The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Washington is the Washington state chapter of the national Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) organization, a large and prominent Muslim and pro-Palestinian advocacy group. CAIR Washington is a left-of-center advocacy group that defends the civil liberties of American Muslims across the state of Washington. It also maintains pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel stances. 1 2 3
In addition to providing legal advocacy services to Muslims, CAIR Washington has called for police action regarding several criminal incidents targeting Muslim-Americans. 4 5 It also vocalizes its support and opposition for various federal actions and political issues relating to immigration and Palestine. 6 7
In November 2024, CAIR Washington supported an effort to encourage the Biden administration to free all illegal immigrants detained within the United States. 6
Parent Group
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Washington was founded as the Washington state chapter of the national Council on American-Islamic Relations organization to represent Washington Muslims in civil rights cases and other legal advocacy. 1
CAIR has been suspected of supporting political Islamist movements, especially the Muslim Brotherhood. 8 It was founded in 1994 by two individuals who were at the time working for a Hamas offshoot organization (the Islamic Association for Palestine or IAP) founded CAIR to support Hamas’ agenda in the United States. 8 9 Over the years, CAIR’s alleged ties to Hamas have proved troublesome for the organization. In 2007, federal prosecutors reportedly listed CAIR as an unindicted co-conspirator with the Holy Land Foundation, a group that was eventually closed down for allegedly financing terrorism. 10
Initiatives
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Washington has several initiatives, including free legal assistance to Washington Muslims who believe their legal issues result from their Muslim identity. CAIR Washington also has an Immigrant Justice Project through which it advocates for left-of-center immigration reform on behalf of its clients, chiefly by helping Muslim immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers navigate the immigration process. CAIR Washington offers know-the-law training for its clients and has youth programming through its Youth Advocacy Committee which brings CAIR’s services to Muslim youth. 11
Through its media team, blog, and other various publications, CAIR Washington attempts to amplify Muslim voices in the state of Washington against what it considers to be the racist, Islamophobic backdrop of American culture. 11 12
Activities
Microsoft Rehiring
In December 2024, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Washington and the CAIR national organization called on Microsoft to rehire and apologize to two employees who were reportedly fired for organizing a Palestinian-advocacy vigil at the company’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington. The fired employees said the event was similar to other Microsoft-sanctioned campaigns for people in need. CAIR went on the record saying that Israel was committing genocide against Palestinians. 13
Calls for Police Actions
In September 2024, CAIR Washington called on the Biden administration to hold accountable Israelis responsible for the death of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, an American activist from Seattle who was allegedly shot by Israeli soldiers when volunteering in the West Bank for the International Solidarity Movement. 14 Although Eygi’s family met with then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken, they expressed little hope that anyone would be held accountable for Eygi’s death. 15
Also in September 2024, CAIR Washington called for a hate crime investigation after a driver allegedly intentionally hit two Muslim women pushing a 5-month old infant in a stroller in Maple Valley, Washington. The infant was uninjured, but both women were hospitalized with serious injuries. Local police arrested the driver, and a judge set bail at $250,000. The driver was charged with a hit-and-run assault, but CAIR Washington has requested a hate crime investigation. 16
In October 2024, CAIR Washington called for an investigation into the alleged attack on Riaz Khan, a then-Republican candidate for the Washington State House of Representatives. Khan said assailants struck him and called him a “f***ing foreigner” and “Trump supporter.” The two men reportedly began hitting him with wooden stakes.17 Khan’s story was found to have several inconsistencies, leading some to believe the incident was a campaign stunt, which Khan has denied. 18
Immigration Coalition Letter
In November 2024, following the second election of President Donald Trump, CAIR Washington signed an open letter calling on the Biden administration to protect illegal immigrants within the United States before Trump took office. The letter proposed a three-step plan which included closing all illegal immigration detention centers, halting the expansion of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, and freeing all illegal-immigrant detainees. 6
Pro-Palestinian Activism
CAIR Washington is an ardent pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel organization. For example, CAIR Washington released a poll claiming that Washington Muslims have been victims of discrimination since the Israel-Hamas war began, with no mention of the attack nor the rise of antisemitism. The survey claimed that 91 percent of Washington Muslims have experienced discrimination. 19 20
CAIR Washington also published a resource page detailing how its donors and supporters can help support Palestinians, including ways of combating alleged disinformation, organizing protests, and reaching out to elected officials to demand a ceasefire. 7
Leadership
Imraan Siddiqi is the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Washington. He has written extensively on Islamophobia and issues impacting American Muslims. In 2011, Siddiqi joined the CAIR Arizona board of directors, and in 2015, he became the executive director of CAIR Arizona. 21
