aziz
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09:08:38 am on July 9, 2008 | # | |
Shahed Amanullah for CAIR Chair. The draft movement starts here, and now.
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shahed 10:11 am on July 9, 2008 | #
shahed 10:12 am on July 9, 2008 | #
(crickets chirping)
aziz 10:33 am on July 9, 2008 | #
sigh. ok then.
But I think that we - as in, liberal, young, internet-saavy, muslims online - are underrepresented in muslim org leadership overall, and no amount of liason with them will ever change their bias unless we actively do step in and take charge at some level.
Maybe a coup at the chapter level would be more effective?
shahed 10:50 am on July 9, 2008 | #
Well, as long as we’re on the subject, here’s what I would do if I were CAIR chair:
a) Change the name. It has the connotation of “American” and “Islamic” being mutually exclusive.
b) Be more selective about the civil rights issues that are taken up, because there are some times when people are just being jerks and not necessarily anti-Muslim. And some actions (i.e. the “flying imams” lawsuit) have ended up having a net negative impact on public opinion about Muslims.
c) Be more broad about the issues taken up. There’s more to being Muslim in America than the right to wear hijab and pray at work.
d) Explicitly reject all foreign funding, like MPAC has done since its founding.
e) Have at least one proactive/positive initiative (outreach, training, community building) for every aggressive one (i.e. lawsuits).
f) Take a different attitude towards the media - the current CAIR attitude towards the media is far too hostile and uncooperative, and it feeds on itself.
g) Push for the inclusion on younger/more diverse leadership, with special attention given to those who were born and/or raised in the US.
h) Focus on Muslim life in America, and leave foreign policy to other Muslim groups. Both are worthy causes, but the pursuit of both at the same time hurts the efficacy of each one.
i) Stop trying to be another ISNA (i.e. stop adding parallel programs that step on the toes of other groups, and stop positioning yourself as an umbrella group for all Muslims.). Focus on what you do best - defending civil rights of Muslims.
j) Thoroughly vet all staffers for anything in their past that can drag down the organization as a whole. (Not trying to discredit past work that people may have done, this is simply a cost-benefit analysis that weighs the skills one brings to the table vs. the obstacles it can place in the way of the larger org goals).
Just a few thoughts.
aziz 11:50 am on July 9, 2008 | #
Shahed, I think you should post that as a post in its own right.
I think that a revamped name is the easiest of the solutions above - and possibly the most critical. A focus on civil rights should be reflected in that name. I wonder if something like Council for Muslim-American Rights (CMAR) would be more descriptive (and uses ‘Muslim’ correctly, ie, as an adjective)
shahed 11:56 am on July 9, 2008 | #
Working on an altmuslim op-ed right now…
Muse 12:37 pm on July 9, 2008 | #
With those ideas, I’d vote for you Shahed! Where do I sign up?
Fatemeh 4:00 pm on July 9, 2008 | #
You know, I couldn’t CAIR less about that organization…ohhhhhh, I feel so dirty when I make puns.
Anyway, I don’t really dig CAIR (because of their over-focus on the stuff you mentioned), but I’m down with Shahed’s revamping of it. Especially if I find myself in a cushy desk job, HA!