From the Blog

Explore the Life of Muhammad Campaign

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) announced the launching of a major educational campaign called "Explore the life of Muhammad" as a positive response to the worldwide controversy over offensive caricatures of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.

The year-long initiative has begun by offering people of all faiths a free book or DVD about the life and legacy of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), which can be requested from the CAIR website. A total of 7,397 requests have been received so far.

CAIR’s campaign will also offer materials to help Muslim communities hold interfaith events, panel discussions, mosque open houses, and other grass-roots activities focused on bringing awareness to Islam throughout North America.

As part of the campaign, mosques and CAIR chapters throughout the nation and in California held press conferences and open houses to announce the initiative.

In Anaheim, CAIR’s Southern California chapter held a news conference on on February 14. Representatives from the Southern California Islamic Shura Council and the Islamic Institute of Orange County (IIOC) joined the press conference to support the proactive steps that will be taken by CAIR and southern California mosques to educate people about Islam and the Prophet (pbuh).

At the conference, Imam Muhammad Faqih from the Islamic Institute of Orange County explained the significance of the Prophet Muhammad to the hearts of Muslims saying, "Muslims dearly love the Prophet and all the prophets before him. Any attack or insult on the prophet is a very sensitive issue that many Muslims take to heart." The Imam also added that IIOC is planning an open house to inform people about Prophet Muhammad and explain to them the legacy that the he left behind.

In San Diego, the Islamic Center of San Diego (ICSD) held on open house on February 19. More than 200 people attended the event, which included power point presentations, talks about the Prophet (PBUH), guided tours, multi-cultural food, and an Islamic song performed by a girls scout troop. Among the speakers were Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi from the Islamic Society of Orange County,, Muslim American Society President Imad Al Bahri, and Maha Saleh from American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC).

In Santa Clara, in collaboration with the Muslim Community Association (MCA) and American Muslim Voice (AMV), the CAIR San Francisco Bay Area chapter also held an educational forum on February 19.. Hundreds of people of different faiths and backgrounds were present at the event, which featured a presentation addressing the character of the Prophet by Imam Zaid Shakir of the Zaytuna Institute, a preview of the PBS documentary "Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet", and a historical perspective of "who this man is and what he means to Muslims" by Tarek Mourad, an MCA community member.

Many more events are scheduled to take place around the nation as part of CAIR’s widespread educational effort in response to the Danish cartoons.

"It is our prayer and hope that through this initiative and others, misunderstandings, hatred, and violence can be curtailed and avoided for the sake of the future of the world. Challenging hatred and division begins by challenging ignorance, and we can challenge ignorance only through education," said CAIR-LA Executive Director Hussam Ayloush.

For more information about the CAIR campaign visit: www.cair.com/Muhammad.