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It’s time to pass same-day voter registration laws in New Jersey

It’s time to pass same-day voter registration laws in New Jersey | Opinion

A nj.com com exclusive article.

y 26, 2023 | By Maryam Ali

The New Jersey primary is just around the corner, but many New Jerseyans may not be able to vote due to barriers such as language access, disability, registration deadlines and more.

Advocates across the state have been calling on state legislators to pass a bill that makes voting more accessible by reducing the standard voter registration deadline and allowing voter registration at polling places.

If passed, the bill could increase turnout by up to 5 percent, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

“This legislation is more reflective of who we are as a country and in what direction people would like to see this country going when more people can participate,” said Assatta Mann, the senior organizer at the League of Women Voters of New Jersey.

As voter registration laws in New Jersey now stand, voters must register for mail-in ballots and in-person early voting 21 days ahead of an election. Voters who recently moved to New Jersey must also live at their address for a prescribed period of 30 days in order to be considered a resident.

“Currently, you have to be living in a certain location for 30 days to be considered a resident of that area and eligible to vote for the candidates that are going to affect you in the immediate future,” Mann said.

This 30-day waiting period precludes new residents from being able to vote — even if they’ll live in the area for the next several years — as well as college students, which could be a likely contributor to the underrepresentation of young voters in turnout, according to Micauri Vargas, the associate counsel at the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice.

“A lot of times, students move out to different towns and different counties, and they might not be registered in that location,” Vargas said.

With current voting deadlines, students and residents “fall through the cracks,” according to Vargas. Same-day voter registration could help and encourage such groups to turn out to the polls and make their voices heard, because, in states where there is same-day voter registration, youth turnout in presidential elections increases by approximately 14 percentage points, according to Project Vote, a national nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that worked to mobilize marginalized and under-represented voters.

New Jersey residents of color — including immigrants, who make up 23 percent of the state population — register and vote at lower rates than their white counterparts, primarily due to language, deadline and application barriers

Studies show that states, where there is same-day voter registration, have seen anywhere between a 2 to 17 percentage point increase in Black and Latino voter turnout. In New Jersey, specifically, that could mean a significant jump in overall voter turnout, given that approximately 48 percent of the state’s population are people of color, according to 2022 Census data.

Lengthy voting requirements with constricted deadlines also hinder people with disabilities, who may need assistance accessing voting registration documents, ballot boxes, or filling out absentee ballots.

Overall, same-day voter registration simplifies the voting process for Americans who do not have access to reliable, digestible information by removing the added stressors of facing a tall list of voting barriers in a constrained amount of time.

“Generally, there are 22 states and the District of Columbia that have already implemented same-day voter registration,” Mann said. “I think we want to follow in the footsteps of all of those states to be able to implement it in the same way they do to have somewhat of a similar success that they’ve had in terms of increasing voter turnout.”

Same-day voter registration is a “common sense solution,” according to Vargas.

“It promotes democracy and makes it possible to register on the same day and cast the ballot, all in a single day and uses existing election infrastructure. It would be at no cost, really, because it can be done through provisional ballots.”

Over 90 organizations have been working tirelessly to push the same-day voter registration bill through to legislators. The bill has even garnered the support of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who said that it “protects the sacred right to vote.” But within the state legislature, the bill is being challenged by Senate President Nicholas Scutari (LD-22), who has said that it will not ease voting processes, despite research proving otherwise, and that it will instead cause people to question the validity of elections.

Without same-day voter registration, a significant number of New Jersey residents will continue to face barriers to voting, putting the state of our democracy at stake. A democracy is only as good as its participation is, and passing the same-day voter registration bill will empower New Jersey residents and communities of color to let their voices be heard.

Maryam Ali is a legal research and editorial writing intern at CAIR-NJ.

 

International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Muzzles Critics of Israel

International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance muzzles critics of Israel | opinion

A nj.com com exclusive article.

In a country that prides itself on freedom of speech, the right to criticize Israel’s apartheid system and illegal occupation of Palestinian territories would seem to be a given. But in New Jersey, that right hangs by a thread.

