The Council on American-Islamic Relations, known as CAIR, is a Muslim civil rights and advocacy nonprofit founded in 1994 and headquartered in Washington, D.C. It is the largest organization of its kind in the United States, handling discrimination complaints, filing lawsuits on behalf of Muslim Americans, publishing an annual civil rights report, and lobbying on policy that affects Muslim communities.1CAIR. CAIR at a Glance It is also one of the most politically contested organizations in the country, targeted in recent years by two Republican governors seeking to designate it a terrorist organization and by members of Congress pushing federal agencies to investigate it.
What CAIR Does
CAIR’s core work is handling anti-Muslim discrimination complaints and representing clients in court. It has published an annual civil rights report since 1996 tracking hate incidents, workplace bias, prison cases, and government watchlist complaints.2Sound Vision. A Review of Some Existing Muslim Civil Rights Organizations
The 2026 report, covering 2025, documented 8,683 complaints, the highest single-year total since tracking began. Employment discrimination led the categories with 1,101 cases, followed by immigration and asylum (568), direct hate incidents (555), prisoners’ rights (505), and government watchlist or travel restriction complaints (488). Florida, Illinois, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Texas showed the most consistent three-year increases.3The Arab American News. CAIR Report Records Unprecedented Surge in Islamophobia in the United States in 2025
Individual cases give a sense of the work. CAIR-Chicago secured a $475,000 settlement for Ramtin Sabet, a former North Chicago police officer of Iranian descent who alleged he was harassed with Islamophobic comments and fired after reporting the abuse.4CAIR Chicago. CAIR-Chicago Secures Landmark $475K Settlement In 2025, CAIR and Palestine Legal announced a $100,000 settlement with the University of Maryland after a federal court ruled the university could not cancel a student-led vigil due to third-party threats, and found that the slogan “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free” is protected under the First Amendment.5CAIR. CAIR Announces Historic $100K Settlement From University of Maryland
CAIR was one of the most visible groups challenging the Trump administration’s 2017 travel restrictions, saying it filed legal challenges to “each of the ban’s permutations.” Its Washington state chapter joined a class action with the ACLU on First Amendment Establishment Clause grounds before the Supreme Court upheld the third version of the ban 5-4 in June 2018.6ACLU of Washington. Five Individuals, CAIR Join ACLU of Washington Suit7CAIR California. CAIR Decries US Supreme Court Decision on Upholding Travel Ban
How CAIR Is Organized and Funded
CAIR operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with a national office and chapters in roughly 20 states. The network collectively employs more than 60 staff and has more than 300 active volunteer board and executive committee members; the California chapter alone reported 150 employees.8CAIR Arizona. CAIR at a Glance9InfluenceWatch. Council on American-Islamic Relations California
Funding comes primarily from donor contributions, including gifts that qualify as both tax-deductible and Zakat-eligible under Islamic charitable law.10CAIR. CAIR Finances For fiscal year 2024, CAIR-Foundation reported total revenue of about $8.76 million, of which roughly $7.56 million came from contributions and grants. Total expenses were about $8.61 million, with salaries and compensation of nearly $4.92 million. Total assets stood at roughly $7.61 million, net assets at about $951,000.11CAIR. 2024 IRS Form 990
A separate affiliate, CAIR Action, is a 501(c)(4) that handles political work the parent nonprofit legally cannot. It endorses candidates and organizes voter mobilization across 22 states.12CAIR Action. About Us A 2026 watchdog report alleged CAIR Action had been operating without required business licenses and charitable solicitation registrations in several states, including Washington, D.C.; the group disputed the finding, saying it “fully complies with all applicable federal and state laws.”13Washington Free Beacon. CAIR’s Political Arm Has Operated Without Legal Authority Across U.S.
Co-founder Nihad Awad has led CAIR since its inception and remains national executive director.14CAIR. Nihad Awad, National Executive Director15George Washington University Program on Extremism. CAIR Report16Politico. Report: Feds Close Probe of CAIR Founder
The Holy Land Foundation Case
The single legal event that drives most of the ongoing controversy over CAIR is its 2007 listing as an unindicted co-conspirator in the federal prosecution of the Holy Land Foundation, a Texas charity convicted in 2008 of funneling more than $12 million to Hamas. The Department of Justice filed a list of 246 individuals and entities as “unindicted co-conspirators and/or joint venturers,” with CAIR among them.17Charity and Security Network. Summary of Litigation: Unindicted Co-Conspirator List in HLF Case
Federal prosecutors said the list was a procedural mechanism to admit certain out-of-court statements as evidence, and that they were not labeling the listed entities as criminal conspirators, did not intend to charge them, and did not consider them investigation targets. CAIR moved in August 2007 to strike the listing, arguing publication violated its Fifth Amendment due process rights because it faced no charges and had no forum to defend itself.17Charity and Security Network. Summary of Litigation: Unindicted Co-Conspirator List in HLF Case
U.S. District Judge Jorge Solis agreed the government had violated due process by publishing the list, but declined to remove the names, finding “sufficient” evidence of an association between CAIR and the Holy Land Foundation.18Politico. Judges Ruling on Islamic Groups as Unindicted Co-Conspirators Made Public The Fifth Circuit affirmed the due process violation and ordered the list sealed, while also declining to strike the names. The appellate court noted that the listing subjected CAIR to “annoyance, ridicule, scorn and the loss of reputation,” including violent threats and expected donation declines.17Charity and Security Network. Summary of Litigation: Unindicted Co-Conspirator List in HLF Case
CAIR itself was never charged with a crime. The Department of Justice formally declined to prosecute co-founder Omar Ahmad around 2010, a decision that coincided with the expiration of the five-year federal statute of limitations.16Politico. Report: Feds Close Probe of CAIR Founder The organization retains tax-exempt status and has never been designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. federal government.19Washington Post. Why the UAE Is Calling 2 American Groups Terrorists
FBI Liaison Suspension
After the Holy Land Foundation convictions in November 2008, the FBI severed its formal liaison relationship with CAIR. In an April 2009 letter to Senator Jon Kyl, the Bureau said it had “suspended all formal contacts between CAIR and the FBI” until it could resolve whether a connection between CAIR or its executives and Hamas continued to exist. The Bureau said the suspension applied to CAIR’s role as a “liaison partner” and not to the entire organization, and encouraged CAIR officers and members to continue reporting hate crimes, civil rights violations, and suspicious activity. CAIR has argued that its co-founder’s 1994 statement of support for Hamas predated the group’s formal designation as a foreign terrorist organization in 1995 and was taken out of context.20GovInfo. Congressional Record
Florida and Texas Move to Label CAIR a Terrorist Group
Two Republican governors escalated the fight in late 2025.
