My friend and I recently went to an event sponsored by CAIR. Before we entered the room, a bald Caucasian man stopped my friend and I and told us that he was conducting a federal investigation. I was a bit startled but I thought it was a census so I relaxed a bit. I smiled at the FBI agent. However he did not smile back. He was serious and even somewhat a bit…nervous? I began to feel extremely uncomfortable.
He asked me for my full name and address, he asked my friend and I why did we come to this event and how did we hear about it? Meanwhile he was writing all of this down. He asked us if we ever went to a halaqah. At this point he began asking my friend more questions because he saw my hesitancy in answering. I walked away once I saw that his attention was no longer focused on me. I waited for my friend. I felt so humiliated and frustrated that I wanted to go home. I promised my friend that I would get to the bottom of this. Once we were in the actual event room I expressed my feelings to one of the sisters in the room. She looked at me and smiled, “They’re actors.”
UNBELIEVABLE. It was all a part of the event, to keep us aware of this reality and how we should and should not respond. This was powerful and unforgettable.
Here are some things I learned:
Always ask to see a badge of identification from an FBI agent.
Never open the door and allow them to come into your home. Just open the door wide enough to step outside your home and speak to them politely outside. Tell them that you want to cooperate and keep your country safe. However you will not speak with them until your lawyer is present and that you are willing to set up an appointment for that.
The anti-Semitic literature of the 1920s are very similar to the literature of the far right today.
Gallup poll: Only 7% of all the FBI-documented acts of terror were committed by Muslims…what about the other 93%?
The fifth amendment was created to protect the innocent man who may be ensnared by ambiguous means.
