“Ahmed Rehab, executive director of the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said Monday that the investigation into Abudayyeh’s organization was ‘a waste of taxpayer dollars.’

‘Hatem is a longtime, respected leader in the community. It is unthinkable that he would have any connections to terrorism,’ Rehab said. ‘This is a new low. … This is an example of FBI overreach when it comes to activism or commentary on the (Middle East) conflict.’”

CAIR-Chicago announced today that it is deeply concerned about the FBI’s recent raids on the homes of anti-war activists in the Midwest.

CAIR-Chicago is issuing the following statement in response to the raids.

“The overlying mantra is that we belong here, this is our country, too,” said Ahmed Rehab, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations “That’s something you do not through assertive statement, but assertive action.”

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator Christina Abraham and AAAN Family Empowerment Program Director Ahlam Jbarra conducted a workshop regarding the lengthy delays in obtaining citizenship that many Muslims are facing.

TOPIC – Citizenship Delay Project

Since beginning its Citizenship Delay Project with the Arab American Action Network (AAAN), CAIR-Chicago has received word that four of the delayed cases have cleared and these applicants have been granted citizenship status.

CAIR-Chicago Executive Director Yaser Tabbara and Civil Rights Coordinator Christina Abraham conducted an information session on the Citizenship Delay Project that CAIR-Chicago and AAAN have been working on to address the issue of lengthy delays being experienced by many in the Muslim community.

Christina Abraham, CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator, met with representatives of the Arab American Action Network (AAAN) Director Hatem Abudayyeh, Suzanne Adely, and Menna Khalil to finalize political, outreach, and media strategies for the Citizenship Delay Project. The Citizenship Delay Project is set to launch within the next few weeks.

(CHICAGO, 11/02/05) – As a joint effort with the Arab American Action Network (AAAN), CAIR-Chicago is asking individuals who passed a citizenship examination and have been waiting for over 90 days, or have been waiting for a Green Card for permanent residence for over 90 days, to contact us at either civilrights@cairchicago.org, or mennakhalil@gmail.com.

Christina Abraham, CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator, represented a Muslim man in a mediation session with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The Arab American Action Network (AAAN) also played an invaluable role in the mediation session by having intern Menna Khalil serve as an interpreter for the Muslim man being represented.