Press Release: CAIR-Chicago/CLCI Patriot ACT Discussion with Rep. Bean

CHICAGO, IL, 1/24/06 - The Chicago chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago), joins The Civil Liberties Coalition of Illinois (CLCI) in inviting Congresswoman Melissa Bean of the 8th district in educating her constituents about the US Patriot Act. The event will allow constituents the opportunity to ask panelists and invited guest Congresswoman Melissa Bean who voted to reauthorize the Patriot Act questions about the current status of civil liberties. Congress, at the end of the last session, extended sixteen provisions of the PATRIOT Act which would have otherwise expired on December 31, 2005. The current extension will expire on February 3rd, 2006.

The PATRIOT Act enables law enforcement officials to acquire secret search warrants and prohibits any individual who provides such records from disclosing it to third parties, including the subject of the investigation. In addition, it allows FBI field inspectors to obtain records without prior authorization, and prohibit recipients from informing anyone of the request.

The session is scheduled to be held at:

Al- Huda Mosque 1081 West Irving Park Road Schaumburg, Illinois 60914 Time : 5:30 pm

Member organizations of the CLCI include:

· The American Civil Liberties Union · Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights · Chicago Council of Lawyers · Cook County Bar Association · Council on American-Islamic Relations - Chicago · Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights · Japanese American Citizens League · Jewish Council on Urban Affairs · Muslim Bar Association · Muslim Civil Rights Center · National Lawyers Guild · Independent Precinct Organization (IVI-IPO)

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CONTACT: CLCI Chair Maaria Mozaffar 217 766 5982; or CAIR-Chicago Communications Director, Ahmed Rehab, 312 212 1520 or communications@cairchicago.org