(CANTON, MI, (11/22/2023) – The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI), a local chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor School of Information (UMSI) decision to retain a board of advisory member after an Islamophobic tirade against Muslim and Arab students.
More than 100 University of Michigan School of Information students signed a letter demanding the removal of UMSI advisory board member Carin Ehrenberg due to her reported verbal harassment of Muslim students. Ehrenberg allegedly verbally assaulted a particular student by exclaiming, ““Are you going to send one of your terrorists after us?” She then called a group of Muslim and Arab protesters “rapists and murderers.”
A series of videos of the incident was circulated on social media.
UMSI Interim Dean Elizabeth Yakel stated that Ehrenberg will remain on the advisory board without any disciplinary action, but instead may hold a “listening project” to hear from students.
SEE: School of Information will not punish board member who verbally assaulted Arab and Muslim students
“We condemn UMSI’s decision to keep someone on its advisory board who allegedly verbally assaulted students with the bigoted trope of equating Muslims and Arabs with terrorists,” said CAIR-MI Executive Director Dawud Walid. “The university’s non-dismissal of Ehrenberg sends a dangerous message that verbal assault of Muslim and Arab students on campus by persons with official university positions is tolerable.”
This incident comes as Muslims, Arabs, and Palestinians across the country report a surge in anti-Muslim and anti-Arab hate since the escalation of violence in Palestine and Israel last month. CAIR recently released new data indicating a 216 percent surge in complaints, including reported incidents of bias, reported to its offices since the start of the crisis on October 7th.
[NOTE: More than 100,000 Americans have used CAIR’s action alert to contact their members of Congress and call for an end to the violence and the renewal of U.S.-led efforts to end the occupation. SEE: Urge Your Members of Congress to Address Root Cause of Mideast Violence]
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: Dawud Walid, CAIR-MI Executive Director, (248) 842-1418, dwalid@cair.com; Amy V. Doukoure, CAIR-MI Staff Attorney, (586) 943-8823, adoukoure@cair.com