March 2, 2019

CAIR-SV, Allies Will Participate in Press Conference Today

(SACRAMENTO, CA, 3/2/19) – The Sacramento Valley office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SV) today expressed disappointment with the Sacramento County district attorney’s decision to not charge the Sacramento police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Stephon Clark.

Clark, an African-American Muslim from Sacramento and father of two young boys, was shot and killed in his grandparents’ backyard by law enforcement March 18, 2018. Clark was unarmed.

READ: The Stephon Clark Shooting (Sac Bee)

CAIR-SV, Sacramento Area Congregations Together and other allies held a press conference at 2 p.m. PST at City Hall in reaction to the DA’s announcement. 

WATCH LIVE: CAIR-SV, Sac ACT and Allies Hold Press Conference

At the press conference, CAIR-SV Civil Rights Attorney Saad Sweilem said, in part:

“Stephon Clark was murdered twice. First, by the police officers who killed him, and then again today when our District Attorney assassinated his character during her press conference.”

Prior to the press conference, Sweilem said in a statement:

We are deeply disappointed by today’s decision by the Sacramento District Attorney’s Office. Stephon Clark and his family deserve justice, and that can only come from holding law enforcement accountable when unarmed African-American boys and men are killed by the police. We need expedited reforms when it comes to policy and training of law enforcement in order to save lives.” 

In the days and weeks after the shooting, CAIR-SV called for accountability and hosted an emergency town hall meeting addressing systemic injustice.

READ: CAIR Sacramento Valley Demands Accountability for Police Shooting of Unarmed Black Man, Stephon Clark

READ: Hundreds search for solutions after Stephon Clark’s police shooting death (KCRA)

Hundreds attended the town hall, which was co-hosted by CAIR-SV, the Council of Sacramento Valley Islamic Organizations (COSVIO), Sacramento NAACP, Sacramento Area Congregations Together (Sac ACT), and a coalition of more than 10 mosques from across the greater Sacramento region. Nationally-known American Muslim scholar Sheikh Omar Suleiman from Texas led faith leaders from across the Sacramento region at the meeting.

CAIR is America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, capacitar a los musulmanes estadounidenses, y construir coaliciones que promuevan la justicia y la comprensión mutua.

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CONTACT: CAIR-SV Communications Manager Kalin Kipling-Mojaddedi, 916-441-6269, kkipling@cair.com or CAIR-SV Civil Rights Attorney Saad Sweilem, 916-441-6269.