Earlier this year, New Jersey Senators Andrew Zwicker and Greenstein introduced a resolution calling on the state to define antisemitism.

The resolution, which is cosponsored by Senators Beach and Codey, seeks to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA)working definition of antisemitism.

Antisemitism is generally defined as prejudice against or hatred of Jews, but the IHRA working definition of antisemitism expands antisemitism to also include condemnations or criticisms of Israel as a nation, its occupation of Palestine, the establishment of an apartheid state, and its ongoing blockade of Gaza that amounts to collective punishment and violates international law.

While the UN moves to mark the 75th anniversary of the Nakba for the first time ever, Speaker Kevin McCarthy attempted to block Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib’s educational community event at the Capitol Visitor Center last week on grounds of “antisemitism.”

The event, which was held nonetheless, sought to uplift Palestinian voices and educate members of Congress and their staff about the ongoing Nakba — the “catastrophe,” in reference to the founding of the state of Israel in 1948 and the resulting destruction and displacement of Palestinian society.

Such incidents are not uncommon, and civil rights advocates have long warned about the dangerous precedent that equating antisemitism with criticisms of Israel sets.

Conflating protests of Israeli apartheid with antisemitism will “muzzle and silence advocates for Palestine, certainly for a positive regard [of Israel],” Wassim Kanaan, the Vice Chair of American Muslims for Palestine said.

Not only does this silence debate and criticism of Israeli apartheid, but it also yields a glaring inaccuracy and injustice to Judaism as a religion and Jews as a religious group, Kanaan said.

“Judaism is a religion,” Kanaan said. “Equating state policy and the policy of a country with the teachings of a religion is inherently wrong because they are two completely different things, it’s important to allow people who share a religious identity to be able to differ on political topics, and still maintain their identity of who they are.”

David Letwin, the cofounder of Jews for Palestinian Right of Return, believes that the IHRA definition of antisemitism is a false definition and that adopting it will be harmful not just to critics of Israel, but also to Jews as a whole.

“It will just contribute to the ongoing campaign of enablers of the Israeli regime to silence people who stand up for Palestinian Liberation,” Letwin said.

Letwin also said that by defining any criticism of the Israeli government as antisemitic, it then becomes standard that all Jews, regardless of their political beliefs, are supportive of the Israeli regime and complicit in its crimes, just by virtue of identifying as Jewish.

“It follows logically, that if [criticism of Israel] has nothing to do with Judaism or Jewish identity, then opposing the racist settler colonial political ideology of [Israel] has nothing to do with anti-Jewish discrimination, or violence or stereotypes,” Letwin said.

Civil rights advocates and ordinary citizens are unable to criticize Israeli apartheid without fear of repercussion or retaliation, Letwin said.

“All it has to do is put fear into people, that they could lose their jobs, that they could be subject to public pressure,” Letwin said. “Could their homes be attacked? Could they be attacked personally? It creates an environment in which people become frightened to speak out because they don’t want to be slandered and smeared as an anti-Semite. So then they say to themselves, well, maybe I better not say that or what will be the consequences? If I speak up? Could I lose my job?”

What is necessary, then, is not an erasure of the idea to define antisemitism, but a clear distinction between antisemitism and criticisms of Israel — something which the IHRA definition does not do.

For Kanaan and Letwin, the adoption of a definition of antisemitism must protect the rights of Jewish people from white supremacy, while also not infringing on Palestinians’ or any other group’s basic civil rights.

“It’s not that we need to have a definition of antisemitism that protects Palestinians. We need a definition that doesn’t vilify Palestinians,” Kanaan said.

“We see the white supremacist movements in this country. The right constantly vilifies people of the Jewish faith,” Kanaan said, “and so we need to make sure that they’re protected, but not at the expense of vilifying Palestinians.”

Dina Sayedahmed is the communications manager and Maryam Ali is a legal intern at CAIR-NJ.

Anti-boycott laws are a dystopian nightmare

Anti-boycott laws are a dystopian nightmare

The right to boycott was once enshrined by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1982, but the recent passing of anti-BDS laws in several U.S. states shows how fragile basic civil rights have become.

