CAIR-Michigan

The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) says 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 through education, mediation, media and the law.”[1]

CAIR-MI executive director Dawud Walid celebrated the Muslim Brotherhood’s victory in the Egyptian presidential election of 2012. He said, “Get ready for regional and Western forces’ plans to undermine President-elect Morsi. We’ve seen this playbook before.” He added, “While you’re so concerned about how Morsi will govern in Egypt, you are loosing [sic] your democratic rights in America.”[2]

Walid portrays Israel as the aggressor in its conflict with Hamas. He is dismissive of Hamas’s “cheap, homemade, makeshift, rockets.”[3]

He also demonizes the U.S. government. The Investigative Project on Terrorism summarizes, “In response to FBI raids, arrests and prosecutions, Walid has repeatedly responded with virulent comments alleging FBI misconduct.”[4]

In 2009, Walid said that the FBI infiltrates mosques with the objective of “basically cultivating and inciting people towards extremism.” He asserted, “the FBI is basically manufacturing their own terrorism suspects to give the appearance that they’re actually doing something tangible in the so-called ‘War on Terrorism.'”[5]

Walid has questioned whether Muslims should honor fallen U.S. soldiers who die in wars they disagree with. In 2014, Walid was quoted by another CAIR official as saying, “If one dies in an unjust war in which we illegally invaded and occupied a sovereign nation, should that person be honored?”[6]

Around Independence Day 2014, Walid wrote several anti-American tweets and says he is “not getting excited” about the holiday because the U.S. “has yet to atone for slavery & ethnic cleansing.”[7]

[7] Mauro, Ryan. “CAIR Rep: Nationalism Pumped Into Muslims to Weaken Islam,” Clarion Project, July 6, 2014.https://www.clarionproject.org/analysis/cair-rep-nationalism-pumped-muslims-weaken-islam