The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today sent a formal letter to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis that debunks the defamatory claims made in his unconstitutional executive order targeting CAIR-Florida and confirms the organization’s plans to confront him in court.
CLICK HERE: READ CAIR’S LETTER TO GOVERNOR DESANTIS
In the letter, CAIR writes that Governor DeSantis does “not have the constitutional authority to unilaterally declare any Americans or American institutions foreign terrorist groups” nor “is there any basis to level this smear against our organization.”
The letter also reads, in part:
“With 25 chapters, dozens of attorneys, and support from thousands of donors across America, CAIR has advanced free speech, religious freedom, and racial equality. In 2024, CAIR won a historic 9-0 Supreme Court ruling that protects the rights of all Americans.
“CAIR also speaks out against injustice here and abroad, from hate crimes to terrorism to ethnic cleansing to genocide. In fact, CAIR spoke up against ISIS terrorism so often that the group called for the assassination of our national executive director.”
“While CAIR has strongly opposed the Israeli government’s violent, genocidal oppression of the Palestinian people, CAIR has shown moral consistency by speaking out against Hamas violence against Israeli civilians, from such attacks on Oct. 7th, 2023, to suicide bombings in the 1990s. This has been CAIR’s principled position for 31 years.”
CAIR also directly confronted Governor DeSantis with his long history of targeting Americans critical of the Israeli government’s human rights abuses:
“The real reason anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian politicians obsessively target CAIR and other American Muslim institutions is because of our steadfast advocacy for Palestinian rights.
“Indeed, your office spent years serving the Israeli government to the detriment of Florida. You hosted your first official cabinet meeting in Israel. You diverted at least $25 million in Florida taxpayer dollars to the Israeli government’s bonds. You issued an order threatening to shut down every Florida college’s pro-Palestine student groups, only to retreat when CAIR sued you in federal court. You repeatedly embraced the wanted war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu. You ignored the plight of a Florida teenager kidnapped by the Israeli military and tortured in an Israeli prison for nine months.
“By now defaming CAIR-Florida with an unconstitutional proclamation and debunked conspiracy theories, you have once again shown that your top priority is protecting a foreign government, not serving the people of people of Florida.”
Last night, CAIR and CAIR Florida announced their intention to file a lawsuit against DeSantis in response to his “defamatory and unconstitutional” order that baselessly “smears the group as a foreign terrorist organization.”
Earlier today, CAIR Florida also held press conference to announce locally a forthcoming legal challenge against DeSantis regarding his recent executive actions described by CAIR-FL as an “unconstitutional and defamatory Israel First political stunt.”
Last month, the Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA), the CAIR Legal Defense Fund (CAIR LDF) and Akeel & Valentine, PLC announced the filing a federal lawsuit against Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton to block enforcement of Abbott’s similar “unconstitutional and defamatory” Nov. 18th proclamation, which falsely declared the Texas chapter of the CAIR a “foreign terrorist organization” and threatened various civil penalties against the civil rights organization if it continues to serve the people of Texas.
CAIR Op-Ed: Abbott’s attacks on Muslims draw on an old religious bigotry playbook
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: Hiba Rahim, CAIR-Florida Deputy Executive Director, (813) 705-5440, [email protected]; CAIR-Florida Communications Director Wilfredo A. Ruiz, (305)502-6749, [email protected]; 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]