Government Affairs

Civic engagement is a cornerstone of community-building within the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago.  It is the practical application of Islamic principles that call upon Muslims to strive for justice.

Civic engagement has many components.  It involves political participation but political participation is not the only form civic engagement.  Other forms of civic engagement include (i) working with community-based groups to provide social services, (ii) reaching out to and dialoguing with local, state and federal government agencies, and (iii) educating people on issues and on policies that can help improve our communities. 

These are just a few examples of civic engagement.  Any activity that gets people involved in their communities to bring about improvements and to help strengthen the community can be described as civic engagement.

That said, our government (local, state and federal) has a major impact on our well-being.  The policies of our government affect us profoundly.  That is why the Council views Government Affairs as a very important aspect of civic engagement.

The Council’s Work in Government Affairs

The Council’s work in Government Affairs is largely focused on educating the American-Muslim community on how to engage with the government in a productive and constructive manner.  This website is one of the Council’s tools for helping the community.  The Council website has many educational resources in the form of handbooks, articles and links to outside resources.

The best way to learn is by doing.  The American-Muslim community not only learns about civic engagement through the Council, it also gets to try out the strategies and techniques through an array of campaigns that the Council works on in coalition and collaboration with other religious (interfaith) and community-based groups. 

The Council’s annual Muslim ACTION! Day is a great example of civic engagement at work.  American-Muslims not only learn about the nuts and bolts of citizen advocacy and about specific, current public policy issues, but they also have the opportunity to visit Springfield, Illinois and actively engage with legislators.

The Government Affairs work of the Council is largely done in partnership and collaboration with other groups.  Over the years the Council has forged strong relationships with United Power for Action and Justice, the Illinois Coalition on Immigrant and Refugee Rights, the Chicago Faith Coalition on Middle East Policy, Faith in Place, Protestants for the Common Good, the United Methodist Church, the Presbyterian Church, the Catholic Church and the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs.

Immigrant Integration

The American-Muslim community in Illinois consists of a rich mix of immigrant and indigenous Americans. At least 66% of Illinois' American-Muslim population are immigrants from the Middle East, African, the Indian subcontinent and Europe.

An important objective of civic engagement for immigrant Muslims is their integration into American society. The Council is convinced that civic engagement is an important means of civic integration.

To this end the Council works with various coalitions and with government agencies to develop initiatives and programs that foster immigrant integration. In the area of Government Affairs the Council strives to engage immigrant Muslims in policy advocacy on issues that resonate with them.

Immigration reform and civil liberties restoration are two important areas where the Council works to engage immigrant Muslims.

Working closely with mosque leaders and activists, the Council's organizers recruit immigrant American-Muslims to become more educated on immigration reform and civil liberties restoration advocacy. The individuals then work with their communities to organize and mobilize the community for a wide range of advocacy and some actions as well.