A Mondoweiss Exclusive Article

Published October 4th, 2022 | By Hamzah Khan

Few things have as much bipartisan support in the U.S. as unconditional support for Israel. Ironically, while criticisms of the U.S. government are protected by the First Amendment, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have made it nearly impossible to criticize Israel without facing tangible consequences like public smearing, and even financial loss. Across the U.S., 34 states — from “blue” states like California and New York to “red” states like Texas and South Carolina — have passed some form of legislation that makes it illegal for the state to contract with businesses and individuals who participate in Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS), a grassroots movement founded by Palestinian civil society that seeks to pressure Israel to abide by international law.

Boycotting now carries a price

Under the various iterations of anti-boycott laws across the U.S., individuals and businesses that do partake in the BDS movement risk financial retaliation, like Unilever did in New Jersey, or public smear campaigns and accusations of antisemitism. Proponents of the anti-boycott law claim that it combats antisemitism, but most of the laws explicitly target the BDS movement, which condemns antisemitism. These anti-BDS laws have been wielded to disastrous effect, with state governments targeting individuals and companies alike who seek to exercise their right to boycott an apartheid state. By punishing boycotts of Israel, U.S. legislators encroach on Americans’ First Amendment rights.

Many of the state anti-BDS laws require anyone contracting with the state or any federal employees to sign a non-boycott pledge. Just weeks ago, in June, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld an anti-BDS law in Arkansas, the first and most senior court to do so thus far.

A local newspaper, The Arkansas Times, was required to sign a pledge not to boycott Israel in order to run ads with the University of Arkansas, a state-funded public university. The newspaper refused to sign the pledge on grounds that it violated free speech. Initially, The Arkansas Times won their case in the district court. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, however, reversed the decision and upheld the law. If the Supreme Court agrees to hear the Arkansas case or even a similar one in the next few years, there is a high probability that the conservative majority will concur with the conservative Eighth Circuit’s opinion and uphold these laws, permanently crippling free speech in this country.

In Georgia, just a few states east of Arkansas, journalist Abby Martin was required to sign a non-boycott pledge in order to speak at a public university, which she refused. And in Arizona, Dr. Hatem Bazian and the American Muslims for Palestine, a grassroots advocacy group dedicated to educating the American public on Palestine, were required to sign a non-boycott pledge in order to hold an event at Arizona State University. The Council on American Islamic Relations filed separate lawsuits on behalf of both plaintiffs. In both cases, the courts struck down the anti-BDS laws on free speech grounds.

In Kansas and Texas, individuals contracting with public schools were also required to sign the pledge.

One Kansas woman, Esther Koontz, sued Kansas Commissioner of Education Randall Watson after she was required to sign a pledge to not participate in boycotts of Israel. The state refused to contract with her when she did not sign the pledge.

In Texas, victims of Hurricane Harvey were required to sign the anti-BDS pledge in order to receive aid from the government. Phil King, the Republican lawmaker who sponsored the bill, later apologized for the way the law was implemented, calling it a “misunderstanding.” But just about a year later, Bahia Amawi, a child language pathologist, lost her job after nine years of employment when she refused to sign a new contract that included an addendum that would prohibit her from boycotting Israel.

Both Kansas and Texas later amended their laws: in Kansas, the anti-boycott certification requirement no longer applies to individuals or sole proprietors — now only applying to companies if they conduct more than $100,000 worth of business with the state.

However, companies that conduct more than said amount of business with the state are required to sign a certification stating that they are “not engaged in a boycott of goods or services from Israel that constitute an integral part of business conducted or sought to be conducted with the state.” Similarly in Texas, the anti-boycott law now excludes companies with nine or fewer full-time employees and contracts under $100,000. Both CAIR and its Houston chapter sued the state of Texas last year to expand the definition of a “company” to “between a governmental entity and a company with 10 or more full-time employees, and has a value of $100,000 or more that is to be paid wholly or partly from public funds of the governmental entity.” The state has appealed the temporary injunction granted, and it is now up to the Fifth Circuit this November.

