23rd Annual Gala Recap, Thank you for attending!
On behalf of the CAIR-Chicago Chairman, Board, and Staff, we extend our deepest gratitude and appreciation to all of our guests, sponsors, volunteers, speakers, community members, family, friends, and allies for making our 23rd Annual Banquet an unforgettable success.
This milestone event marked 22 years of service to the Chicago Muslim community — and what a night it was!
Couldn’t make it? See the livestream and please continue to support our work: www.cairchicago.org/live
✨ See below for the highlights! ✨
We are just $9,000 short of our $850,000 goal, help us cross the finish line! Support at: cairchicago.org/2026donate
WATCH THE SUMMARY RECAP!
PHOTO GALLERY
Find yourself in our photo gallery! Featuring photography by CAIR-Chicago’s Communications Coordinator Jordan-Esparza-Kelley, Tayyab Ali, Mustafa Ali, Aisha Fatima, and Syed Khalil Ullah.
A SOLD-OUT CELEBRATION
A full house of 1,100 guests filled Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace, representing the diversity of Chicagoland and beyond — across faiths, professions, and generations.
We’re so grateful to everyone who joined us in solidarity and celebration!
THANK YOU TO OUR PARTNERS
Special thanks to our partners for helping make this evening possible:
Drury Lane Theatre for their hospitality
A-Alert Security & Investigations (AASI) for their professional security services
Our trusted livestreaming & AV partners — TruFocus Productions and Novatoo Audio Visual.
SPONSORS: 45+
We are also thankful for the tremendous support of our key partners from the Chicagoland mosques, coalitions, interfaith groups, companies, law firms, and official sponsors.
FUNDRAISING
Thank you to all of our generous donors who made our fundraising a success. Your generosity and initiative helped us meet our evening's goal: we raised over $841,000+!
We are just $9,000 short of our $850,000 goal, help us cross the finish line!
CAIR-Chicago is an IRS approved 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Donations are 100% tax-deductible & Zakat eligible
SPEAKERS & HIGHLIGHTS
CAIR-Chicago Board Chairman, Dr. Mazen Kudaimi alongside Keynote Ana Kasparian.
Ahmed Rehab, Executive Director of CAIR-Chicago
Watch Below:
Keynote Ana Kasparian, co-host of The Young Turks (TYT)
Watch Below:
Linda Sarsour, author and award-winning civil rights activist
Watch Below:
Shaykh Ismail Al Qadi of Islamic Center of Naperville (ICN) opened with a beautiful Qur'an recitation.
Live qanun was played during the reception by CAIR-Chicago Special Operations Coordinator, Hafiz, Mohamed Radwan.
Guest speakers included:
* U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson
* U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood
* IL Sen. Graciela Guzmán
* Imam Al Ameen Siddique
* Salam Al-Marayati, President & co-founder of MPAC, Muslim Public Affairs
Although they couldn't join us, U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson sent us amazing video messages, see them here!
Dr. Mazen Kudaimi, CAIR-Chicago’s Board Chairman, closed out the evening with heartfelt remarks tying our mission and values to the ongoing fight for justice, equity, and representation.
Special thanks to CAIR-Chicago's very own Jordan Esparza-Kelley, Master of Ceremonies, whose engaging presence set the tone and kept the evening’s program flowing seamlessly!
RECOGNITION: 60+
We wish to thank the 60+ public officials from various levels of government for their letters of support of CAIR-Chicago's mission and work, and call on them to raise their voices against hate at home, and genocide abroad.
IL State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid (center).
Mayor of Aurora, John Laesch (right).
U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson (left) and Maine Township Trustee Asif Malik (right).
Elected officials in attendance included:
Illinois State Representative Abdelnasser Rashid (21st District)
Amy Christiansen, Will County 12th Circuit Judge
Reid McCollum, Chair of the Democratic Party DuPage County
Mayor of Aurora John Laesch
Saba Haider, DuPage County Commissioner
Chicago Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th Ward)
Andre Peden on behalf of the 48th Ward Alderwoman Angela Clay
Naperville Councilman Ashfaq Syed
Maine Township Trustee Asif Malik
Mr. Adriansyah, Minister Counselor-Consulate General of The Republic of Indonesia in Chicago
..among other distinguished leaders!
VOLUNTEERS: 50+
A heartfelt thank-you to our 50+ volunteers and staff who made the night seamless — from registration and ushering to photography and setup. A special shoutout to our youth leaders whose energy and dedication were essential to the evening’s success!
OUR 2026 DOCUMENTARY
CAIR-Chicago's 2026 short film highlighted the commitment of CAIR-Chicago’s staff, interns, and volunteers to provide critical legal help, media representation, and advocacy services to communities that lack them but need them most.
The film was produced by the CAIR-Chicago Communications Department and Akram Shibly with True Intent Productions.
OUR ANNUAL REPORT
CAIR-Chicago has been at the forefront of positive representation and principled advocacy. In our twenty one years of service, CAIR-Chicago has handled 9,185 civil rights cases of anti-Muslim discrimination, negotiated $2.46 million in settlements directly for clients in discrimination cases, conducted 3, 950 mainstream media interviews receiving over 24,450 mentions, & graduated over 1,175 interns. Take a look at our work throughout the years in our annual reports.
Thanks to Alwan Printing!
MISSED THE BANQUET?
WATCH IT HERE!
If you missed our annual banquet, you can watch the speeches - which were live streamed - here.
Over 1,800+ viewers tuned in!
We hope to see YOU next year!