On December 8, 2025, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Executive Order 25-244 designating CAIR a “terrorist organization” and directing state agencies to bar the group from state funding, contracts, or employment.21Florida Phoenix. Federal Judge Blocks DeSantis Executive Order CAIR and CAIR-Florida, joined by the Southern Poverty Law Center, sued in the Northern District of Florida on First Amendment, Supremacy Clause, and due process grounds.22CAIR. CAIR v. DeSantis Complaint On March 4, 2026, U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker granted a preliminary injunction blocking the order, ruling that the First Amendment bars the governor from using his office to “make a political statement at the expense of others’ constitutional rights” and finding that the order coerced third parties to disassociate from CAIR through viewpoint discrimination and retaliation.23First Amendment Encyclopedia, MTSU. Federal Judge Blocks Florida Governor’s Foreign Terrorist Label In April 2026, DeSantis signed a new state law authorizing Florida officials to designate domestic and foreign terrorist organizations, potentially opening a different legal pathway to the same result.
In November 2025, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a proclamation designating CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal organizations under Texas law. CAIR filed a federal challenge alleging First and Fifth Amendment and Supremacy Clause violations.24Charity and Security Network. Case Study: Renewed Attacks on CAIR25Texas Tribune. Ken Paxton Sues CAIR, Muslim Brotherhood26Texas Attorney General. Paxton Sues Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR CAIR called the lawsuit “doomed to fail” and said it was being targeted for its opposition to Israeli policy. Both Texas cases were pending in early 2026.
A separate designation came from abroad in November 2014, when the United Arab Emirates listed CAIR among more than 80 groups it labeled terrorist organizations. The move was widely read as part of the UAE’s crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, and the U.S. State Department publicly confirmed it does not consider CAIR a terrorist organization.19Washington Post. Why the UAE Is Calling 2 American Groups Terrorists27Charity and Security Network. UAE Lists US, EU Charities
Congressional Pressure
Congressional Republicans have opened multiple lines of pressure on CAIR at the federal level. In late 2025 and early 2026, Senator Tom Cotton and Representative Elise Stefanik wrote to the Treasury Department urging an investigation into alleged Hamas ties.28Fox News. Republican Lawmakers Demand Treasury Probe CAIR In January 2026, House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith referred CAIR-California to the IRS, alleging the chapter mishandled over $7 million in federal refugee legal-aid funding, supported unauthorized campus encampments, and engaged in prohibited political campaign activity through a Minnesota chapter’s sponsorship of an anti-Trump rally.29House Ways and Means Committee. Chairman Smith Refers CAIR-CA to the IRS In April 2026, 14 House Republicans led by Representative Chip Roy urged HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to suspend and debar CAIR from receiving federal grants.30Mid-Michigan Now. Lawmakers Urge HHS to Ban CAIR From Federal Grants
In December 2025, Representatives Keith Self and Chip Roy of Texas founded a “Sharia-Free America Caucus” in the House. By May 2026 it had grown to more than 60 members, roughly a quarter of House Republicans, backing bills including H.R. 5512 (the “No Shari’a Act”), H.R. 5722 (the “Preserving a Sharia-Free America Act”), and H.R. 6225 (the “PAUSE Act of 2025”).31The New Arab. What Is the Sharia-Free America Caucus32CAIR. CAIR Designates Sharia-Free Caucus an Anti-Muslim Hate Group In February 2026, CAIR designated the caucus an “anti-Muslim hate group,” the first time it had applied that label to a congressional body. CAIR research director Corey Saylor said the caucus was “essentially telling other Americans that your freedom comes with conditions.”
CAIR has rebutted the various allegations as “provably false” conspiracy theories, noting it has never been charged with a crime, never designated a terrorist organization by the federal government, and has repeatedly beaten similar government actions in court.24Charity and Security Network. Case Study: Renewed Attacks on CAIR
Israel-Gaza as the Political Flashpoint
CAIR’s advocacy around the Israel-Gaza conflict sits at the center of the recent backlash. The organization characterizes Israel’s military operations in Gaza as genocide, calls for a permanent ceasefire and international accountability, and has advocated for an arms embargo on Israel, while stating that it opposes “all violence against civilians” and calling for the release of both Israeli and Palestinian captives.33CAIR. CAIR Welcomes Long-Overdue Ceasefire Deal
Several of the state officials pursuing legal action against CAIR have explicitly tied their efforts to its positions on the conflict, and CAIR’s support for campus protest encampments and its mobilization of Muslim voters around Middle East policy have drawn opposition from politicians aligned with pro-Israel donor networks. CAIR frames the state-level designations as political retaliation for its advocacy, calling them “unconstitutional and defamatory.”34TRT World. CAIR and State Terrorist Designations