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Legislative Advocacy
“Terrorism and the War on Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, & Immigrants after 9/11” Symposium-Austin F&J's President Mohamed Elibiary spoke about effective lobbying advocacy on behalf of civil liberties issues at this UT Law School event on Feb. 26, 2004.
This 2004 Symposium explored how post-9/11 legal and policy changes have impacted the civil rights and civil liberties of Americans. Speakers hailed from a broad range of backgrounds and provided nuanced analyses of the challenging job balancing freedom with security. Event Contact: Melissa Jacobs, Texas Journal on Civil Liberties and Civil Rights. Location: Eidman Courtroom, Connally Center of the UT School of Law
Stanley Cohen, Attorney in private practice defending high-profile alleged terrorists Islam and the Law: The Question of Sexism? The University of Texas School of Law
AUSTIN, Texas — This conference addressed a variety of issues where Muslim women's rights in Islam facially appear to be compromised by Islamic Law. Some examples of issues discussed included the hijab (the veil), inheritance, marriage and divorce law, polygamy, virginity and honor, and honor crimes. This interdisciplinary conference discussed and analyzed these issues in a balanced manner through an academic approach by inviting experts of differing viewpoints on the issues. The objective was to reveal the complexity of Islamic Law through the different scholarly interpretations on the same subject matter.
Sponsors: The University of Texas School of Law; The Center for Middle Eastern Studies; Student Bar Association; Texas Journal of Women and the Law; The Center for Women's and Gender Studies; The Freedom and Justice Foundation; National Lawyers Guild at UT; Muslim Law Students Association.
To review the conference program, please visit: http://www.utexas.edu/law/news/2004/010704_islam.html For more information, contact: Sahar Aziz, UT Law conference coordinator, (512) 560-8084 or s.aziz@mail.utexas.edu
Follow-up after the conference:
On April 30, 2003 the Houston Chronicle quoted a Texas House of Representative, Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin as saying concerning a debate on a 24-Hour waiting period to have an Abortion "Just put a burka over me and put a veil over me because women have no rights."
This was one more example of how the popular impression of Islam's treatment of women as being oppressive and denying them rights has set so deep into the psyche of so many people. It was due to factors such as this that Sahar Aziz, a Board Member at F&J among several other hats, decided to clear up some misconceptions about Islamic Law and Women's Rights by organizing a successful Symposium at UT Law School on Wednesday February 4th.
The Freedom and Justice Foundation along with the University of Texas School of Law; the Center for Middle Eastern Studies; the Student Bar Association; the Texas Journal of Women and the Law; the Center for Women's and Gender Studies; the National Lawyers Guild at UT; and the Muslim Law Students Association sponsored this Symposium.
What happened since is nothing short of a disgrace to our constitutionally protected rights such as Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Association. Army Intelligence officers, attending the conference undercover, claimed to have heard some private discussions expressing views that they found questionable from some "three Middle Eastern men". They then relayed that information to superiors who dispatched another Army Intelligence Officer to UT's Law School asking for the event's video tape, and attendees sign-in sheet so that background checks may be run on audience attendees. Now aiding the government's investigation to keep all of us safe is all of our responsibility, but the Freedom and Justice Foundation is calling for more professionalism to be presented in this investigation so that the Freedoms of Association and Speech are not stymied. "What Texas needs is more Islamic Law studies and perhaps an endowment to better understand its ... Muslim neighbors. We certainly don't need scare tactics based on ethnic profiling or the thought police curtailing civil discourse in an apolitical and academic environment." said Mohamed Elibiary, President of F&J.
Daily Texan: Army Agent Questions Law Students Army agent questions law students
The organizer of an Islamic law conference at UT Law School is questioning whether ethnic discrimination brought a Special Agent for Army Intelligence to campus Monday.
"They felt uncomfortable with foreign students or foreign members at the conference," Marria said. "Nothing is ever obvious. It's just that one question that doesn't sit right, so they report it, and we figure it out."
Their is a false choice often painted in public discourse between giving up civil liberties in exchange for security. The reality is that giving up one does not equate to attaining the other as Benjamin Franklin and other founding fathers pointed out. Plus the methods exist to allow us to maintain both in the United States as this sample report from Harvard University outlining how. The report is called the "Long-Term Legal Strategy Project for Preserving Security and Democratic Freedoms in the War on Terrorism" and you can download a copy here.
