(WASHINGTON, D.C., 5/4/23) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today applauded the “principled stance” taken by a North Carolina doctor who refused to sign a pledge mandated by an Arkansas anti-BDS law requiring individuals or companies to pledge not to boycott Israel.
[NOTE: The term “BDS” refers to the growing Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Modeled after the global South African anti-apartheid movement, the BDS movement’s goal is to pressure the Israeli government to end its occupation of Palestinian territory.]
Dr. Steve Feldman, a Jewish dermatologist from North Carolina, was denied a $500 honorarium for a lecture in Arkansas because he would not check a box agreeing to not boycott Israel. He told the Arkansas Times that “during his multiple trips to Israel, he’s seen Palestinians suffer at Israeli hands. Arkansas’s law requiring anyone who does business with the state to sign a pledge not to boycott Israel clashes with his religious and moral views.”
SEE: Arkansas owes a Jewish man $500 but won’t pay up because he refuses to sign a pledge to not boycott Israel (Arkansas Times)
This Jewish doctor refused to sign a pledge opposing BDS — so he didn’t get paid
https://forward.com/fast-forward/545695/jewish-doctor-arkansas-boycott-israel/
“Supporting the rights of Palestinians is not just a Muslim issue,” said CAIR Trial Attorney Justin Sadowsky. “It is the teaching of all religions to stand up for human rights. We applaud Dr. Feldman for his commitment to principle.”
“We applaud Dr. Feldman for his principled stance on this important free speech issue,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. “These unconstitutional laws must be challenged by all Americans who value the First Amendment and the ability to speak out against human rights abuses wherever they occur.”
He noted that earlier this year, CAIR said that the fight against unconstitutional, anti-BDS laws will continue after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review an Arkansas newspaper’s appeal against an anti-free speech law in that state.
CAIR has successfully won court rulings against unconstitutional anti-BDS laws in Georgia and twice in Texas. The victories in those free speech lawsuits are being reviewed on appeal in the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits.
SEE: Top US court refuses to review anti-BDS law. Here’s what it means.
The law is one of a number of similar anti-free speech measures nationwide targeting the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. CAIR has challenged those laws as violations of the First Amendment right to free speech.
CAIR-NJ OP-ED: Anti-boycott laws are an affront to free speech. They also don’t address anti-Semitism
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 Senior Litigation Attorney Gadeir Abbas, 720-251-0425, gabbas@cair.com; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com CAIR National Communications Coordinator Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com