The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has launched an initiative in partnership with Philadelphia schools to develop educational resources addressing the sensitive topic of 9/11 and the broader issue of anti-Muslim bias in the classroom. The collaboration includes a guide that provides educators with recommendations on how to teach about the 9/11 attacks while avoiding inflammatory language and acknowledging the broader context of bigotry against Muslim and Arab communities. The project also extends to workshops such as ‘American Jews and Political Power,’ which have sparked controversy over their political implications, including discussions on Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands and support for the BDS movement.
Among the educational resources on CAIR’s website is a guide titled ‘Remembering and Reflecting: Teaching September 11, 2001 in Diverse Classrooms.’ This guide features tips on teaching lesson plans, such as avoiding terms like ‘jihadists’ and discussing bigotry against Muslims and other minorities in the days following the 9/11 attacks. It explicitly advises educators to avoid language that validates claims by the 9/11 attackers, such as labeling them as ‘Islamic terrorists,’ and to include discussions on the impact of hate crimes on Sikh Americans, Arab Americans, and others in the aftermath of the attacks.
The initiative also includes a workshop titled ‘American Jews and Political Power: Myth or Reality,’ which examined the controversial topic of Jewish political influence in the U.S. This section was removed from the website, and CAIR has not provided an explanation for the removal. The event initially aimed to explore debates within the Jewish establishment over Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands and the role of young Jewish activists supporting the BDS campaign against Israel. The workshop’s political undertones have drawn attention and criticism, including from Orthodox rabbis who condemned CAIR for what they called ‘antisemitic’ statements regarding Jewish groups.
CAIR’s activities have not been without controversy. The organization faced significant backlash in 2023 when its executive director, Nihad Awad, expressed support for the October 7 attack on Israel, describing it as a ‘break’ from a ‘concentration camp.’ This statement led to widespread condemnation, including from the Biden administration, which criticized the remarks as ‘antiseptic.’ More recently, Senator Tom Cotton has called on the IRS to reconsider CAIR’s nonprofit status, citing alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. These controversies highlight the contentious nature of CAIR’s educational initiatives and the broader political debates surrounding the organization.