(BALTIMORE, MD, 10/29/2023) – Beginning Monday, Oct. 30, the Maryland office of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) will hold emergency peaceful protests at the offices of elected officials in that state to demand a ceasefire in Gaza, where thousands of children, women and men have been killed by indiscriminate Israeli bombardment.
WHAT: #CEASEFIRENOW Emergency Protest for GAZA
Monday, October 30, 6 pm
453 Hungerford Drive
Rockville, Md. 20850
(Outside Sen. Ben Cardin’s office)
Tuesday, October 31, 4 pm
6751 Columbia Gateway Drive
Columbia, Md. 21046
(Outside Rep. John Sarbanes’ office)
Thursday, November 2, 6 pm
754 Frederick Road
Catonsville, Md. 21228
(Outside Rep. Kweisi Mfume’s office)
CAIR, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, has called Israeli attacks on Gaza “genocide” after the death toll of Palestinians last week topped 5,000, including more than 2,000 children.
Washington, D.C., based CAIR also called on the Biden administration to stop dehumanizing Palestinian civilians and justifying their deaths and casting doubt on the number of Palestinians killed.
[NOTE: Almost 80,000 Americans have used a CAIR congressional action alert to urge Congress, to support a ceasefire in response to war crimes, including genocide, in Gaza by Israel.]
CAIR has issued guidance including ‘Know Your Rights While Speaking Up for Palestine’ and offered templates that can be modified to respond to biased statements from employers.
‘Know Your Rights While Speaking Up for Palestine’
Take Action: Download Templates to Respond to Your Employer or School/University About Biased Statements on Palestine & Israel
The National office has issued community alerts and guidelines for employees and employers to help safeguard rights in the workplace.
Community Alert: CAIR Issues Guidance for U.S. Employees Responding to Islamophobic, Anti-Arab Bias in the Workplace
CAIR Issues Guidance for U.S. Employers in Response to Spike in Islamophobic, Anti-Palestinian Rhetoric in the Workplace
https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-issues-guidance-for-u-s-employers-in-response-to-spike-in-islamophobic-anti-palestinian-rhetoric-in-the-workplace/
CAIR’s National Headquarters announced it has recorded 774 complaints nationwide within the same time period, although this number will increase in the coming days as more reports are submitted from different states. CAIR believes the number of complaints is the largest wave it has seen since December 2015, after Donald Trump declared his intent to ban Muslims from the U.S.
SEE: CAIR National Reports Sharp Increase in Complaints, Reported Bias Incidents Since 10/7
https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-reports-sharp-increase-in-complaints-reported-bias-incidents-since-107/
[NOTE: Palestine Legal reports that they have responded to “over 260 such incidents” of people having their “livelihoods and careers” being targeted for speaking up on behalf of Palestinian humanity.]
In the last few weeks, CAIR National has documented a number of shocking incidents, including the murder of a six-year-old Palestinian child by his landlord in Illinois. Additionally, a man allegedly threatened to shoot two Muslim men in Illinois, a gunman reportedly shot through a Palestinian family home in Colorado, a city council member was arrested for carrying a gun at a pro-Palestinian rally in New York, and police arrested a man who wanted others to join him in hunting Palestinians in Michigan.
The organization has also documented several instances of vehicles being used as weapons targeting pro-Palestinian demonstrators. A man reportedly drove his truck through and brandished weapons against pro-Palestine protestors in Minnesota, a driver allegedly swerved into pro-Palestine demonstrators and hit a demonstrator on a bicycle in Ohio, and a man reportedly blocked a group of pro-Palestine protestors with his vehicle and then shot at them with a splatter ball gun in Oregon. In New Jersey, a man also reportedly drove into a school parking lot and yelled death threats at parents.
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 Maryland Director Zainab Chaudry, 410-971-6062, zchaudry@cair.com; CAIR National Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor, 202-384-8857, csaylor@cair.com; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-999-8292, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com, CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com