Council on American–Islamic Relations

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is the largest Muslim civil rights organization in North America; CAIR states that its goal is to defend the civil rights and liberties of American Muslims as well as any individual upon whom Islam is imputed. It is a non-governmental organization whose stated goals are to promote a positive image of Islam in the United States, empower the American Muslim community, promote understanding and justice, and create meaningful ties between people based on mutual understanding. CAIR is headquarted in Washington, D.C., and was founded by Nihad Awad and Omar Ahmad in late 1994. It is a non-profit organization with 31 regional offices and chapters across America and in Canada.

CAIR representatives have been included in several public functions hosted by United States President George W. Bush a few weeks after the September 11, 2001 attacks. CAIR had previously endorsed Bush for president during the 2000 presidential election. [1]. The Ohio chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has given its annual Liberty Flame Award "for contributions to the advancement and protection of civil liberties" to CAIR. [2]

CAIR has been critical of the U.S. government's prosecution of suspected terrorists. CAIR was critical of the prosecution of Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, whom U.S. authorities deemed the ringleader of the World Trade Center bombing in 1993, and who was convicted with nine followers in October 1995 of conspiring to blow up the Lincoln Tunnel along with other New York City landmarks. CAIR, however, asserted Abdul-Rahman's lawyers' criticisms of the trial as "far from free and fair" on a 1996 list of "incidents of anti-Muslim bias and violence" in a book called The Price of Ignorance which dealt with the "status of Muslim civil rights in the United States."

Earlier, Awad wrote in the Muslim World Monitor that the World Trade Center trial, which ended in the conviction in 1994 of four Islamic fundamentalist terrorists, was "a travesty of justice". According to Awad—and despite the confessions of the terrorists from the 1993 attack—"there is ample evidence indicating that both the Mossad and the Egyptian Intelligence played a role in the explosion.'" [3].

Criticism of CAIR

Though CAIR has received public recognition and endorsement by prominent public figures including both Republican President George W. Bush and Democrat Nancy Pelosi, high ranking members of CAIR have taken stances that many critics say belie its self-description as a moderate organization. CAIR's former Chairman Omar M. Ahmad told a crowd of Californian Muslims in July 1998, "Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant. The Koran [...] should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on earth" San Ramon Valley Herald.

CAIR's Executive Director, Nihad Awad, declared in a 1994 meeting at Barry University that he was "a supporter of the Hamas movement." [4]. Shortly after the 9/11 attacks, CAIR's website solicited donations for the “NY/DC Emergency Relief Fund." This fund did not exist; instead, the link in question led directly to the website for donations to the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF), a charity whose assets were later frozen by the United States Department of the Treasury because, according to United States Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neill "HLF “masquerade(d) as a charity, while its primary purpose (was) to fund Hamas.” Officials in positions of authority in CAIR are known to work or have worked with the Islamic Association of Palestine and The Global Relief Foundation, both of which allegedly work in tandem with Hamas.

Criticism of CAIR

Though CAIR has received public recognition and endorsement by prominent public figures including both Republican President George W. Bush and Democrat Nancy Pelosi, high ranking members of CAIR have taken stances that many critics say belie its self-description as a moderate organization. CAIR's former Chairman Omar M. Ahmad told a crowd of Californian Muslims in July 1998, "Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant. The Koran [...] should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on earth" San Ramon Valley Herald.

CAIR's Executive Director, Nihad Awad, declared in a 1994 meeting at Barry University that he was "a supporter of the Hamas movement." [5]. Shortly after the 9/11 attacks, CAIR's website solicited donations for the “NY/DC Emergency Relief Fund." This fund did not exist; instead, the link in question led directly to the website for donations to the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF), a charity whose assets were later frozen by the United States Department of the Treasury because, according to United States Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neill "HLF “masquerade(d) as a charity, while its primary purpose (was) to fund Hamas.” Officials in positions of authority in CAIR are known to work or have worked with the Islamic Association of Palestine and The Global Relief Foundation, both of which allegedly work in tandem with Hamas.

Alleged support of terrorism

A number of other CAIR officials have been charged with crimes related to the support of Islamic terrorism.

