Press Releases
CAIR, CAIR-Texas Call on DOJ Inspector General to Probe Possible Anti-Muslim Bias at Southern Border
LA Times analysis: ‘More than 60% of those charged under the failure to report law were from Muslim-majority countries’
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 8/31/2023) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today urged the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) inspector general to investigate why there is reportedly disproportionate prosecution of Muslim refugees at the southern border.
CAIR is also calling on U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the DOJ Civil Rights Division to jointly promulgate guidance on the appropriate handling of Muslim refugees at the U.S. border.
According to the Los Angeles Times:
“For an 18-month period beginning in October 2021, however, the U.S. attorney’s office in Del Rio, Texas, charged more than 200 migrants with violating a rarely used and all but forgotten law — U.S. 19 1459, which states that anyone crossing into the United States must cross at a checkpoint and report to a customs office.
“More than 60% of those charged under the failure to report law were from Muslim-majority countries, including Afghanistan, Syria, Iran and Mali, according to a Times analysis of hundreds of federal court records. Citizens of Muslim-majority countries make up a tiny portion — much less than 5% —– of the people who cross the southern border, according to government data…
“Migrants in most of the cases pleaded guilty, and many who were sentenced spent more than seven months in federal criminal custody, the records showed. Defense attorneys who sought bail for their clients were typically denied.”
SEE: Migrants from Muslim countries disproportionately targeted in Texas border prosecutions, Times analysis finds (LA Times)
https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2023-08-31/texas-prosecutions-muslim-asylum-seekers-1459
CAIR-Houston Director of William White said:
“The longstanding mistreatment and dehumanization of people seeking asylum on our southern border has reached a new low in the revelation that a majority of those people who have been criminally charged are from majority Muslim countries. The Department of Justice’s inspector General should investigate this possible pattern of discriminatory prosecution. We at CAIR-Houston also call on the DOJ to halt any proven discriminatory practices.”
In a statement, CAIR Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor said:
“Every individual has the fundamental right to seek asylum and protection from persecution, regardless of their religion or background. Targeting individuals based on their religious beliefs is not only morally reprehensible but also a violation of international human rights principles.
“Discriminatory practices not only erode the moral fabric of a society but also tarnish a nation’s reputation on the global stage. We call on federal authorities to investigate this alleged discriminatory treatment, to hold those responsible accountable and to rectify these unjust practices.
“The DOJ inspector general must investigate why there is possibly disproportionate prosecution of Muslim refugees at the border and U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the DOJ Civil Rights Division should jointly promulgate guidance on the appropriate handling of Muslim refugees at the U.S. border.”
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com, CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com
