December 19, 2006
For Immediate Release
Contact: Joe Kaufman (info@americansagainsthate.org)

U.S. SENATOR BARBARA BOXER GIVES AWARD
TO CAIR EXTREMIST

AAH CALLS ON SENATOR BOXER TO WITHDRAW AWARD

(Coral Springs, FL) Americans Against Hate (AAH), a civil rights organization and terrorism watchdog group, is calling on United States Senator Barbara Boxer to rescind the award she has presented to the Executive Director of CAIR-Sacramento Basim Elkarra. The award, a certificate of achievement for "outstanding service," was given to Elkarra earlier this month.

As Executive Director, Basim Elkarra has defended someone that trained for jihad in a Pakistani terrorist camp; he has defended an imam that urged a Pakistani crowd to wage attacks on America; and he has defended an imam that was attempting to build an Islamic school for the purpose of teaching children how to commit violent acts against Americans. As well, Elkarra has described Israel as a "racist" and "apartheid" state, and he has moderated an event that featured a Hamas operative who spent five years in an Israeli prison and who is currently on trial in the U.S.

The organization Elkarra is affiliated with, CAIR, has a number of ties to Islamic extremism. Four officials from CAIR have been charged with terrorist activity, two convicted and two deported. CAIR is currently the defendant in a lawsuit put forward by the family of FBI Agent John O'Neill for the group's role in the 9/11 attacks. CAIR solicited funds for two "charities" whose accounts were frozen by the Department of Treasury for financing Hamas and Al-Qaeda. And CAIR's parent organization, the Islamic Association for Palestine (IAP), was shut down, shortly after it was found liable for the murder of an American boy during a Hamas attack.

AAH Chairman and founder of CAIR Watch, Joe Kaufman, stated, "Both Elkarra and the organization he represents exhibit behavior that is unworthy of such an honor as Senator Boxer has bestowed. We therefore demand that Senator Boxer withdraw the award immediately."

Joe Kaufman is available for interview. E-mail: info@americansagainsthate.org.