Sample Text from an F&J Newsletter in June 2005:
Last week's newsletter announced F&J's new DC presence, and yesterday we carried out our first Congressional Office Visits in Washington DC. F&J shared with the staff of Congressman Joe Barton (R-Ennis), Congressman Chet Edwards (D-Waco), and Congressman Dr. Ron Paul (R-Surfside) our research on HR 1526 and HR 1502.
HR 1526, the Security and Freedom Secured Act of 2005, is more commonly known as the SAFE Act. It's purpose is to bring the USA Patriot Act back into alignment with the Constitution and Bill of Rights. To learn about the Safe Act's attempt to reform the Patriot Act by keeping us both "safe and free", click here. Coalitions from the Left, Right and Center are working hard on HR 1526.
HR 1502, the Civil Liberties Restoration Act of 2005, is a bill that has not received much attention in the Muslim community, but is invaluable to protecting immigrant due process rights. Post 9/11 American Muslims have suffered from Special Country of Origin Registration as well as Immigration Court Due Process constitutional violations at the hand of Federal Law Enforcement. This bill would fix those violations by remaking the Immigration Court System to comply with the 5th Amendment guaranteeing Due Process. HR 1502 only has 4 Sponsoring Congressmen. There are 435 Congressmen and 100 Senators.
Here's a "summary ... provided by the Congressional Research Service, which is a government entity that serves Congress and is run by the Library of Congress." (Source: GovTrack)
During these critical summer months, F&J is working hard to coordinate Congressional Office visits by Muslims and other Civil Libertarian groups with our Texas Congressional delegation. The Freedom and Justice Foundation is working with various local and national groups to make sure that every Texas Congressman and Senator hears from their constituents in their District office and in Washington DC. With 7% of all Congressmen coming from Texas, we hope to have a significant impact in protecting civil liberties and reforming our immigration court system.
To all Freedom and Justice supporters in Texas we need your help - here's how:
Please ask your Congressman to support these two important pieces of legislation, HR 1526 and HR 1502. Please pray for our efforts' success, and feel free to share your suggestions for improvements at info@freeandjust.org.
The Freedom and Justice Foundation (F&J), as a member organization of Texas Impact, invites the Texas Muslim community to participate in the Breath of Life activities. Breath of Life is a program to help Texas congregations reduce air pollution and save energy. By taking concrete action to reduce emissions, congregations can protect human health, preserve God’s creation, and help Texas meet federal air quality mandates.
"Breath of Life: Clearing Texas Air One Congregation at a Time" is Texas Impact’s new Foundational Grant funded program that helps congregations take measurable steps to reduce air pollution.
There are many ways congregations can help clear the air in Texas. But for the first time, now there’s a way that your efforts can “count” in helping Texas meet federal air quality standards. By participating in the Breath of Life covenant program, you can measure your congregation’s pollution reductions and add them to the state total so they can help Texas reach its clean air goals.
Faith communities are pros at helping people and building community through direct service like food pantries, homeless shelters and free clinics. Some do environmental service projects like planting trees or participating in “adopt-a-highway” programs. But have you ever thought of flipping a light switch as an act of charity? The electricity we use affects our health and our communities. Churches, temples, mosques, family life centers, religious schools and outreach ministry facilities use electricity just like any other building.
Lowering electricity use and switching to “clean” electricity are ways faith communities can use their resources to provide hope and healing. There are many ways congregations can help clear the air in Texas. But for the first time, now there’s a way that your efforts can “count” in helping Texas meet federal air quality standards.
By participating in the Breath of Life covenant program, you can measure your congregation’s pollution reductions and add them to the state total so they can help Texas reach its clean air goals. Texas Impact’s Breath of Life conferences are a key opportunity for Texas clergy and lay leaders to learn concrete congregation-based strategies for reducing air pollution in Texas. You can learn how YOUR congregation can buy renewable power, boost energy efficiency in buildings, and reduce air pollution from cars.
Clergy Continuing Education credit is offered for the conferences through Perkins School of Theology (SMU).
