Latest Council on American-Islamic Relations Stories

WASHINGTON, May 29, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called on the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to protect the religious rights of Tennessee Muslims after a judge in that state blocked completion of a mosque that has been targeted by anti-Muslim bigots for the past two years. The judge ruled today that proper public notice was not given for the May 2010 meeting that approved the site plan for the Islamic Center of...

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization today said a Kansas bill signed into law by Governor Sam Brownback, which critics say is designed to target "Sharia" (Islamic religious principles), "invites" a legal challenge. SEE: Brownback Signs Bill Blocking Use of Islamic Law (AP)http://tinyurl.com/7hkcknj The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said the Kansas anti-Muslim bill is...

ST. PAUL, Minn., May 23, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) today called on the FBI to investigate hate vandalism targeting the home of a Somali-American Muslim family in that state. CAIR-MN reports that sometime during the past weekend, vandals spray-painted a Nazi swastika, the letters "KKK" and the word "stink" on the driveway of the family's Rochester, Minn., home. SEE: Rochester Family Targeted in Hate...

ST. LOUIS, May 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On Friday, May 18, representatives of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) and the Muslim American Society (MAS) will hold a news conference at the Kansas State Capitol Building in Topeka to call on Governor Sam Brownback to veto a bill that critics say is designed to target "Sharia," or Islamic religious principles. WHAT: Muslims to Ask Gov. Brownback to Veto Anti-Sharia...

NEW YORK, May 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The prominent human rights organization American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI) and its Stop Islamization of America (SIOA) program, along with Former Muslims United (FMU) will be hosting the first-ever "Summer Night for Human Rights" Town Hall dedicated to defending the freedom of conscience. Dedicated to Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who has been sentenced to death in Iran for leaving Islam, the Summer Night for Human Rights will...

WASHINGTON, May 15, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called on Muslims and all other Americans who value civil liberties to contact Kansas Governor Sam Brownback to ask that he not sign a bill (House Substitute for Senate Bill 79), the sponsors of which admit is designed to attack Sharia, the religious principles of Islam. On May 11, the Kansas Senate approved Senate Bill 79 by a vote of 33-4, sending it to the...

NEW YORK, May 13, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY) today called on the FBI to investigate an apparently bias-motivated attack in which one of the alleged assailants shouted "f------ Arabs" before beating the victim into unconsciousness. CAIR-NY said the attack, which was caught on surveillance video, occurred last month and is being investigated as a hate crime by New York police. The 57-year-old victim...

Training suggested destroying Mecca and Medina using 'Hiroshima' tactics WASHINGTON, May 10, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization today called on the Department of Defense (DoD) to dismiss the instructor who taught fellow officers that only a "total war" on Islam would protect America, that they should use "Hiroshima" tactics, target civilian populations, and abandon the Geneva Conventions. The Washington-based Council on...

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa, May 10, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Iowa chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-IA) said today that a proposal to include anti-Islam language in that state's constitution has died in the legislature. CAIR-IA said Iowa's legislature ended its 2012 session last night, forcing the death of HJR14 -- a proposed amendment to Iowa's constitution that would have banned courts from considering "Sharia," or Islamic principles. SEE: House Joint...

MIAMI, May 2, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Representatives of the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-FL) and the South Florida Muslim community met Monday with U.S. Attorney Wilfredo A. Ferrer, Assistant U.S. Attorney Norman Heming and an FBI official to discuss issues of mutual concern, including civil rights and school bullying. The meeting was part of an ongoing outreach effort by the Department of Justice to strengthen relations with the...