After tireless advocacy during the 2024 legislative session, CAIR-CA, along with other members of the California MENA Civil Rights Coalition, welcomed the reintroduction of AB 91 also known as the MENA Inclusion Act. In May 2024, the bill was suspended due to budgetary concerns, preventing it from moving forward through the legislative process.
Authored by Assemblymember John Harabedian, this landmark legislation represents a historic step toward equity and representation for California’s unique and diverse communities by requiring all California entities that collect demographic data to add a distinct Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) reporting category.
The California MENA Civil Rights Coalition is a coalition of the leading MENA-led and MENA constituency-based organizations that work to advance MENA civil rights in the State of California and is the convener of the #CountMENAInCA campaign.
In a statement, CAIR-LA Policy Manager Basha Jamil said:
“CAIR-CA proudly joins our coalition partners in celebrating the introduction of the California MENA Inclusion Act in the California State Legislature. For too long, the Middle Eastern North African community in California has been underrepresented and deprived of resources due to a lack of accurate data collection. As the largest civil rights organization representing American Muslims and over 1 million California Muslims, CAIR-CA has firsthand seen the effects of this issue on the community across all spheres of life—be it in schools, social services, or courtrooms. This urgent bill will ensure services made for and provided to the community are culturally sensitive, linguistically relevant, and catered to the community’s unique needs. We look forward to seeing the California MENA Inclusion Act propel through the legislature and become a reality for our community in 2024.”
MENA Erasure in CA
California has the largest MENA population in the U.S., with over 740,000 members. Despite this, California does not have a statewide standard to collect data from individuals with MENA heritage or have legislation recognizing them. Instead, individuals who identify as MENA are placed within the white category.
By ignoring the MENA population, there is serious concern about underrepresentation, inadequate resource allocation, and severe quality of life oversight in education, health, and civil rights.
Take Action
When MENA is included in state data, we can advocate for more resources, address discrimination head-on, ensure that our healthcare access and education needs are considered, and ensure that all individuals with MENA heritage are not only recognized but valued.
Tell your representative to support adding a distinct reporting category for MENA and require the new standard to be available to Californians across all state forms, public and private, to identify with their respective ethnic background.