Many states have also passed laws that pose financial burdens on organizations that allegedly boycott Israel through the creation of blacklists, pension fund divestments, and prohibition of business contracts. Most of the laws target companies that states deem to be engaged in a boycott of Israel, regardless of whether they actually are. In Illinois, the state created blacklists of companies, not only for boycotting Israel on political grounds, but for even refusing to do business with Israel for commercial reasons. Many of the companies on the list were perplexed as to why they could no longer contract with the state as they held no political positions against Israel.

In New Jersey and New York, both states divested state pension funds from Ben & Jerry’s parent company, Unilever, after the ice cream maker announced that it would no longer operate in illegal Israeli settlements. Interestingly, this action was considered a boycott of Israel despite the fact that Ben & Jerry’s continued to operate in the rest of the country.

In Houston, the Council on American Islamic Relations sued the city and Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton, on behalf of A&R Engineering, a firm that frequently contracted with the city but refused to sign the anti-BDS pledge. The suit was successful, and they won an injunction against the city to waive the requirement. The fact that this clear political act was punished by so many states shows that the government can use the full force of the state to stifle political dissent and find applause within both parties. The majority of anti-BDS laws prohibit states from investing in companies that boycott Israel, significantly hindering the ability of activists to pressure companies to support human rights.

The fact that so many U.S. states have decided to fall on the side of apartheid is a dystopian foreshadowing of the ease with which fundamental rights can be taken away.

While most of the anti-BDS laws have been struck down in court when challenged, the latest ruling from the Eighth Circuit may represent a disturbing shift towards stricter government enforcement against movements that support Palestinian rights. Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton recently introduced an anti-BDS law in Congress that would make it easier for states to implement stricter anti-BDS laws.

Seeing that anti-BDS laws have broad bipartisan support, the likelihood of this bill becoming law is very high.

The right to boycott was protected by the U.S. Supreme Court in the landmark case NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co in 1982, in which the court upheld the right of the NAACP to boycott primarily white institutions that segregated between whites and people of color.

Boycotts have long been instrumental to political movements from the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. to the anti-apartheid boycotts of South Africa. The fact that so many U.S. states have decided to fall on the side of apartheid is a dystopian foreshadowing of the ease with which fundamental rights can be taken away.

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LATEST press releases

CAIR-NJ to Attend Highland Park Police Sergeant’s Termination Hearing, Sergeant Alleges Ethnic and Religious Discrimination

MEDIA ADVISORY

CAIR-NJ to Attend Highland Park Police Sergeant’s Termination Hearing, Sergeant Alleges Ethnic and Religious Discrimination

(NEWARK, NJ, 11/15/2023) — On Thursday, November 16 at 10 a.m.,  the New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ), a chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, will attend the termination hearing of Highland Park’s Sergeant Mohab Hannout.

SEE: Highland Park officer suspended without pay, claims discrimination

The sergeant, who is allegedly facing ethnic and religious harassment and discrimination within the police department according to court documents, was suspended without pay more than one year ago.

The Highland Park Police Department has fostered a “culture of explicit and implicit bias against Black and brown officers by creating a two-tiered disciplinary system: one for whites and one for ‘others,’” court documents read.

WHEN: Thursday, November 16, 2023, at 10 a.m.    

WHERE: Highland Park Municipal Building, 221 S. 5th Ave, Highland Park, NJ 08904 

CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, dsayedahmed@cair.com, W: 908-668-5900 ext. 103, C: 551-221-5592       

Court documents detail incidents of alleged discrimination, harassment, and bullying that Hannout has endured during his 17-year tenure at the Highland Park Police Department. In one instance, Hannout’s ethnic background was allegedly evoked by a high-ranking official while responding to a call. The same official would allegedly call Hannout a “terrorist.”    

Separately, another high-ranking official allegedly asked if Hannout’s ethnic group was “stupid” in response to another call.   

In a statement, CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed said:   

“We are deeply disturbed by the allegations that Sergeant Mohab has made against the Highland Park Police Department, but his case seems to be just the tip of the iceberg.    