Texas Impact's Breath of Life conference on November 6-8, 2005 featured a presentation by Reverend Sally Bingham, founder of the "Interfaith Power and Light" movement. Bingham is an Episcopal priest on the staff of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. She is an internationally recognized expert on religion and the environment. Earlier the month before, she participated in the inaugural meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative www.clintonglobalinitiative.org
1st Muslim Intern at Texas Impact(the 33 year old umbrella interfaith Legislative Lobbying organization in Austin):
Austin Mayor Will Wynn and Texas Impact environmental intern Nida Khan
On September 19, Texas Impact and Austin Area Interreligious Ministries called on Austin-area faith communities to help “clear Texas air one congregation at a time,” by joining Breath of Life. Austin Mayor Will
F&J first met Nida and her mother, Salwa (Right), on our Presidential Primary Election Tour across Dallas, Houston and Austin in January-February 2004. And we are extremely proud of all the hard work and the outstanding impact Nida is making on the Texas Impact staff, board, and membership organizations. Nida is a UT Junior studying Political Science and interning at Texas Impact during the fall Semester of 2005. And we congratulate her mother, Salwa, for raising this future leader of the American Muslim community. To learn about internship opportunities at Texas Impact, email justice@texasimpact.com. F &J: The First Muslim Organization to Publicly Support the "Let the Sun Shine" Resolution Requiring Legislators to Record Their Votes
Dallas (April 21, 2004): As the Special Session begins, there is a concern other than how our schools are funded in the minds of activists in Texas. A coalition of organizations and legislatures has begun an initiative to have the votes of legislatures recorded. The "Let the Sun Shine" resolution would increase transparency in government by allowing constituents the ability to see how their elected representatives vote on issues such as public school finance proposals. Recorded votes would keep our elected officials accountable to the people's will.
Although lawmakers will be deciding on how to fix the problems with the current public school finance system, many are hesitant to let their constituents know how they voted on such a sensitive topic. There are only nine states in the US that do not require legislature votes to be recorded for public information. Important issues such as campaign contribution disclosure and environmental law enforcement have been discussed and debated in the past couple of years without any legislature votes being recorded.
For more information, read Let the Sun Shine: Recorded votes will help Austin tell its story in the Dallas Morning News. (You must register on the DMN web site to view link.) All Texans are urged to:
Texas House: E-mail: firstname.lastname@house.state.tx.us Phone: 512-463-0845 Over 500 Supporters of the "Let the Sun Shine" Resolution:
AGE Council (Advocacy Group for Elders), American Jewish Committee, Dallas Chapter, The Association for Women in Communications, Austin Chapter, Church Women United of Dallas, Clean Air Now, The Collin County Democratic Party, Council on the Status & Role of Women in First United Methodist Church of Dallas, Downwinders at Risk, Freedom and Justice Foundation, Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas, Gray Panthers of Texas, League of Women Voters of Dallas, League of Women Voters of Gainesville, League of Women Voters of Tarrant County, The National Council of Jewish Women, Greater Dallas Section, North Dallas Texas Democratic Women, Older Women's League, Realtors Supporting Richardson Schools, Texans for Public Justice, Texas Chapters of the Million Mom March United with the Brady Campaign (Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin), Texas Neighborhoods Together, TexPIRG (Texas Public Interest Research Group), The Williams Company of Dallas, Women's Council of Dallas County, Texas Inc., Women's Issues Network, State Rep. Linda Harper-Brown, District 105, Irving Republican, State Rep. Tony Goolsby, District 102, Dallas Republican, State Rep. Jodie Laubenberg, District 89, Parker Republican, State Rep. Ken Paxton, District 70, McKinney Republican, State Rep. Lon Burnam, District 90, Fort Worth Democrat, State Rep. Terri Hodge, District 100, Dallas Democrat, State Sen. John Carona, District 16, Dallas Republican, State Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, District 29, El Paso Democrat, Former state Rep. Harryette Ehrhardt, Dallas Democrat, Former state Sen. A.R. "Babe" Schwartz, Galveston Democrat, James Nunn, president, Student Government Association, Collin County Community College District, Texas Associated Press Managing Editors Association, Texas Press Association, Abilene Reporter-News, Amarillo Globe-News, The Beaumont Enterprise, Corpus Christi Caller-Times, The Daily Sentinel, Denton Record-Chronicle, El Paso Times, The Facts (Clute, Texas, newspaper), Longview News-Journal, The Lufkin Daily News, Texarkana Gazette, Waco Tribune-Herald, Wichita Falls Times Record News National Association of Social Workers, Office of Faith Based Initiatives & Child Protective Services
F&J's President, Mohamed Elibiary, recently spoke at the 7,000+ member National Association of Social Workers/Texas Chapter's 2004 Annual Conference. Mohamed presented a report on the level of social work conducted by Muslims all across Texas.
