National Know Your Rights materials distribution and webinar series aim to reach K-12 and higher education communities as classes resume
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today announced the release of its Back to School Resource Guide to reach Muslim students, families and educators as the school year begins. This guide is part of CAIR’s Unhostile Campus Campaign, a project aimed at fostering a campus environment where students, faculty, and staff enjoy free speech and academic freedom and are not subjected to state force or discipline due to their viewpoints.
CAIR’s Back to School Resource Guide 2026-2027 can be found here.
The campaign comes as record levels of anti-Muslim hate and rhetoric sweep the nation. CAIR’s 2026 Civil Rights Report, “The Right to Be Different,” documented 8,683 discrimination complaints nationwide in 2025 — the highest single-year total the organization has recorded since it began tracking incidents in 1996.
Students are particularly vulnerable. A 2025 study from the Institute for Social Policy & Understanding found that about half “of Muslim families with school-aged children report having a child who faced religious-based bullying in the past year, compared to 23% among the general public.” Those numbers have been repeated in studyafterstudy spanning across the country. Alarmingly, school officials themselves are reported to be the source of bullying in one-third of incidents.
CAIR says the current climate makes it critical for students and school staff to understand their constitutional rights. Muslim students often experience a surge in bullying during school lessons about 9/11 and during military conflicts in the Middle East. The 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks combined with the ongoing conflicts overseas and a wave of anti-Muslim rhetoric from Republicans make this a particularly dangerous time for Muslim students.
“Students are heading back to class this fall against a backdrop of record-breaking hate complaints and a political climate that too often treats Muslims and our faith and advocacy as suspect,” said Corey Saylor, CAIR National Research and Advocacy Director. “Every student has the right to practice their religion, speak their conscience and organize with their peers without fear of punishment or harassment. Our job this back-to-school season is to make sure students, parents and educators know exactly where those rights begin and where a school’s authority ends.”
From addressing bullying and Islamophobia to navigating classroom discussions on 9/11, Gaza, and requesting prayer, dress code, or dietary accommodations, this guide offers practical tools, email templates, and resources for every parent and student, including for Ramadan, Eid, and Muslim Heritage Month. CAIR is encouraging students, parents and school staff who experience or witness bullying, harassment or discrimination this school year to document the incident and report it to CAIR.
SEE:CAIR’s Know Your Rights as a Student guide
SEE: ‘Report a Hostile Campus’ form
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, [email protected]; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, [email protected]