PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION to STOP Hamas-linked CAIR’s Annual Jew-bashing/America-slamming Banquet in Philadelphia

Democratic Rep. Summer Lee (PA), a member of the progressive House “squad,” was scheduled to deliver “special remarks” at CAIR’s fundraiser, despite taking heat from her Jewish constituents for failing to support policies that allow Israel “to protect its citizens against Hamas.” Her re-election bid is being financed by some of Hamas’s most prolific defenders in the United States, including CAIR’s top leader.

However, even Lee decided it wasn’t worth the blowback, and decided to pull out.

We should all take care to ensure that every community we serve is equally safe, seen, and valued. pic.twitter.com/uqGvVyXzxq

— Summer Lee (@SummerForPA) February 27, 2024

The type of rhetoric and incitement emanating from CAIR and its event participants helps to fuel violent extremism, a concern underscored by FBI Director Christopher Wray regarding potential terror attacks taking place on US shores. Hosting CAIR’s event poses security risks and is an affront to the Jewish community. Springfield Country Club must uphold ethical standards and refuse to support hate speech or terrorism-affiliated groups.

We call on Springfield Country Club, which is associated with the Marriott,  to terminate its contract with CAIR and avoid hosting extremist-affiliated events in the future. Additionally, we urge local authorities to prevent such affairs from taking place and safeguard our community against hate and extremism. By signing this petition, we affirm our commitment to a peaceful and inclusive Springfield Township.

SIGN THE PETITION HERE: https://www.change.org/p/stop-hamas-linked-cair-s-banquet-at-springfield-country-club?source_location=petitions_browse

In Focus on Western Islamism, Joe Kaufman writes: True to form, CAIR-Philadelphia’s 17th annual banquet, titled, “Safe, Seen, and Valued: CAIR-Philadelphia’s Communal Vision 2024,” will feature keynote speeches from a radical cleric who has demonized Jews and repeated Hamas propaganda. Even the comic relief, a Muslim comedian known to frequent the Islamist speaking circuit, has made genocidal threats to so-called Palestine’s “oppressors.”

CAIR’s origins trace back to a 1993 meeting at a Marriott Hotel in Philadelphia. FBI agents were covertly monitoring the gathering, which was organized by the now-defunct Islamic Association of Palestine (IAP), a Hamas front group under the leadership of then-global Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzook.  CAIR’s future leaders were part of IAP and were present at the Philadelphia meeting, where the discussion centered on the need to establish an Islamic organization that could secretly lobby on behalf of Hamas’s interests.

Less than a year later, CAIR was established.

Likewise, CAIR’s Philadelphia chapter is linked to the same Hamas front. Members of an IAP chapter that went under the name “American Muslim Society of the Tristate Area of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, & Delaware,” or “AMS Tri-State,” created CAIR-Philadelphia in 2004. Incidentally, that was the same year that IAP closed down under the burden of lawsuits that found it liable for judgements awarded to the American victims of Hamas terrorist attacks. Iftekhar Hussain, a current member of CAIR-Philadelphia’s executive committee and board of directors, formerly served as the secretary general of AMS Tri-State.

In the past, CAIR-Philadelphia sought to shrug off allegations of antisemitism that have saddled other CAIR chapters by pointing to its self-hating, far left Jewish American director Jacob Bender. However, this was merely a case of tokenization, as Bender, now retired, was fiercely critical of Israel and took every opportunity to vilify the Jewish state.

Banning CAIR from Springfield Country Club would hardly be controversial. In fact, CAIR and its coalition partners have experienced at least three event cancellations since October 7 at hotels in Arizona, Virginia, and Florida. All three incidents involved Marriott-franchised hotels and occurred after staff were inundated with phone calls from angry residents.

In December, the White House publicly disavowed CAIR after it became aware of Awad’s speech celebrating October 7. Then, in February, the Islamist group faced additional political setbacks. The Florida House of Representstives passed a bill denouncing CAIR and urging all local and state agencies to cease contact with it, joining legislatures in Louisiana and Arkansas that have passed similar resolutions. Next, Maryland’s House of Delegates introduced a bill to remove CAIR from a Commission on Hate Crimes after a local CAIR leader compared Israel to Nazi Germany.