The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today released its updated Law Enforcement Officer’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices. The guide contains information on Islamic religious practices and what law enforcement officers may expect to encounter when dealing with Muslims.
In 2024, CAIR noted that law enforcement encounters reported to the organization climbed from 295 total in 2023 to 506 in 2024. This was a 71.5 percent increase. This spike coincided with the student anti-genocide encampments and likely reflects university administrators opting to deploy state force, university discipline, and policies restricting expressive activity to repress anti-genocide viewpoints.
SEE: CAIR’s Law Enforcement Officer’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices
CAIR has similar guides for educators, employers, corrections officers, and healthcare professionals.
SEE: Guides to Islamic Religious Practices
“Simply knowing the basics of Islamic religious practices prevents wasted resources as officers respond to a call for service from a caller who lacks knowledge of Islamic culture and practices. The guide is intended to be a tool that helps achieve this goal,” said CAIR Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor.
Saylor added: “We are also seeing a possible return of anti-Islam law enforcement trainings, a phenomenon that had largely faded but seems to be reviving. Some groups seeking to suppress voices calling for an end to Israel’s genocide in Gaza by telling law enforcement that Muslims, Christians, Jews, Arabs, Palestinians, and others are somehow extreme for labeling practices like starving children, occupation and apartheid as wrong.”
Earlier this year, CAIR called on the George Washington University to end its relationship with a program that co-led a racist training for New York Police Department (NYPD) staff that falsely claimed common expressions of Palestinian ethnic identity such as the keffiyeh and watermelons are indicators of extremism. The Program on Extremism (GW PoE), led by Lorenzo Vidino, has previously been linked to poor research that contributed to police actions in Austria that were deemed “unlawful” and ties to Islamophobic groups.
CAIR also called on Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) to apologize to the family of slain NYPD officer Didarul Islam and New York Governor Kathy Hochul for mocking her decision to respect Islamic custom by wearing an Islamic hair scarf, or hijab, at the religious funeral service for the murdered officer.
The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ) called on law enforcement authorities to investigate alleged harassment and violent threats reportedly targeting The Baklava Lady, a small café in Englishtown known for its stance promoting peace and voicing support for Palestinian human rights. Among other threats, the café allegedly received a threatening phone call in which an individual explicitly threatened violence against the owner and her family. This reported phone threat marked a new level of danger, intensifying the already mounting pressure from local pro-genocide groups protesting outside the café and harassing the business.
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CONTACT: CAIR Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor, csaylor@cair.com, 202-384-8857; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@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