Rounding out the panel were a representative of the Catholic Community's social work arm (Catholic Charities), Dan Freemyer representing the Baptist Community's social work arm (the 1,000 Texas employee Buckner Baptist Benevolences), the Governor's Director of Faith Based Initiatives Beau Egert, along with Norton Teutsch representing the state agency best known as Child Protective Services overseeing foster and adoptive care.
Mohamed not only outlined the level of volunteer and professional social work currently conducted by the Texas Muslim community, but also outlined cultural and regulatory hurdles impeding the development of more faith based social work between Muslims, non-Muslims and the Government both at the state and federal levels.
Panelists, audience members and organizers all thanked F&J for professionally representing the Texas Muslim community in the social public policy arena and said the dialog was certainly enriched by the Muslim's participation.
F&J sees the need for Mosque based social work efforts to be consolidated into a statewide professionally managed arm for Texas Muslims if we hope to successfully partner and utilize the millions of dollars awarded annually to serve the community's social work needs. F&J also sees the need for most Muslims volunteering in the social work field to get certified by the state as that will greatly increase our community's ability to serve effectively. Cleaning Up Texas Politics through election law and legislative process reform Campaigns for People - Cleaning Up Texas Politics
Noted speakers at this press conference included Gus Cardenas-President of the 2 million member Texas AARP, Father Richard Daly representing the Texas Catholic Bishops, Sondra Epstein representing Memorial West Republican Women, and Maxine Barkan representing the League of Women Voters of Texas.
(Pictured to the left - Mohamed Elibiary and Gus Cardenas of F&J & AARP respectively discussing the coalition's work)
F&J's statement on the need for Campaign Finance Reforms in Texas
Good morning. My name is Mohamed Elibiary. I am the President of the Freedom and Justice Foundation, which functions as the statewide public policy arm for Texas Muslims. I am also on the board of Texas Impact, a multi-faith organization that has been providing a moral compass to policy makers for more than three decades. 1st Muslim organization to join Texas Impact
Message from F&J's President, September 2004:
Texas has hundreds of thousands of Muslims, but before F&J was founded in November 2002 to "Connect the Dots" we didn't have a method of working statewide to accomplish great things together. As we look at our latest collective community accomplishment, we should take a step back, thank God and pat ourselves on the back for all we've been able to accomplish thus far.
Not only has the Texas Muslim community created a full-time statewide public policy organization (F&J) led by some of the state's brightest minds, we organized a highly successful annual tradition of a Texas Muslims Legislative Day, passed a Halal Food Law, and gained the recognition and respect of our peers in the corridors of power as a professional politically active community.
From all around the state, F&J frequently receives congratulatory messages from both the Right and the Left for how fast the Texas Muslim community is growing. Our non-Muslim neighbors are recognizing day-by-day how much Muslims are positively contributing to a better future for all Texans. Being a Texan I personally feel that Texas is the greatest state in the Union, and it is this state pride attitude mixed with a Muslim flavor that attracts so many non-Muslims to our activism.
I would like to thank all those Texan Muslims who have come before us for their tireless toil to make the Lone Star State a great place to live. Because it is on their shoulders that F&J is able to build a higher peak for our community. Our latest milestone is being recognized in the below press release as the 1st Muslim member organization in Texas Impact.
Texas Impact was founded in 1973 by Texas religious leaders under the motto of "people of faith working for justice" to provide a voice of religious concern to the Texas Legislature. F&J is proud to be inducted as the 1st Muslim organization, and appreciate very much the accommodations that our fellow Texans are making for their Muslim neighbors. Islam has a very long history of working towards establishing justice in the society, and we are glad that the Texas Impact board recognized that and reached out to us.