• On Feb. 2, 1995 CAIR advisory board member Imam Siraj Wahaj, was named by U.S. Attorney Mary Jo White as one of the "unindicted persons who may be alleged as co-conspirators in the attempt to blow up New York City monuments," including the World Trade Center in 1993.He has called for replacing the American government with an Islamic caliphate, and warned that America will crumble unless it submits to Islam.

• On December 18, 2002, Ghassan Elashi, founding board member of CAIR-Texas and a founder of the Holy Land Foundation, was arrested by the FBI on charges of ties with a Islamic terrorism-financing front groups .

• In January 2003 CAIR's director of community relations and Founder of the Islamic Assembly of North America, Bassem Khafagi was arrested by the FBI on charges of ties with a Islamic terrorism-financing front group. Khafagi pled guilty to charges of visa and bank fraud, and agreed to be deported to Egypt.

• On August 2003 CAIR's “civil rights coordinator” Randall "Ismail" Royer, was arrested on Islamic terrorism-related charges. The indictment states that Royer "possessed in his automobile an AK-47 style rifle and 219 rounds of ammunition" in September 2001 and he conspired to provide material support to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda organization and to the Taliban in Afghanistan. He plead guilty and is currently serving 20 years in federal prison.

• On April 13 2005 Founder of CAIR-Texas Ghassan Elashi, along with his 2 brothers Bayan Elashi, and Basman Elashi were convicted on 21 counts of federal terrorism charges related to funding Islamic terrorism group Hamas

CAIR's leadership and members are also alleged to have supported organizations such as Hezbollah. Both Hezbollah and Hamas have been classified by the United States Department of State as terrorist organizations. Among the other charges leveled against it are affiliation with Islamist imams, the instigation of death threats against moderate American Muslims, and the promotion of anti-Semitism. Many other Muslim organizations in the United States have condemned CAIR.

Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani of the Islamic Supreme Council of America (ISCA) speaks of CAIR and the American Muslim Council (AMC) saying, "There are many Muslim organizations that claim to speak on behalf of the Muslim community but that in reality are not moderate, but extremist." Seif Ashmawy, an Egyptian Muslim and peace activist who published the "Voice of Peace" newsletter about Muslim affairs, says: "It is a known fact that both the AMC and CAIR have defended, apologized for, and rationalized the actions of extremists groups [...] The real challenge for moderates like myself is to prevent my Muslim brethren from [being] deceived by extremist groups that pretend to represent their interests." Steven Pomerantz, former FBI assistant director and chief of the FBI's counter-terrorism section, once charged that CAIR's activities "effectively give aid to international terrorist groups". Other American Muslim leaders have raised questions about their possible alliances with radical groups, and many academics are disturbed by the groups' prominence.

Cair named as defendant in 9/11 Terror lawsuit

In December 2004 CAIR was named as a defendant in a class action lawsuit relating to the 9/11 terror attacks.

The second amended class action lawsuit alleges that:

• Council on American Islamic Relations and CAIR Canada (collectively, CAIR), have aided, abetted, and materially sponsored and al Qaeda and international terrorism. CAIR is an outgrowth of the Hamas front group the Islamic Association of Palestine. The FBI's former associate director in charge of Investigative and Counter-Intelligence Operations described the Islamic Association of Palestine as an organization that has directly supported Hamas military goals and is a front organization for Hamas that engages in propaganda for Islamic militants. It has produced videotapes that are very hate-filled, full of vehement propaganda. It is an organization that has supported direct confrontation.

• CAIR and CAIR-Canada have, since their inception, been part of the criminal conspiracy of radical Islamic terrorism. These organizations play a unique role in the terrorist network. They emanate from the notorious HAMAS terrorist organization and like so many of the terrorism facilitating charities named and indicted by the United States government they are engaged in fund raising under the guise of assisting humanitarian causes they are, in reality, a key player in international terrorism. The unique role played by CAIR and CAIR-Canada is to manipulate the legal systems of the United States and Canada in a manner that allows them to silence critics, analysts, commentators, media organizations, and government officials by leveling false charges of discrimination, libel, slander and defamation. In addition, both organizations have actively sought to hamper governmental anti-terrorism efforts by direct propaganda activities aimed at police, first-responders, and intelligence agencies through so-called sensitivity training. Their goal is to create as much self-doubt, hesitation, fear of name-calling, and litigation within police departments and intelligence agencies as possible so as to render such authorities ineffective in pursuing international and domestic terrorist entities.

