The White House in December 2023 quietly canceled the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) membership in its “National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism” program due to CAIR’s Executive Director, Nihad Awad, a Palestinian-American, saying he was “happy” about the October 7 Hamas massacre and genocide of Jews.
Why the White House would include CAIR in its strategy to educate religious communities about hate incidents is a topic for another day.
After the October 7, 2023, terrorist attack by Hamas against Israel, CAIR helped rally 100,000 Muslims and supporters in Washington, D.C., to condemn Israel’s retaliation. Multiple rally speakers called for the destruction of Israel. The rally was followed by protestors marching on the White House and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters. Protestors also defaced federal property with red paint to symbolize Gazan blood shed by Israeli military operations. No known charges have been filed against the lawbreakers.
CAIR was spawned in 1994 as a Muslim Brotherhood (MB) satellite organization. According to the FBI, CAIR was launched as a secret front organization to support Hamas with funding help from the Holy Land Foundation (HLF). CAIR’s founders and leaders have links to antisemitic Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., with regional offices throughout the United States, CAIR claims to be a Muslim civil rights group. In fact, CAIR is a propaganda arm for the MB’s civilizational jihad in “eliminating and destroying Western civilization from within and ‘sabotaging’ its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated.”
CAIR was listed by the FBI as an unindicted co-conspirator in the HLF trial of 2008. HLF was found guilty of funding Hamas, a designated terrorist organization. Prosecution of its national leaders was avoided due to political considerations during the Obama administration.
In 2014, the United Arab Emirates designated CAIR as a terrorist organization.
In 2020, the Trump administration’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) handed out $100,000 to CAIR as part of its Nonprofit Security Grant Program. Other grants were given to the Muslim American Society and the Dar al-Hirjah mosque in Virginia, former home to Al Qaeda leader Anwar Al-Awlaki. Trump administration officials later blamed the funding on Obama leftovers in the deep state.
California Governor Gavin Newsom met with CAIR and other Muslim group leaders in December 2023 to discuss the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. No mention was made that the crisis was caused by Hamas atrocities, and would end immediately if Hamas freed the hostages.
Considered to be the most effective Islamic advocacy group in the U.S., CAIR has normalized the term “Islamophobia.” (Islamophobia is a misnomer as a phobia is an unreasonable fear of something – there is nothing unreasonable about fearing Islam.) CAIR has silenced the discussion of Islamic ideology and the motivating ideology of jihad violence by shouting “Islamophobia.” CAIR has been instrumental in turning the Marxist progressives against Israel.
Lori Saroya, a hijab-wearing female CAIR employee from 2006 to 2018, was sued in 2021 by CAIR for defamation. Saroya had charged CAIR with:
● Sexual harassment and culture of misogyny
● Religious discrimination
● Working with the Muslim Brotherhood
● Acting as an unregistered foreign agent
● Working to replace the U.S. Constitution with Sharia Law.
CAIR dropped the lawsuit after the court asked it to provide proof that Saroya’s statements were false. In 2023, Saroya filed a lawsuit against CAIR for injury to her reputation and emotional distress.
Cancel culture refers to a cultural phenomenon in which some who are deemed to have acted or spoken in an unacceptable manner are ostracized, boycotted, or shunned.
CAIR should be canceled. It is poisoning American Civilization with its Islamic antisemitic, anti-American values. One need look no further for its influence than the massive demonstrations in American cities and universities in support of the Hamas murders, tortures, rapes, and hostage-taking on October 7.
CAIR admits to violating its tax-exempt status as a 501(c)3 organization by working to elect Joe Biden.
1. Petition your state to follow the example of Florida’s House of Representatives, which recently passed House Resolution 1209. It encourages all state and local government agencies in Florida to “suspend contact and outreach activities” with CAIR, citing the group’s extensive history of terror connections and anti-Jewish bigotry. Introduced by State Rep. Randy Fine (R-Palm Bay), it passed 98-15.
2. Contact the mainstream media and dispute its coverage whenever you see CAIR described in benign terms. It is not benign— it is malignant.
3. Contact the IRS and demand an investigation into CAIR’s tax-exempt status.
4. Increase U.S. defense and intelligence-gathering capabilities.
5. Stop funding NGOs and U.N. programs that support CAIR, the MB, and Hamas.
6. Control immigration.
Author Laurence F. Sanford is a veteran of the United States Navy and the Central Intelligence Agency and now serves as Senior Analyst for the American Security Council Foundation. Please support ASCF’s education efforts by donating to the American Security Council Foundation at www.ascf.us.