RAMADAN 25TH: CITIZENSHIP SUCCESS STORIES
Our community members depend on us to help them secure a safe home in the United States. CAIR-Chicago is unrelenting when it comes to fighting for our clients' rights, free of charge for all who cannot afford justice.
She tried to get citizenship for 20 years. Then CAIR-Chicago stepped in.
After fleeing Syria to the US in 2001, she got lawfully married, but immigration wrongly accused her of fraud and put her into removal proceedings. She fought those removal proceedings for several years, ultimately succeeding, and for several years, ultimately succeeding, and she was finally approved for a lawful permanent resident card in 2018. Then divorce complicated with every law firm contacted advising her of restarting.
CAIR-Chicago disagreed with the immigration law firms and took over her case for free. Alhamdulilah, our efforts resulted in her getting a successful interview, and taking her oath of citizenship in January 2022.
I am so happy I found CAIR-Chicago because the other attorneys told me I needed to withdraw and pay them a lot fo money, as well as the filing fee to immigration. I am so grateful to CAIR-Chicago for supporting me through this process. She stated
From Denial to Approval
CAIR-Chicago's Litigation Director Phil Robertson, met Mr. Ahmad Al-Masri at mosque in Ramadan of 2021. Mr. Al-Masri struggled for months to get his naturalization application reviewed and approved by USCIS before finding CAIR-Chicago. In response, CAIR-Chicago attorneys submitted requests to USCIS and Ombudsmen to get answers about the delays Mr. Al Masri faced.
Finally, after several more months of waiting, Mr. Al-Masri was issued a Noticed of Intent to Deny by USCIS in late 2021. In response, CAIR-Chicago immediately responded and successfully argued that Mr. Al-Masri's application should not be denied. Almost six months later after hearing nothing from USCIS, Mr. Al-Masri received his Oath Ceremony appointment and naturalization approval.
On May 9, 2022, CAIR-Chicago's Staff Attorney, Emma Melton, accompanied Mr. Al-Masri to his Oath Ceremony and witnessed his naturalization. Mr. Masri and his family got a new lease on life.
There are hundreds of other immigrants like this that we have resolved, free of charge for those who could not afford them risking deportation.
RAMADAN 24TH: NORMALIZE THE IMAGE OF ISLAM
Help CAIR-Chicago continue to defend our families, fight bigotry and discrimination, and normalize the image of Islam.
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Civil Rights, Advocacy, and Legal Representation – Our cases range from racial profiling, harassment, and bullying in schools and workplaces, citizenship delays, police misconduct, prisoners’ rights, and workplace discrimination. We are committed to upholding equality and combating discrimination of all forms through negotiation, litigation, education, and awareness. We also meet regularly with community partners and government agencies & leaders to advocate against hate and discrimination in our workplaces, schools, and communities.
Political Empowerment - We help community members understand and utilize the political system to work for them. Projects include voter registration drives, community workshops, “know your rights” educational campaigns, and training of mosques and Muslim centers on how to contact local and national politicians.
Media Representation - We bring the voices of mainstream Muslim communities to the airwaves, print media, and editorial rooms, on issues that affect their lives. We monitor the local media closely and flag bias against Muslims.
Community Outreach - We forge mutually beneficial partnerships with local and national institutions whose activities overlap with CAIR-Chicago’s in order to maximize efficiency. We work to empower the Muslim community and to foster an understanding between Chicago’s Muslim and non-Muslim communities via public education, and to serve the needs of the Chicagoland community via public service.
