CAIR-Chicago Rep at Drum Major Institute
CAIR-Chicago’s Communications Coordinator Reem Rahman is scheduled to participate in the Drum Major Institute’s summer public policy intensive this August 1 to August 12 2007 alongside other young leaders from across the nation.
Founded by Harry Wachtel, lawyer and advisor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, the institute has a rich legacy in the civil rights movement.
As a non-partisan, non-profit organization, the Drum Major Institute is dedicated to challenging the orthodoxies of the left and the right while promoting progressive public policy for social and economic fairness. It seeks to change policy by conducting research into overlooked but important social and economic issues, leveraging strategic relationships to engage policymakers and opinion leaders, and offering platforms to amplify the ideas of those who are working for social and economic fairness.
Recently, the Drum Major Institute, along with Rev. Dr. James Forbes and Dr. Cornel West, presented its Drum Major For Justice awards to Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, for PlanNYC - his sweeping plan to make New York City a model for environmentally sustainable cities in the 21st century - and talk show host and author Tavis Smiley, for being an outstanding voice for social change in the news media and beyond.
All selected participants demonstrated a commitment to activism and a desire to learn how public policy can advance an agenda of fairness and equity. The rigorous training institute offers young activists the public policy lens, analytical and practical skills, resources and experiences to allow them to understand and navigate public policy.
A recent study reaffirms the need for the greater civic and political participation of Muslims. The Chicago Council on Foreign Affairs Task Force released a report in June of 2007 titled “Strengthening America: The Civic and Political Integration of Muslim Americans, 2007.” The main conclusion of the independent Task Force is that the greater Muslim American civic and political engagement is urgently needed to prevent alienation in a community that is vital to U.S. security and relations with the Muslim World.
Copyright 2007 CAIR-Chicago
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Contact: communications@cairchicago.org