CAIR-DFW and the Muslim Legal Fund of America stood alongside interfaith leaders as they announced a lawsuit challenging Abbott’s action.
RICHARDSON, Texas — Interfaith leaders, civil rights groups and Muslim community members gathered Tuesday to speak out against Governor Greg Abbott’s recent proclamation designating the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Legal Fund of America as foreign terrorist organizations.
Their message was clear; the designation is harmful, unlawful and rooted in claims they say have no basis in Texas law.
The event opened with remarks from community members who said the governor’s proclamation has instilled fear, stigmatized Muslim Texans, and made civic participation harder.
CAIR-DFW and the Muslim Legal Fund of America stood alongside interfaith leaders as they announced a lawsuit challenging Abbott’s action.
Mustafaa Carroll, the executive director of CAIR’s Dallas-Fort Worth chapter, said the groups filed suit almost immediately.
“This is not only contrary to the U.S. Constitution but finds no support in Texas law,” Carroll said.
Abbott’s proclamation designates the organizations as foreign terrorist entities and bars them from buying or acquiring land in Texas.
In his written statement last week, Abbott said in part, “The Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR have long made their goals clear: to forcibly impose Sharia law and establish Islam’s ‘mastership of the world.’”
The proclamation cites the Muslim Brotherhood’s international influence, Sharia law, and past and current leadership as justification.
This isn’t Abbott’s first move involving Islamic governance. In September, the governor announced a ban on so-called “Sharia cities,” specifically blocking Epic City, a proposed mixed-use development in Collin County.
Brian Owsley, an associate professor at UNT Dallas College of Law Legal said Abbott’s move raises serious constitutional issues, and the designation may be outside the governor’s power.
“His declaration is about foreign terrorists, and that type of activity is arguably for the federal government to handle,” Owsley said.
Owsley added that the proclamation could also face First Amendment challenges.
The groups suing Abbott say the proclamation is dangerous, escalates anti-Muslim rhetoric, and harms the safety of the communities they serve.
“The governor’s proclamation doesn’t make Texans safer, it only stigmatizes them,” one speaker said.
They hope their message, and their lawsuit, send a clear signal beyond the walls of Tuesday’s gathering.