CAIR-LA Hosts 27th Annual Gala in Anaheim

Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, November/December 2023, p. 62

Muslim American Activism

MORE THAN 1,400 Muslims and their allies gathered on Sept. 23 in Anaheim, CA for the Council on American-Islamic Relations-Los Angeles’ (CAIR-LA) 27th annual gala. The theme was “The American Muslim Story: Our History, Our Vision, Our Legacy.” 

The evening featured keynote speaker Dr. Ilyasah Shabazz, who is an author, activist and Malcolm X’s daughter; comedian and writer Preacher Moss; and Hussam Ayloush, CAIR-LA’s executive director. Two American Muslim leaders, Imam Abdul Karim Hasan, director and resident imam at Masjid Bilal Islamic Center, and the late community leader and author Dr. Ahmad Sakr, were honored.

“As we come together to celebrate our achievements, express gratitude for our blessings and prepare for the challenges ahead, I urge you to stand with us in the pursuit of CAIR-LA’s mission,” said Dr. Ashraf Ibrahim, the board president of CAIR-LA. “Let us continue to be the standard-bearers of justice, the defenders of rights and the architects of understanding.” 

According to Ayloush, CAIR-CA handled 600 civil cases last year. “CAIR-LA has a plan to defeat Islamophobia,” Ayloush assured his audience. 

Defeating hate must go hand in hand with standing up for justice, he added: “We Muslims should live by our values, and must fight for human rights and freedom for the peoples of Palestine, Kashmir, Syria and all the Arab countries. We must fight against apartheid, racism and discrimination everywhere.”

Shabazz acknowledged the high price some, including her father, have paid for their relentless activism. She reminded everyone that her mother, Betty, was in her twenties when a firebomb was thrown into the bedroom where her husband and babies were, and two weeks later she watched her husband get assassinated in New York City. 

“Optimism is not enough, you need courage and wisdom as well,” she said. “The community should build on the legacy of my father and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and keep fighting against corruption in our societies.”

—Samir Twair

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