A prominent national Islamic civil rights and advocacy group today issued a travel advisory for Muslim citizens who will be attending a conference in Canada this weekend or participating in the upcoming Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca.

As an airline passenger, you are entitled to courteous, respectful and non-stigmatizing treatment by airline and security personnel.

TOPIC - Citizenship Delay Project

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator Christina Abraham met with Assistant Deputy Superintendent Debra Kirby on Thursday to discuss the Chicago Police Department’s procedures in handling complaints against officers for police misconduct.

CAIR-Chicago’s Civil Rights Coordinator Christina Abraham and Governmental Relations Coordinator Sadiya Ahmed attended a Governor’s Racial Profiling Task Force meeting on Tuesday, December 6th, 2005 at the Thompson Center.

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator Christina Abraham presented testimony at the “Subject Matter Hearing on Racial Profiling and Other Related Issues” held by the Illinois Senate at the James R. Thompson Center.

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator, Christina Abraham, attended a meeting with the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois (ACLU-IL), and other community organizations to prepare for a subject matter hearing addressing issues of racial profiling and the collection of data on police traffic and pedestrian stops.

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.

CAIR-Chicago is seeking to outreach to the Muslim community by launching it’s new TSA Watch List Project, coordinated by civil rights intern Afia Yunus. This project seeks to look into complaints of Muslims being detained upon re-entry to the country when traveling due to their names being put on a "watch list" by the Transportation and Security Administration (TSA).

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator, Christina Abraham, accompanied a Muslim man to an interview with the EEOC. The man filed a charge with the EEOC for discrimination based on national origin, religion and retaliation.

CAIR-Chicago sponsored an informational session on “The Right to Travel After 9/11” on Saturday evening, September 22, 2005 at the Mosque Foundation in Bridgeview, IL. Speakers presented on the different experiences and issues that have arisen for Muslim travelers after 9/11, and the rights of passengers when traveling.

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Coordinator, Christina Abraham, spoke at a vigil held to honor the memory of Hassiba Belbachir, the 27 year-old Algerian woman mysteriously found dead in an immigration detention facility in Illinois in March of this year.

WHAT - On March 17, 2005, Hassiba Belbachir, a 27 year old Algerian citizen, died under suspicious circumstances while in US federal custody at the McHenry County Adult Correctional Facility in Illinois.

On July 26, 2005, CAIR-Chicago Governmental Relations Director Fadi Farhan and Civil Rights Coordinator Christina Abraham met with the Chicago Police Department (CPD) Deputy Superintendent Ellen Scrivner and Dr. Lorie Fridell to discuss issues of racial profiling in light of a new report issued by the CPD. CAIR-Chicago expressed the need for a separate category for Middle Easterners/North Africans/South Asians in order to more accurately determine the profiling of Muslims by police departments.

(CHICAGO, IL, 6/17/05) - CAIR-Chicago conducted a seminar, titled "Hate Crime: Define and Respond," at the Muslim Community Center (Community Hall), 4380 N. Elston Ave., Chicago.

1. Any returning pilgrims who believe their constitutional rights have been violated should call CAIR's "Hajji Hotline" at 1-800-784-7526. During business hours, the hotline number rolls over to CAIR's Washington, D.C., switchboard. After hours during the Hajj, a recording will give cell phone numbers for CAIR civil rights staff and the latest information on the legal rights of U.S. citizens at border crossings.