“The police department is overwhelmingly white, despite at least 38 percent of the borough population being non-white. Over the last three years, five Black officers have left the department. This is alarming.   

“The Borough has taken positive steps toward eliminating racism within its jurisdiction, but there still seems to be a long way to go within the police department especially.   

“We are optimistic that Mayor Elsie Foster will investigate Hannout’s credible claims in good faith and work to ensure that the apparent explicit and implicit biases within the Highland Park Police Department do not go unchecked.”    

Hannout’s hearing was originally scheduled for June 14, 2023, then postponed to September 8, 2023, and then postponed to November 16, 2023. The Sergeant has been on unpaid leave since August 15, 2022.

Hannout has previously filed suit against the Highland Park Police Department for discrimination. The department settled in 2017.  

 

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.                 

END             

CONTACT:  CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, dsayedahmed@cair.com, W: 908-668-5900 ext. 103, C: 551-221-5592 

CAIR-NJ Echoes NJ Islamic Center Coalitions’ Disappointment in Elected Officials, Calls for Ceasefire

CAIR-NJ Echoes NJ Islamic Center Coalitions’ Disappointment in Elected Officials, Calls for Ceasefire 

(NEWARK, NJ, 11/03/2023) – The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today echoed the message of a coalition of New Jersey Islamic centers.

60 Islamic centers from across New Jersey have co-authored a letter addressed to Governor Phil Murphy and  New Jersey’s federal Senators and Representatives.

Their coalition letter states, in part:

“Your initial statements in particular were devoid of any context and largely ignored the reality of death, despair and destruction long befalling millions of innocent Palestinian civilians. These statements and those of our national leaders have also put the lives of Muslim, Arab and Palestinian Americans in jeopardy including a rise in Islamophobia and putting our constitutional rights at risk as our students and professionals are subject to intimidation and harassment. As concerned citizens who value justice and peace on a global scale, we feel compelled to express our concerns about the direction of the one-sided support that you have provided.”

It goes on to state:

“We now address you as bellwethers of a changing tide of sentiment between the Muslim community and our elected representatives. This division will mark a significant shift in public opinion of elected officials who are supposed to represent them. To date, only Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman has shown the courage and integrity to stand with the rest of the world’s voices (120 countries) and vote for an immediate ceasefire.”

SEE: New Jersey Muslim Coalition Letter

In a statement, CAIR-NJ Executive Director Selaedin Maksut said:

“This letter representants the collective frustration of New Jersey’s American Muslim community. We demand our representatives across the board do better. We echo the coalition’s demands and urge our elected officials to call for an immediate ceasefire, humanitarian aid, and to be a voice of justice, peace, and equality.

“It is outrageous to me that so many of our elected officials have prioritized the interests of a foreign government over their own constituents’ and that they have signed onto a genocide, over and over again, despite being implored not to. 

“New Jersey’s Palestinian and Muslim communities have been directly impacted by Israel’s bombardment of Palestine. Our call for a ceasefire has been met with a deafening silence beyond comprehension.

“This moment has marked a shifting tide between Muslims across the nation and in New Jersey specifically, and their elected officials who have neglected their responsibility to their constituents.” 

Maksut also noted that the CAIR-NJ office has received well over 100 calls for help in the past four weeks. That’s more than the past nine months combined. Normally CAIR-NJ receives two to four calls a week. Maksut called on New Jersey elected officials to condemn alarming rise in anti-Muslim incidents occuring in all sectors of public life. 

The Palestinian death toll in Gaza has risen past 9,000, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu adamantly rejects a ceasefire.

SEE:  Netanyahu declares it is ‘time for war’ as Israel hails hostage release

SEE: Gaza receives largest aid shipment so far as deaths top 8,000 and Israel widens military offensive   

CAIR-NJ continues to urge elected officials to push for a ceasefire in Gaza and across the West Bank as Israeli aggressions mount. The groups also mourns the loss of life in Palestine and stands firmly in unwavering solidarity with Palestinians and their right to freedom.