A quick glance of the other member organizations in Texas Impact would show that Muslims are now part of the sea of millions expressing their faith's belief in social justice to the leaders of Texas Government all across the state. During F&J's first Texas Impact board meeting earlier this month, I felt a tremendous amount of pride for the whole Texas Muslim community sitting around the table. Congratulations ya'll and God Bless!
Members of Texas Impact: Christian Church
Texas Impact Welcomes First Muslim Member Organization
At its September meeting, the Texas Impact board of directors welcomed Texas Impact's first Muslim member organization, the Freedom and Justice Foundation. The Freedom and Justice Foundation was established in 2002 in Dallas as a nonpartisan, grassroots citizen advocacy organization for the Texas Muslim community. The group's first legislative success was passage of the Texas Halal Food Law in 2003, making Texas the sixth state to enact Halal food legislation.
Texas Impact board president Reverend Mel Caraway of Lancaster said the addition of the Freedom and Justice Foundation to Texas Impact's organizational membership is an important step. ""It is important in today's divisive and acrimonious political scene that all voices of the faith community be brought together to the table and heard," said Caraway. "We at Texas Impact have the unique opportunity to bring together voices in the Muslim, Jewish, and Christian communities to speak out on issues of justice from a common understanding."
Mohamed Elibiary, Freedom and Justice Foundation president, said Texas Muslims, like Muslims across the country, are following an established pattern of citizenship development in joining Texas Impact. "Like other immigrant groups, Muslims started out mostly concerned with economic security and maintaining their cultural identity," Elibiary said. "But for new generations of Muslims who have been born in the U.S., educated in American schools and brought up in American culture, citizen participation in the democratic process and coalition-building are the norms. We are increasingly working with people of other faiths on issues of common concern."
Texas Impact board member Fred Lewis of Austin Area Interreligious Ministries said building interfaith partnerships has strengthened the religious community at the local level tremendously. "I'm delighted that Texas Impact is able to bring the same interfaith strength to state level justice issues," said Lewis. "I'm excited to be working with F&J."
To learn more about Texas Impact, visit them online at www.texasimpact.org
That was the title of a 3-part, 1-1/2 hour presentation delivered to the staff Reporters and Editors at the Austin-American Statesman on Tuesday June 13, 2006. The 1st part is a 20,000 foot view of the Texas Muslim community covering it's religious-demographic diversity, civic-political engagement and cornucopia of institutional organizations. The 2nd part is a crash course on the various "Islamic Revivalist Movements" around the globe from the past 3 centuries, and a methodology on how to analyze what's often termed "Political Islam" by Policy Analysts. And finally the 3rd part diagnosed the use of language in the Global War on Terror, and how not only is it inaccurate to use terms such as "Islamic/Islamist/Islamofacist Terrorism" but that it actually harms our national interest at home and abroad. Several more accurate terms were presented as alternatives to be considered by the Statesman in its reporting.
(From L to R) Suzii Paynter - Executive Director of the Christian Life Commission (Public Policy Arm for the nearly 6,000 Church member Baptist General Convention of Texas), Mohamed Elibiary - President & CEO of F&J, and Eileen Flynn - Religion Editor of the Austin-American Statesman in the Newspaper's Conference Room.
F&J has a 3-1/2 year tract record partnering with Evangelical Baptists and other faith-based communities to advocate the joint values our faith traditions promote for the benefit of all Texans. This presentation at the Statesman was a natural evolution to our joint efforts promoting "Civility in Public Discourse". Special thanks go to F&J's Vice-Chairman, Ian Benouis JD, for working to open doors behind the scene and building lasting relationships with Austin Area Media. CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program) Advocacy Sample Mobilization in 2004:
The Children's Defense Fund Texas and Texas Impact invite you to join the 13th Annual National Observance of the Children's Sabbath October 15-17, 2004. Click here to download a copy of the toolkit designed to provide your congregation and local community with all you need to help restore CHIP for every needy Texas child.
