CAIR-Chicago has recently been selected as the organization of choice by PILI Fellows Elisa Jillson and Munsoor Hussain. The PILI Fellowship is an international program sponsored by the Public Interest Law Institute (PILI), designed to promote human rights worldwide through public interest advocacy

CAIR-Chicago Staff Attorney Tricia Kemling attended a deposition for a Muslim woman who was terminated from her job. The Muslim woman wears the headscarf (hijab) as a part of her religious practice. The women was an employee with the company for several years before the company hired a new district manager who on several occasions made comments about her headscarf.

In a two-hour panel, legal advocates representing Chicago's minority groups discussed issues from the economy to immigration and how they were affecting the people that live in Chicago. The program was titled "Agents of Change: Changing and Empowering our Communities" and hosted as a part of the Chicago Bar Association's Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers seminar for attorneys.

CAIR-Chicago Staff Attorney Tricia Kemling attended a status hearing on behalf of a Muslim man who filed a complaint for discrimination. The man was terminated from a trucking company after having worked with them for eight years.

CAIR-Chicago Staff Attorney Tricia Kemling attended a status hearing for a Muslim man who has experienced religious and ethnic discrimination at work. The man also received unfair warnings from a supervisor.

CAIR-Chicago and Jewish Council on Urban Affairs recently partnered to launch the Jewish-Muslim Community Building Initiative. The workshop, held at the Downtown Islamic Center, involved discussions on how the two communities can collaborate on issues of social justice.

CAIR-Chicago PILI fellow Elisa Jillson attended a status hearing for a Muslim man of Palestinian descent who was terminated from his job with the Chicago Police Department. The Muslim man had been experiencing harassment on the basis of his religion and ethnicity at work prior to being terminated.

CAIR-Chicago Staff Attorney Tricia Kemling attended a status hearing on behalf of a Muslim man who filed a complaint of discrimination in federal district court.

A Muslim man received citizenship after a three year wait. After taking an interview and passing the exam in December 2005 he was told his application was pending a name check. After CAIR-Chicago represented him in his recent update interview, the man was granted citizenship.

CAIR Chicago Staff Attorney Tricia Kemling attended an update interview for a man whose citizenship has been delayed due to a background check pending since 2004. The man, of Middle Eastern descent, applied for citizenship in 2003, passed his exam and interview in 2004, and has since been waiting for his background check to clear.

CAIR-Chicago joined a hearing on racial discrimination in Chicago this May 23rd presided by the United Nation’s Special Rapporteur on racism and related intolerance, Mr. Doudou Diene of Senegal.

CAIR-Chicago filed a lawsuit on behalf of a Muslim man who applied for a position with the Chicago Police Department.

In a successful bid on behalf of a Muslim man, CAIR-Chicago Staff Attorney Tricia Kemling secured a settlement through the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

This April 29, Ahmed Rehab, the Executive Director of CAIR-Chicago was invited to lecture at the Institute of Diplomatic Studies in Cairo, Egypt. The Institute is a part of Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A Muslim man received citizenship after a four-year delay since he passed the interview and exam for citizenship. CAIR-Chicago had filed a complaint on behalf of the man, asking the court to grant him citizenship. CAIR-Chicago dismissed the complaint upon the man’s naturalization.

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Director Christina Abraham appeared at a status hearing on behalf of a Muslim man employed as an officer for a county sheriff.

On May 6, 2008 CAIR-Chicago Outreach Coordinator Gerald Hankerson participated in the last session of a three-part series of a trilateral interfaith dialogue sponsored by the Bernardin Center of the Catholic Theological Union in Hyde Park. The series featured a speaker from the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths, while inviting community clergy, leaders, and activists from various faith institutions and organizations.

On May 1, 2008 CAIR-Chicago Outreach Coordinator Gerald Hankerson joined the “Imaginary Coordinates” Exhibition Opening Reception at Spertus Museum. The exhibiton featured the work of Irit Rogoff, a Professor of Visual Culture at the Department of Visual Cultures at the University of London.

CAIR-Chicago Civil Rights Director appeared at a status hearing on behalf of a Muslim man who filed a complaint of discrimination against his employer. The man complained to his employer of harassment by another employee, but the employer did nothing to stop harassment. Shortly after, the Muslim employee was terminated.

CAIR-Chicago Communications Coordinator, Reem Rahman, spoke about faith based activism at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on April 16 and 17, 2008. Rahman discussed the theological, historical, and the current narratives that inform and shape faith based activism by Muslims.