SEE: Ceasefire Now

END    

CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, dsayedahmed@cair.com, 908-668-5900 ext. 103

CAIR-NJ Calls for Firing of Princeton University Staff Member Who Allegedly Assaulted Pro-Palestine Protesters

CAIR-NJ Calls for Firing of Princeton University Staff Member Who Allegedly Assaulted Pro-Palestine Protesters     

(NEWARK, NJ, 10/31/2023) – The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called on Princeton University to terminate the employment of a staffer who allegedly for assaulted pro-Palestine protesters on Saturday, October 28.       

In a video, the staffer is reportedly seen shouting at protesters, making obscene gestures, and filming them.       

SEE: Princeton University staff member runs off with Jewish student’s phone at pro-Palestine protest    

SEE: Princeton University Staff Member Allegedly Assaults Pro-Palestine Protesters    

In another video, the employee is shown speaking with a protester at first. She is then shown grabbing another protester’s phone and running off with it. In the process of grabbing the protester’s phone, she also apparently pulls the protester’s hair.     

SEE: Princeton Protest   

SEE: Princeton staff member assaults student at pro-Palestine protest in town   

In a statement, CAIR-NJ Executive Director Selaedin Maksut said:     

“We’ve seen a sharp uptick in anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian bigotry over the past month, but this case is especially alarming. Had the protesters not controlled the environment, there is no saying what could have happened and who could have been harmed by this violence and aggression.    

 “According to those at the scene, the assailant allegedly both heckled protesters and violated an individual’s personal space and attempted theft when she grabbed a protester’s phone and ran off with it. The facts of this incident are so outrageous that, had there not been video evidence of the incident, it would’ve been entirely unfathomable.       

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.           

END        

CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, dsayedahmed@cair.com, 908-668-5900 ext. 103

CAIR-NJ to Hold Press Conference with NJ BOE Member Whose Family Members Were Killed in Gaza by Israeli Airstrikes

CAIR-NJ to Hold Press Conference with NJ BOE Member Whose Family Members Were Killed in Gaza by Israeli Airstrikes

(NEWARK, NJ, 10/31/2023) – On Wednesday, Nov. 1, the Council on American-Islamic Relations of New Jersey (CAIR-NJ) will hold a press conference to discuss Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza.

Israeli occupation forces killed nine family members of Franklin Township Board of Education Member, Sami Shaban. Another family member is in critical condition as he heals from white phosphorus burns caused by Israeli airstrikes.

WHERE: CAIR-NJ Office, 570 Broad Street, Suite 703, Newark, NJ 07102

WHEN: Wednesday, November 1, at 11a.m.

LIVESTREAMCAIR-NJ Facebook Live

CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, 908-668-5900 ext. 103, dsayedahmed@cair.com

Israeli occupation forces killed 15 members of a New Jersey imam earlier this month.

SEE: This NJ imam was comforting bereaved. Then he saw on TV that 15 of his family were killed.

The Palestinian death toll in Gaza has risen past 8,000, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects a ceasefire.

SEE:  Netanyahu declares it is ‘time for war’ as Israel hails hostage release

SEE: Gaza receives largest aid shipment so far as deaths top 8,000 and Israel widens military offensive   

CAIR-NJ continues to urge elected officials to push for a ceasefire in Gaza and across the West Bank as Israeli aggressions mount. The groups also mourns the loss of life in Palestine and stands firmly in unwavering solidarity with Palestinians and their right to freedom.

END    

CAIR-NJ, AMP-NJ to Hold Joint Press Conference Calling on New Jersey Officials to Support Ceasefire in Gaza

MEDIA ADVISORY     

CAIR-NJ, AMP-NJ to Hold Joint Press Conference Calling on New Jersey Officials to Support Ceasefire in Gaza    

(NEWARK, NJ, 10/18/2023) – On Thursday, Oct. 19, the Council on American Islamic Relations New Jersey (CAIR-NJ) and the American Muslims for Palestine New Jersey will hold a press conference to call on New Jersey elected officials to support Rep. Cori Bush’s resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza strip.  