National Advisory Committee:
Alan Ades President United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism Rev. David Beckmann Executive Director Bread for the World Nancy A. Davis National Coordinator National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the US Rev. Bob Edgar General Secretary National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA Rabbi Mordechai Liebling Executive Director Federation of Reconstructionist Congregations and Havurot Dr. Sayyid M. Syeed General Secretary Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) Rabbi Eric Yoffie President Union of American Hebrew Congregations
Texas Advisory Committee:
Richard Daly Executive Director Texas Catholic Conference Rev. Willie R. Davis President Southwest Region of Progressive National Baptist Convention Mohamed Elibiary President & CEO The Freedom and Justice Foundation (F&J) Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza Bishop Catholic Diocese of Galveston-Houston Elliot Gershenson President and CEO Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston Larry M. James CEO Central Dallas Ministries Urban Connection-San Antonio Bishop Kevin S. Kanouse Bishop Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Brighter Horizons Academy - BHA (largest Islamic school in the South) --- Council on American Islamic Relations - CAIR (D-FW Chapter) --- Council on American Islamic Relations - CAIR (San Antonio Chapter) --- Muslim Community Support Services -MCSS (Autin, TX) --- Islamic Society of Greater Houston (ISGH) on behalf of over 60 Mosques & several Islamic schools --- Islamic Association of North Texas (IANT) --- Austin Peace Academy (largest Islamic school in Central Texas) Muslim Public Affairs Council - MPAC (Houston Chapter) --- Islamic Society of Denton --- American Muslim Alliance - AMA (SW Chapter) --- Islamic Association of Waco --- Al-Hedayah Academy (Fort Worth, TX) --- Islamic Association of Collin County (IACC) (Plano, TX) --- Dar El-Eman Islamic Center (Arlington, TX) --- Islamic Association Lewisville / Flower Mound --- Muslim American Society - MAS (DFW Chapter) --- East Texas Islamic Society, Inc. (Tyler, TX) --- Islamic Center of El Paso (ICEP) --- Islamic Center of Greater Austin (ICGA) --- The Freedom and Justice Foundation (F&J)
| Many Texas Muslim organizations have thus-far signed-up to this statewide effort to insure Texas children working in conjunction with other Texas faith communities F&J wishes every Texan a Ramadan Karim, and happily expresses our pride in the Texas Muslim community welcoming Ramadan by standing up and putting its faith into works to serve all of humanity! F&J called upon all Texas Muslim or Islamic organizations to sign-up to our petition calling upon our legislators to find a method of improving the healthcare coverage of hundreds of thousands of uninsured Texas children. This effort is being sponsored by the Children's Defense Fund Texas and Texas Impact (F&J is an organizational member of Texas Impact).
Hundreds of congregations (Christian, Jewish and Muslim) have already signed-up to express the faith community's desire to provide for the most in need amongst us. Two years ago as F&J was leading the effort to pass the Texas Halal Food Law, we watched our state's elected officials deal with Texas' worst budget deficit ever. Unfortunately many social programs serving the most in need were cut, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) was one of those casualties.
The Texas economy has strengthened over the past two years, and state tax revenues are up. By all the faith communities coming together we hope to convince our elected officials during next January's legislative session to reinstate the reduced funding for CHIP.
Jointly endorsed resolution:
Enrollment has dropped by more than 151,000 children since the cuts took effect, and all children still enrolled have lost dental, vision and hospice benefits. This Children's Sabbath, we join other people of faith in calling for the full restoration of the Texas Chip program. © 2002-2011 The Freedom and Justice Foundation ~ 1925 East Beltline Rd. Suite 475 Carrollton, TX 75006 | ||||||||||||||||||
"I felt like I was on 'Law and Order,'" Biddle said. "He and another woman showed their badges, but we really didn't participate in the conference, so we didn't know what he was talking about. He said he wanted a roster, because he said they were investigating some attendees."
Wynn read a proclamation encouraging Austin congregations to participate in “Breath of Life” and said faith communities can help achieve the emissions reductions required in Central Texas under federal law. 
F&J's President, Mohamed Elibiary, spoke at a 'packed' November 8, 2004 press conference inside the State Capitol calling for campaign finance reforms in the upcoming legislative session. Mohamed was not only speaking on behalf of Texas Muslims as President of the Freedom and Justice Foundation, but also as a board member of 
