CAIR-MI Announces PSA Campaign To Challenge Growing Islamophobia
Public service announcements feature Muslim 9/11 first responders, interfaith leaders
(SOUTHFIELD, MI, 9/1/2010) -- The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI) today a national public service announcement (PSA) campaign featuring Muslim 9/11 first responders and designed to challenge the growing anti-Muslim bigotry in American society.
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CAIR's PSA campaign is also designed to offer an implicit challenge to the Florida church that plans to burn copies of the Quran, Islam's revealed text, on September 11.
CAIR '9/11 Happened to Us All' PSA, 30-Second Firefighter
CAIR '9/11 Happened to Us All' PSA, 60-Second Firefighter
CAIR '9/11 Happened to Us All' PSA, 30-Second Medical Responder
CAIR 'We Have More in Common than We Think' PSA, 30-Second Interfaith
The three PSAs, which will be distributed today and tomorrow to television stations nationwide and online through social media sites, feature Muslim first responders to the 9/11 terror attacks, with the theme "9/11 happened to us all."
The fourth PSA features Muslim, Jewish and Christian leaders describing the "golden rule" as expressed by their respective faiths -- and ends with the phrase, "We have more in common than we think." That PSA is designed to show the commonalities between faiths and to challenge those who -- like the members of a Florida church who plan to burn Qurans on September 11 -- would divide America along religious lines.
A 2005 CAIR public service announcement (PSA) rejecting terrorism and religious extremism and was seen by some 10 million television viewers nationwide. That PSA, called "Not in the Name of Islam," featured ordinary American Muslims stating "that those who commit acts of terror in the name of Islam are betraying the teachings of the Quran and the Prophet Muhammad."
SEE: CAIR 2005 'Not in the Name of Islam' PSA
Other Michigan Muslim leaders took part in the news conference outlined each''s individual and joint initiatives designed to promote religious freedom, challenge growing anti-Muslim bigotry in American society and to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.
Participants that took part in the news conference included: (in alphabetical order)
* Victor Ghalib Begg (Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan)
* Abdullah El-Amin (The Muslim Center of Detroit)
Earlier this month, CAIR released an online toolkit designed to help Muslim communities organize proactive local educational and outreach initiatives tied to events such as a "National Day of Unity and Healing" on the upcoming anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.
SEE: 'Teachable Moment Community Response Guide' Toolkit
The toolkit, called a "Teachable Moment Community Response Guide," offers guidance, tools and resources to help Muslim communities respond to specific current events such as the end of Ramadan Eid al-Fitr holiday occurring near September 11, the upcoming "Burn a Koran Day" by a church in Florida, the anti-Muslim bigotry generated by the smear campaign against a planned Islamic community center in Manhattan, and the ongoing tension and misunderstanding surrounding the building or expansion of mosques nationwide.
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
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CONTACT: CAIR-MI Executive Director Dawud Walid, 248-842-1418, E-Mail: dwalid@cair.com; CAIR-MI Outreach Coordinator Raheem Hanifa, 248-559-2247, E-Mail: rhanifa@cair.com