WHERE: Rep. Bill Pascrell’s office, 200 Federal Plaza, Paterson, NJ 07505 

WHEN: Thursday, October 18, 2023 at 1 p.m.  

LIVESTREAM: CAIR-NJ Facebook Live   

CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, 908-668-5900 ext. 103, dsayedahmed@cair.com; AMP-NJ Chair Wassim Kanaan, 973-856-0180   

SEE: Cori Bush leads ‘Ceasefire Now Resolution’ on Israel-Hamas war   

Rep. Bush introduced the Ceasefire Now Resolution on Monday, urging President Biden to push for and facilitate a cease-fire and de-escalation of Israel’s war on Gaza and to “promptly send and facilitate the entry of humanitarian assistance into Gaza.”    

Joining Rep. Bush as co-sponsors are Democratic Reps. Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), Jamaal Bowman (N.Y.), Bonnie Watson Coleman (N.J.), Jesús “Chuy” García (Ill.), Jonathan Jackson (Ill.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.), Ayanna Pressley (Mass.) and Nydia Velázquez (N.Y.).  

Aside from issuing a statement on October 7 in support of Israel, Rep. Bill Pascrell has remained silent in the wake of Israel’s war on Gaza, even as Israel launched an airstrike on a hospital in Gaza, killing over 500 Palestinians, bringing the overall death toll in Gaza from the past week to over 1,000. The congressman represents a sizeable Palestinian and Muslim constituency.    

SEE: One Palestinian child in Gaza killed every 15 minutes by Israeli forces  

CAIR-NJ and AMP-NJ continue to mourn Israel’s massacre of Palestinians stand firmly in unwavering solidarity with Palestinians and their right to freedom. The two groups continue to call on New Jersey elected officials to respond to Palestinian civil society and Palestinian American’s calls to action as the Palestinian death toll in Gaza rapidly climbs.  

  

END       

CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, 908-668-5900 ext. 103, dsayedahmed@cair.com; AMP-NJ Chair Wassim Kanaan, 973-856-0180  

PACC, CAIR-NJ to Hold Joint Press Conference to Address Rising Anti-Palestinian and Anti-Muslim Bigotry

MEDIA ADVISORY

PACC, CAIR-NJ to Hold Joint Press Conference to Address Rising Anti-Palestinian and Anti-Muslim Bigotry 

(Clifton, NJ, 10/13/2023) – The Palestinian American Community Center (PACC) of Clifton New Jersey, and the Council on American Islamic Relations of New Jersey (CAIR-NJ) will hold a press conference on Monday, October 16 to address the rise in anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim bigotry unfolding in New Jersey in response to Israel’s war on Gaza.

WHERE: Palestinian American Community Center at 388 Lakeview Avenue, Clifton, NJ 07011

WHEN: Monday, October 16, 2023 at 1p.m.

LIVESTREAM: PACC Facebook LivePACC Youtube Live 

CONTACT: Palestine Education Director Basma Bsharat, 973-253-6145, bbsharat@paccusa.org; CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Dina Sayedahmed, 908-668-5900 ext. 103, dsayedahmed@cair.com

The Israeli government has called on nearly half of the population in Gaza to evacuate as it continues its war on the 140.9-square mile strip. Since launching its war earlier this week, the Israeli military has killed at least 1,537 Palestinian civilians in the Gaza strip, including 500 children and 276 women. An additional 6,612 Palestinian civilians have been wounded in Israeli air strikes on the blockaded enclave.

SEE: Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on Gaza refugee camp

Palestinian Americans and Muslims in New Jersey have since endured a wide range of bigoted attacks, from the physical to the verbal. Together, PACC and CAIR-NJ will address these incidents and release a joint action plan.

Together, the two groups have called on New Jersey elected officials to take action and condemn the root cause of violence in Gaza, which is Israel’s ongoing siege and blockade of the strip. 

