(Seattle, WA, 7/23/2018) — After four years at the Council on American Islamic Relations of Washington State, Civil Rights Director Jasmin Samy will be leaving us this month. Jasmin led our civil rights team during one of the most tumultuous and challenging times for our chapter and for American Muslims across the state and nation.
When President Trump enacted the Muslim Ban , barring travel and immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries, Jasmin led the civil rights team in a rapid-response effort. Within days, the team coordinated Know Your Rights Workshops that reached over 400 community members.
In addition, under her supervision, CAIR-WA:
- Accelerated our response time for community members contacted by the FBI to within 24 hours.
- Successfully lobbied the Washington State Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction to add Muslim religious holidays to all district calendars.
- Speared-headed two survey projects on the bullying of Muslims students in Washington state.
- Adapted an Educator’s Guide to Basic Islamic Practices to fit Washington state laws and distributed to educators across the state.
- Launched a campaign to prioritize religious accommodations in the work place.
We sat down with Jasmin to ask her about her work at CAIR-WA and what she's going to miss most:
CAIR-WA: Tell us about how you came to work at CAIR-WA and lead the Civil Rights Team.
Jasmin: I joined CAIR Washington as a board member. We were actually doing interviews to hire a civil rights director. And then I left for summer vacation and two months later, the candidate didn’t go through and I said, “you know what? Maybe it’s time for me to step in. This is a very important role."
CAIR-WA: How did things change in your time here?
Jasmin: Things were normal, the cases were ongoing. Then a few months later, the presidential election started.
That definitely was a turning point. Not just for CAIR Washington but for the whole country. We started receiving a larger number of complaints from the American Muslim community. It was very clear that we were starting a new era in the country and in Washington state.
"It was very clear that we were starting a new era in the country and in Washington state."
CAIR-WA: What was it like to work for CAIR-WA when the Muslim Ban was announced?
Jasmin: We were working 24/7. I remember we received 68 complaints and calls in three weeks! We had people at airports, we were trying to organize, and to make sure the people that are coming in are able to get in and those that are stuck out of the country, to try to assist them.
We just had to be there for the community. Be someone they could call up, everyday, asking us if they should send their children to school because they were worried about what might happen to them. Asking if they should travel, or if their family members should come and visit.
That in itself, was a big responsibility. Just being the face of CAIR-WA and making sure, as much as possible, to be there for the community, was a big responsibility.
"That in itself, was a big responsibility. Just being the face of CAIR-WA and making sure, as much as possible, to be there for the community, was a big responsibility."
CAIR-WA: Last question: What are you going to miss most about working at CAIR-WA?
Jasmin: What I’m going to miss? A lot of things. I’m going to miss the mornings when I wake up and find that there is a big issue that happened: we all have to be ready, and media ready, and start doing interviews and getting the talking points.
But most of all, I’m going to miss the fact that we all are there as a team and that we’re working together to fight for justice and equality for all.
