Americans have the right to know how new policy will affect their communities

Washington, DC – Today, Muslim Advocates filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to obtain documents related to the its recent Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) grant to the National Governors Association (NGA). The filing comes on the heels of the NGA’s announcement that Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, and Virginia have been selected as sites for CVE “policy academies,” which have the purported purpose of “developing strategic plans for preventing ideologically-inspired violence.” Click here to read the FOIA.

CVE is a controversial program through which federal grants are provided to local organizations and groups, who are then tasked with identifying individuals in the community who are supposedly “at risk” of radicalization and violence.  Although CVE allegedly focuses on people of all faiths, it is known to unjustly target and profile Muslims. In fact, President Trump openly admitted his desire to use the programs solely on Muslims, sparking heightened concern amongst civil rights advocates about discriminatory profiling.

“In addition to their proven ineffectiveness, CVE programs have long been known to unjustly target Muslim, black, and brown communities,” says Muslim Advocates Staff Attorney Juvaria Khan. “Under CVE, the daily activities many Americans engage in will be viewed with suspicion and potentially criminalized. This is especially true for American Muslims. We call on DHS to release any and all documents pertaining to these program in Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, and Virginia so that Americans can understand how their communities are being affected ”

Muslim Advocates is a national legal advocacy and educational organization that works on the frontlines of civil rights to guarantee freedom and justice for Americans of all faiths.

 

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