The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today joined 150 other organizations – led by Nonprofits Together – in issuing a joint public statement condemning a recent legal attack against the Center for American Progress (CAP). The coalition of civil rights groups, policy organizations, and civic institutions warned that the action represents a broader effort to suppress independent analysis and silence organizations that challenge government policy.
SEE: Statement on CAP Signed By 150 Organizations
In July, CAP published an analytical report concluding that the President’s deployment of the National Guard to cities around the country failed to reduce crime. In response, President Trump’s personally attorney reportedly threatened CAP with a $5 billion defamation lawsuit for dissenting from the official government narrative.
The 150 organizations stated that every organization has a right to publish evidence-based, independent analysis of government policy and how that is the cornerstone of American democracy, regardless of which party holds power and who sits in the Oval Office. The full text of the statement is below:
“Since our nation’s founding, the rights to free speech, association, and the press have been the bedrock on which American democracy has thrived. We reaffirm, as has each generation before us, our unqualified commitment to the First Amendment and its foundational protections. In so doing, we stand in strong solidarity with the Center for American Progress (CAP), a nonpartisan think tank, and its right to publish expert analysis on the impact of the Trump administration’s—or any administration’s—policies. The free exchange of ideas—including ideas that are inconvenient to those in power—is critical for Americans to understand the nature and impact of the actions of their government.
“President Trump’s recent legal attack on CAP takes aim at the heart of these foundational rights, and is the latest salvo in the Administration’s ongoing efforts to suppress the speech of organizations that challenge their policies, defend the rule of law and protect civil rights and vulnerable communities. Independent sources of expert analysis allow Americans to better understand government policy and how it’s affecting them. Experts across or even within think tanks often disagree; it is the right of every American to freely access their findings and form their own opinions. Attempting to silence any of these sources of information degrades our free exchange of ideas, and risks leaving only distortions in the public square.
“This is infinitely more damaging to our democratic ideals when done for purely political purposes. There are few issues more fundamental to the First Amendment than the right of an independent organization to publish evidence-based analysis of a government policy and how it is or is not working.
“This is not about ideology or partisanship. In a recent editorial, the Washington Post rightly noted that ‘Think tanks are as American as baseball, jazz and apple pie. They perform an unsung role in holding governments accountable at all levels…Such organizations and their supporters should not fear legal harassment when elected officials dislike their work.’ This is true regardless of who is in power, and who is issuing public critiques of that power.
“We stand with the Center for American Progress, not in agreement with every view they hold, but in steadfast support for their rights to voice those views freely and without political retribution.”
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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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]