As’Salaamu Alaikum,
This past month, your legal team at CAIR-SFBA relentlessly advocated on the behalf of the community to prevent the normalization of anti-Muslim bigotry in the hallowed and esteemed courts of this country. While the Supreme Court of the United States dealt the profoundly democratic ideals of religious freedom and equality under the law a severe blow, our team has redoubled its dedication to protecting the civil rights of all and empowering American Muslims to advocate for their constitutional rights.
On June 26th, 2018, in a 5-4 decision denoting President Trump’s Muslim Ban as constitutional and within his executive powers, the Supreme Court turned a blind eye to the administration’s blatant bigotry. This decision greenlights religious and ethnic discrimination that runs counter to the inclusionary principles that our country aspires to. The Supreme Court lost an opportunity in reinforcing the notion that America welcomes people regardless of where they were born, what they look like or how they pray, the Supreme Court instead upheld a ban, driven by anti-Muslim sentiment.
Despite the setback, our legal team here at CAIR-SFBA will continue the fight for religious freedom and justice for all immigrant families. The right to live in peace and be treated justly no matter one’s race, ethnicity or religion is too important to let one person, one president, one decision destroy it. We will continue to fight for Muslim families and communities, to pursue legal avenues on behalf of impacted people and to demand that legislators take action to end the Muslim Ban.
On the day of the Muslim Ban decision, we held a press conference at San Francisco’s City Hall and a rally in San Jose where community members as well as coalition partners and interfaith allies came together to protest the decision and mobilize to defend impacted families moving forward. If you, your family members, and/or your friends are impacted by the Muslim Ban or have questions regarding the consequences of this decisions, please reach out to us by calling 408.986.9874 or completing this form online.
Most importantly, we will continue organizing, mobilizing and defending Muslim communities from bigoted policies—whether they are endorsed by the Supreme Court or not.
In addition to our advocacy against the Islamophobic policies of the administration, our legal team was successful at representing a community member who was not hired after an interview where her religious background and national origin were mentioned unfavorably and negatively stereotyped. After an intense mediation battle, our attorneys were successful in obtaining a settlement for the impacted community member that would recoup lost wages and other suitable damages. If you find yourself a target of discrimination and harassment at your workplace, please reach out to us through our incident report form.
Sincerely,
Ammad Rafiqi, Esq.
Civil Rights & Legal Services Coordinator