A piece about my participation in the New Jersey Homeland Security Conference addressing civil rights concerns of the Hindu-American and Sikh-American communities in New Jersey.
State Department Diplomacy Channel
Join me tomorrow, December 14, 2011 at 7:45 EST on the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomacy Channel as I discuss my participation in a joint U.S. State Department and Department of Homeland Security event on religious freedom (the “Istanbul Process”, UNHRC Resolution 16/18).
Civil rights commission to review Georgia immigration law
"The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights announced this week that it will look into how new immigration laws in Georgia and several other states are affecting people’s civil rights.
The commission plans to review whether enforcement of the laws has fostered or contributed to an increase in hate crimes, compromised public safety, elevated racial and ethnic profiling or affected students rights to a public education, according to a news release. Chairman Martin Castro said enactment of the laws ‘presents a pressing national civil rights issue that affects immigrants and U.S. citizens alike.’ ” Read More
ADC Policy Conference: 10 Years After 9/11
I recently had the honor of speaking about the impact of 9/11 at the Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee’s 9/11 Policy Conference with a number of panelists far more distinguished than myself.
Watch C-SPAN Video of the Policy Conference.
Additional information about the conference and speakers.
News coverage of the conference.
Unheard Voices of 9/11
The Revolution Isn’t Over for the Women of Tahrir Square
2011 did not witness the first Egyptian revolution. After all, Egypt’s Tahrir (“Liberation”) Square earned its name from some other struggle. For Egypt, this liberation came in the 1920s when men, women, Muslims, Christians, the young and the old from across the land rallied to drive the British out of Egypt. They succeeded in no small part due to the role Egyptian women played during the 1919 revolution. It was then that 300 women demonstrators led by Hoda Sha’arawi took to the streets raising the crescent and the cross to symbolize national unity and denounce British occupation.
Four years later, Sha’arawi called for a demonstration, the first of its kind, for the foundation of the first Egyptian Women’s Union. But shortly following independence the inspired demands of these same women for equal rights and political representation were denied by the ruling Wafd party. Following the joyous tumult of Egypt’s recent revolution, this scenario is playing itself out again. Though women played a critical role during last month’s protests, their future as stakeholders in Egypt’s political process is being marginalized.
Read the rest at The Huffington Post