of CAIR-CAN. The organization provides seminars and educational material to teach people what their rights and responsibilities are in reporting hate crimes.
"A hate crime doesn't just target the individual or the community. It has a ripple effect in terms of how that community is perceived and how they perceive themselves," Gardee said. (More)
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AMNESTY: EUROPE MUST FIGHT ANTI-MUSLIM PREJUDICE - TOP
Angela Charlton, Associated Press, 4/24/12
European laws on what girls and women wear on their heads are encouraging discrimination against Muslims and against a religion that has been part of Europe's fabric for centuries, Amnesty International says in a new report. (More)
You can read the report by Amnesty International here.

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CAIR Commends Pentagon for Dropping Islamophobic Course
Muslim civil rights group asks DoD to retrain officers with accurate materials
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 4/25/12) -- A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization today commended the Department of Defense (DoD) for dropping an Islamophobic training course attended by senior officers and for instituting a complete review of training relating to Islam and Muslims.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) also called on the DoD to retrain those officers who took the course that, according to an exclusive investigative report by Wiredmagazine, was suspended after it was found to contain inaccurate and derogatory material about Islam.
According to Wired: "The course instructed captains, commanders, lieutenant colonels and colonels from across all four armed services that 'Islam had already declared war on the West.'"
"We commend the Department of Defense for taking appropriate action when the biased and inaccurate information contained in this course came to light," wrote CAIR National Legislative Director Corey Saylor in a letter to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. "It is essential that senior officers who received inaccurate training be retrained using credible and balanced information about Islam and Muslims."
He noted that CAIR last year welcomed a White House-ordered comprehensive review of government counterterrorism training materials to weed out Islamophobic content.
Saylor said CAIR chapters nationwide have filed 87 separate public records requestsabout possible Islamophobic training of local, state and national law enforcement personnel.
The Washington-based Muslim civil liberties organization has in the past called on the Obama administration, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, and Congress to provide oversight for apparently widespread anti-Muslim bias in the training of law enforcement, security and military personnel nationwide.
CAIR noted the release of an 80-page report by Political Research Associates (PRA), titled "Manufacturing the Muslim Menace: Private Firms, Public Servants, & the Threat to Rights and Security," which details a systemic failure to regulate content in counterterrorism training.
Washington Monthly magazine also published a major investigative article showing similaranti-Islam attitudes by private trainers of law enforcement agencies.
A number of recent reports have documented the growth and promotion of Islamophobia nationwide.
CAIR: Same Hate, New Target 
Center for American Progress: Fear, Inc. 
Southern Poverty Law Center: Jihad Against Islam 
People for the American Way: The Right-Wing Playbook on Anti-Muslim Extremism
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Legislative Director Corey Saylor, 202-384-8857, E-Mail:csaylor@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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