• The role of CAIR and CAIR-Canada is to wage PSYOPS (psychological warfare) and disinformation activities on behalf of Whabbi-based [Wahhabi-based, DP] Islamic terrorists throughout North America. They are the intellectual "shock troops" of Islamic terrorism. In the years and months leading up to the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 these organizations were very effective in helping to ensure that North American law enforcement and intelligence officials were sufficiently deaf, dumb, and blind to help pave the way for the attacks on the United States. The role played by these entities is an absolutely essential part of the mix of forces arrayed against the United States as they help soften-up targeted countries so as to facilitate and enhance the likelihood for a successful attack.

CAIR's campaign to silence critics

• Campaign against Steve Emerson:
• Campaign against Paul Harvey:
• Campaign against Khalid Duran:
• Campaign against Daniel Pipes:
• Campaign against Illinois Republican congressional candidate Kurt Eckhardt:
• Campaign against Dr Laura Schlessinger:
• Campaign against TV hit show 24:
• campaign against Andrew Whitehead In 2004, CAIR initiated a lawsuit against Andrew Whitehead, a prominent critic of CAIR and the editor of ANTI-CAIR Anti-CAIRwebsite. CAIR is suing Whitehead for $1.35 million [6]. Whitehead's law firm has counter-sued on his behalf [7].
• Attack on National Review to censure advertisements and sale of the book The Life and Religion of Mohammed
• Attack on National Review to censure advertisements and sale of the book The sword of the prophet

Inflation of Muslim population Statitstics

CAIR has been accused of wildly inflating the Muslim population count in the United States.

A study in 2000 by the University of Chicago incorporating prior national surveys arrived at a Muslim population count in 2000 at 1,886,000.

Another survey of 50,000 people by the American Religious Identification Survey in 2001 and executed by the Graduate Center of the City University of New York concluded that the Muslim population in the United States was about 1.8 million.

In November 24, 2001 the Washington Post published an article[8] exposing the methodology the CAIR used for its count.

"Researchers called the nation's 1,209 known mosques and interviewed leaders at 416 of them. Respondents were asked to estimate the number of people involved in their mosque in any way. The average response was 1,625 participants. Multiplying that figure by the 1,209 mosques, lead researcher Ihsan Bagby determined there were 2 million "mosqued Muslims" in the United States.

Bagby, a professor of international relations at Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., multiplied that number by three to account for people who identify themselves as Muslims but might not participate in mosque activities. He calls this multiplier an educated guess based on years of observation of the Islamic community. "

CAIR then increased the result by 1 million to 7 million.

"CAIR's Awad, asked why his group settled on an estimate of 7

million in its press statements rather than Bagby's range of 6 million to 7 million, said the organization had used 6 million for six years. "If we still used the number six," he said, "people would say, 'Haven't we grown?' "

CAIR’s Response to Critics

CAIR has been criticized for its promotion of Muslim interests.[9] It has been accused of supporting terrorists and extremism.

CAIR has responded that these attacks on its reputation are based on a concentrated effort by the political right to discredit and disenfranchise the American Muslim community. They point to numerous incidents in which American Zionist organizations and individuals have targeted prominent American Muslim leaders and organizations [10] with political attacks and accusations aimed at reducing American Muslim involvement in the public policy process.

CAIR particularly points out Daniel Pipes, a commentator and founder of the Middle East Forum, who has made statements that Muslim groups have viewed as insensitive and Islamophobic. [11] Pipes is known for applying the word "Islamist" to American Muslim organizations who assert that they are opposed to the Islamist idealogues. [12]

External links

• CAIR website
• Anti-CAIR website
• Salon.com: Islam's flawed spokesmen
• Washington Post: Va. 'Jihad' Suspects: 11 Men, Two Views
• 2003 article on CAIR's increasing legal troubles