Siddiqi started the #NoBanNoWall campaign, an effort to oppose President Donald Trump’s first-administration travel ban and his efforts to build a wall at America’s Southern border. 21 In 2024, he unsuccessfully ran for the United States House of Representatives to represent Washington’s 8th Congressional District. 22
Osama Hamdan is the president of the board of directors of CAIR Washington, joining the board in 2019. Hamdan is a graduate of Xavier University of Louisiana. He ran for Redmond City Council twice and continues to work at getting Muslims involved in the political process. Hamdan has also sat as a board member at Medina Academy, a local Islamic school focused on building future Muslim leaders. 23
Financials
In 2022, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Washington reported $857,374 in revenue, $1,274,337 in expenses, and $797,941 in total assets. 24
References
- “About.” CAIR Washington. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cairwa.org/about/
- Mauro, Ryan. “CAIR’s Waterloo.” Capital Research Center, January 5, 2025. https://capitalresearch.org/article/cairs-waterloo/
- “Advocating for Palestine in the Face of Hate (WA Muslim Survey Guest Essay).” CAIR Washington. September 24, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cairwa.org/blog/advocating-for-palestine-in-the-face-of-hate-wa-muslim-survey-guest-essay/
- “CAIR-WA Calls for Hate Crime Probe of Vandalism Targeting Kent Mosque.” CAIR Washington. December 30, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-wa-calls-for-hate-crime-probe-of-vandalism-targeting-kent-mosque/
- “CAIR-WA Calls for Justice in Murder of Afghan Teen.” CAIR Washington. July 1, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-wa-calls-for-justice-in-murder-of-afghan-teen/
- “NGO letter regarding detention.” Detention Watch Network. November 15, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/sites/default/files/NGO%20letter%20regarding%20detention_11.15.24.pdf
- “Advocating for Palestine.” CAIR Washington. March 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cairwa.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Advocating-for-Palestine.pdf
- “Clarion Intel EXCLUSIVE: Nationwide Militant Islamist Network.” The Clarion Project. July 11, 2019. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://clarionproject.org/2019/07/11/clarion-intel-exclusive-report-nationwide-violent-islamist-network/
- “C.A.I.R. Is HAMAS: How The Federal Government Proved That The Council On American-Islamic Relations Is A Front For Terrorists.” Center For Security Policy. December 2, 2016. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/CAIR_is_HAMAS.pdf
- Gerstein, Josh. “Judge snubbed U.S. Islamic groups in secret ruling.” Politico. November 1, 2009. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.politico.com/blogs/under-the-radar/2009/11/judge-snubbed-us-islamic-groups-in-secret-ruling-022503
- “What We Do.” CAIR Washington. CAIR Washington. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cairwa.org/about/what-we-do/
- “Blogs.” CAIR Washington. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cairwa.org/blogs/
- Walker, Katie. “CAIR, CAIR-WA Demand Microsoft Rehire Staffers Fired for Organizing Anti-Genocide Vigil.” CAIR Washington. October 27, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cairwa.org/blog/cair-cair-wa-demand-microsoft-rehire-staffers-fired-for-organizing-anti-genocide-vigil/
- Allison, Ismail. “CAIR-WA Calls on Biden Admin to Hold Accountable Israelis Responsible for Murder of Seattle-Based Activist Aysenur Eygi.” CAIR Washington. September 6, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-wa-calls-on-biden-admin-to-hold-accountable-israelis-responsible-for-murder-of-seattle-based-activist-aysenur-eygi/
- Hansler, Jennifer. “Family of American woman killed in West Bank expresses frustration after Blinken meeting.” CNN. December 16, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/16/politics/family-of-american-killed-west-bank-express-frustration/index.html
- Allison, Ismail. “CAIR-WA Calls for Hate Crime Probe of Hit-and-Run Targeting Two Muslim Women, Newborn in Stroller.” CAIR Washington. September 16, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-wa-calls-for-hate-crime-probe-of-hit-and-run-targeting-two-muslim-women-newborn-in-stroller/
- Allison, Ismail. “CAIR-WA Calls for Investigation into Alleged Attack on Muslim Political Leader.” CAIR Washington. October 31, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-wa-calls-for-investigation-into-alleged-attack-on-muslim-political-leader/
- “Police records point to inconsistencies in Riaz Khan’s assault claim.” Lynnwood Times. November 5, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://lynnwoodtimes.com/2024/11/05/attack-khan/
- Rantz, Joseph. “Rantz: CAIR-WA, Seattle Times frames Oct. 7 about Muslim victimhood, not antisemitism against Jews.” KTTH. October 7, 2024. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://mynorthwest.com/3995193/rantz-cair-wa-seattle-times-frames-oct-7-about-muslim-victimhood-not-antisemitism-against-jews/
- “2024 Civil Rights Report: Fatal: The Resurgence of Anti-Muslim Hate Islamophobia Civil Rights Reports.” Islamophobia.org. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://islamophobia.org/civil-rights-reports/2024-civil-rights-report-fatal-the-resurgence-of-anti-muslim-hate/
- “Meet Imraan.” CAIR Seattle. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://cairseattle.org/meetimraan
- “Imraan Siddiqi.” Ballotpedia. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://ballotpedia.org/Imraan_Siddiqi
- “Meet our Staff.” CAIR Seattle. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://cairseattle.org/our-team?highlight=WyJvc2FtYSIsImhhbWRhbiIsIm9zYW1hIGhhbWRhbiJd
- “Council On American Islamic Relations Of Washington State – 2022 Federal Form 990.” ProPublica. Accessed January 5, 2025. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/680547353/202313219349301931/full