The Philadelphia Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Philadelphia) today condemned the Israeli massacre of dozens of Palestinian civilians protesting both the unilateral move of the US embassy to Jerusalem and the 70th anniversary of “The Nakba,” the expulsion by Israel of hundreds of thousands of Arabs out of Palestine during the 1948-49 Arab-Israeli war.
Jews around the world, and my family and I, are now celebrating the eight day-long holiday of Passover (peysakhin Hebrew), commonly known as “The Festival of Freedom.” Passover celebrates four themes or moments of redemption: the liberation of the earth from the harshness of winter; the liberation of the Hebrew slaves from their enslavement in Egypt; the freeing of humankind from idolatry and ignorance; and the personal and spiritual liberation of every human being from darkness and pain.
The recent announcement that the Vatican has officially recognized Palestine should be welcome news to those who support peace and justice for all in the Middle East. The Holy See's recognition of the rights of the Palestinian people follows the historic meeting last summer when Pope Francis brought Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas together at the Vatican for a "Prayer Summit for Peace."
As the Executive Director of the Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, I believe your readers should be aware that many Muslim organizations, including ours, have condemned the recent brutal murders in the Jerusalem synagogue. CAIR's national statement reads in-part, "We condemn this and any other attack on a house of worship and urge all parties in that holy city to refrain from actions that further inflame religious tensions."
Dear Friends and Supporters of CAIR-Philadelphia, As-salam Alaikum, CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, is the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization. Our primary concern is to defend the rights of Muslim Americans, as well as to challenge…
Although it might seem unusual for a Jew to lead a Muslim organization, it was a natural next step for Jacob Bender. In October, he became executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Philadelphia chapter — and the first non-Muslim to head up any of the 30 chapters. The organization focuses on civil rights protection for Muslims and counteracting negative stereotypes about Islam through education and advocacy. Continue reading (subscription required) ...
3 Ramadan 1435 / 30 June 2014 A Letter from Jacob Bender, Executive Director, CAIR-Philadelphia Dear Friends, Assalamu Alaikum. I am writing to thank you for your past support of the Philadelphia Chapter of CAIR, the nation’s leading Muslim civil…
The essence of xenophobia is to extend to an entire group the actions of the few. Prof. Ira Sharkansky of Hebrew University, in his article “Muslims, Jews, See the World Differently” (San Diego Jewish World, Feb. 24) follows this simplistic and bigoted line of discourse to conclude that valuing “human life” and opposing “bloodshed as a means of settling disputes” are just not “Muslim ways or perspectives.”
