For Muslim Americans… Sunday wasn’t just the anniversary of a terrorist attack on their country. It was also the anniversary of the day public opinion of the community changed. The Council of American-Islamic Relations in Chicago wants to erase the link between the Muslim faith and the terrorist attacks. CAIR-Chicago’s Amina Sharif spoke with WDCB News reporter Brian O’Keefe.

With the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy, the United States has been concerned about its image and its relations with the Muslim world.

On Wednesday, August 17th 2011, CAIR-Chicago staff attorney, Rabya Khan, and communications intern, Becky Fogel, attended a public hearing held by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to discuss the Secure Communities program. The event ended in civil disobedience led by local youth and the arrest of six attendees.

“I wish it would have happened sooner, so as to save trillions of dollars and thousands of lives. But nonetheless justice delayed is better than justice denied. We’re very thankful for the fact that this man has been apprehended and eliminated,” said Ahmed Rehab of CAIR-Chicago.

At the press conference, the speakers echoed President Obama’s assertion that Osama Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader, and in fact was a mass-murderer of Muslims. CAIR-Chicago’s Communication Coordinator, Amina Sharif, stated “Bin Laden never represented Islam and was never seen as a Muslim leader, but unfortunately many people’s understanding of Islam was distorted by the actions of Bin Laden.”

“A particular concern would be women who wear the hijab because obviously their standards of modesty are probably higher than most people and so they are more concerned about the groping, they are more concerned about the invasion of privacy,” said Ahmed Rehab, executive director of the Council on Islamic Relations in Chicago.

CAIR-Chicago communications Coordinator Amina Sharif and Outreach Coordinator Gerald Hankerson gave a presentation to students at St. Ignatius Catholic school Wednesday, December 1st about the sociological and theological background of Islam.

When the topic was brought up, yet again, that America has been attacked by Muslims, Ahmed Rehab responds:

“Here’s also a pattern that you need to be aware of. In almost every one of those cases it was Muslims who helped foil these terrorists plots. In the case of the “underwear bomber” it was his own father, a Muslim, who reported him. In the case of the “time square bomber” it was a Muslim who saw the smoke from the car who reported him. Even in this case Saudia Arabia was actually the country that tipped us off about this plot.”

CAIR-Chicago staff attorney Kevin Vodak will speak at the Muslim Bar Association “Lunch & Learn” meeting. His presentation will focus on the requirements and challenges of proving religious discrimination against Muslims in the workplace.

On Wednesday, June 23, the Chicago office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago) together with an interfaith and community coalition will hold a press conference responding to a recent decision by the Illinois State Police (ISP) to revoke a chaplaincy position previously extended and confirmed for Imam Kifah Mustafa, a leading Chicago Muslim cleric.