SEE: CAIR-NJ Calls on NJ Elected Officials to Meet with Palestinian Human Rights Advocates, Stands in Solidarity with Gaza

SEE: Open Letter to New Jersey Elected Officials Address Root Cause of Violence: Israel’s Occupation of Palestine

PACC and CAIR-NJ continue to mourn the loss of innocent life and stand firmly in unwavering solidarity with Palestinians and their right to freedom. 

END 

2021 Statistics

From the newsroom to the courtroom

2 5000
social media engagements
0
intakes
0
social media posts
0
press releases
How we help.

Your donations go towards funding these three critical areas

Zakat Eligible

Numerous Muslim scholars have confirmed that Zakat is payable to organizations that exist to serve the Muslim community by protecting their rights. This is because the work done by CAIR (and other such organizations) can be classified as fi-sabilillah, which is one of the eight categories of Zakat recipients detailed in the Quran (Chapter 9, Verse 60).

Zakat Eligible

Numerous Muslim scholars have confirmed that Zakat is payable to organizations that exist to serve the Muslim community by protecting their rights. This is because the work done by CAIR (and other such organizations) can be classified as fi-sabilillah, which is one of the eight categories of Zakat recipients detailed in the Quran (Chapter 9, Verse 60).

Zakat Eligible

Numerous Muslim scholars have confirmed that Zakat is payable to organizations that exist to serve the Muslim community by protecting their rights. This is because the work done by CAIR (and other such organizations) can be classified as fi-sabilillah, which is one of the eight categories of Zakat recipients detailed in the Quran (Chapter 9, Verse 60).

Who We Are.

CAIR New Jersey’s mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

Nonprofits

Throughout our lives, there are moments when we pause to reflect on what we have achieved and what we can achieve. We consider how to write each chapter of our life story in a way that embodies our values in word and deed. Leaving a planned gift in a will, trust or by beneficiary designation allows you to continue your impact in the future by funding causes you championed during your lifetime.

Donors

For over fourteen years, CAIR has fought to ensure that Muslims in America are protected in their homes, schools, mosques, and countless other private and public spaces by using the power of the law to give voice to those most impacted by civil rights issues.

Our mission

CAIR needs your long-term support to continue to preserve and advance the fragile rights and liberties of American Muslims. Donations are vital to CAIR's work, especially for abolishing current barriers that aim to restrict Muslims from enjoying even the most basic rights.

Our Impact

CAIR opposes domestic policies that limit civil rights, permit racial, ethnic or religious profiling, infringe on due process, or that prevent Muslims and others from participating fully in American civic life.

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Recognitions

American Muslims in New Jersey have much to celebrate. For many years the American Muslim community has added to the rich cultural diversity we greatly value in New Jersey. The Council on American-Islamic Relations is an important vehicle for recognizing the accomplishments of New Jersey's Muslims.
Cory Booker
U.S. Senator New Jersey
CAIR is not for that stranger. CAIR is for you. Even as mayor I was stopped and harassed at JFK along with my wife and four children. My phone was confiscated. CAIR was there to stand up for me and retrieve my phone. Supporting CAIR means making sure that they are there for you when you need them in the future.
Mohamed T. Khairullah
Mayor Prospect Park
Since its inception, CAIR's New Jersey Chapter has been committed to advancing its parent organization's mission to provide necessary services to Muslim Americans that have contributed to their personal and professional wellbeing. CAIR-NJ has long been a champion for the interests of its community, striving to protect their civil liberties and offering them numerous educational opportunities.
Chris Christie
Former Governor of New Jersey
As Governor, I commend the leadership and volunteers of CAIR-NJ for their hard work and dedication to advance civil liberties for countless individuals and for their unwavering dedication to endure the wellness of our society.
Phil Murphy
Governor New Jersey
The work of CAIR and its partners ensures that the rights of all Americans remain protected. Now, more than ever, it is our duty to expose and dismantle Islamophobia and to push back against all types of hate.
Bonnie W. Coleman
Member of Congress
I commend your commitment to engage, embrace and value all communities and I am confident that your efforts will bring greater understanding and tryst to our communities. I look forward to continuing to work with you and the Muslim community in mu district in this endeavor.
Frank Pallone Jr.
U.S. Senator New Jersey