CAIR-NJ Reflects on 25 Years Since 9/11 Attack, Recognizes Legacy of New Jersey Muslim Leader
(NEWARK, NJ – 09/11/2026) – The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, reflects on the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that took almost 3,000 lives, 750 of them from New Jersey. CAIR-New Jersey also today honored the memory of Tariq Amanullah, a New Jersey Muslim community leader who was one of 60 Muslims reportedly killed in the attack.
Tariq Amanullah was the father of two and a Vice President at Fiduciary Trust, located on the 96th floor of the South Tower. After the second plane struck, he phoned his wife to say he was wrapping up and would be down soon. He was among the last trying to get out.
Tariq was treasurer of Islamic Circle of North America’s (ICNA) New Jersey Chapter, a founding member of 877-Why-Islam hotline, and the founder of Muslim Family Day at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey. His colleagues’ last memory of him is from that very event – the Great Muslim Adventure Day – held just two days before he was killed. They remember a humble, soft-spoken man with a distinctive smile.
While the Muslim community lost loved ones on that day, our community writ large carried the blame of the attack. Among the 60 Muslims reportedly killed in the attacks were first responders, service staff, and professionals. Yet as American Muslim families grieved their loved ones, some of them endured backlash from individuals looking to blame the entire Muslim community for a crime they had nothing to do with. FBI-reported anti-Muslim hate crimes leapt from 28 in 2000 to 481 in 2001 – a seventeen fold spike. They have never fallen back to where they were.
In a statement, CAIR-NJ Executive Director Selaedin Maksut said:
“On this 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on our nation, we remember the 2,977 men, women and children who were murdered by Al-Qaeda on that day, including 750 of our neighbors from New Jersey. We honor their memories, including the memory of Tariq Amanullah, a New Jersey Muslim community pioneer whose legacy has endured in the 25 years since that terrible day.
“Twenty-five years after the 9/11 attacks sparked a wave of hate crimes against American Muslims and people perceived to be Muslim, including Sikhs, that hate is on the rise again. We must honor the legacy of those who were killed on Sep. 11, 2001 by respecting and uplifting each other, and standing against all forms of injustice. Today we honor the lives lost, we remember the legacy of the first responders and all the ordinary people whose acts of service saved so many lives, and we work to live by their example.”
END
CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Public Affairs Director Naureen Akhter, nakhter@cair.com, 908-921-1238
