Because Texas Gov. Greg Abbott designated the Council on American Islamic Relations as a foreign terrorism organization, a Muslim youth sports league has been denied use of a public school facility.
Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District, which lies in the heart of Christian nationalism fervor just north of Fort Worth, has denied facilities rental to a national nonprofit Muslim athletics competition. The Islamic Games event was scheduled for Colleyville Heritage High School May 9-10.
According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, “state lawmakers and local leaders posted on social media that the organization’s sponsors had ties to the Council on American Islamic Relations,” and that killed the deal.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks during the NRA ILA Leadership Forum May 18, 2024 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Abbott, a Roman Catholic, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Southern Baptist, have been campaigning to limit Muslims’ access to real estate development and other public accommodations. Most notably, they have sought to block development of a North Texas mixed-use project called EPIC City.
Although Abbott’s controversial attempt to ban CAIR is being challenged in court, a school districts spokesman told the Star-Telegram state law bars any governmental entity from entering into a contract with CAIR.
The state of Texas also requires all state employees and contractors — including at state universities — to sign a pledge that they will do nothing to publicly oppose the state of Israel.
Federal law requires public school districts to provide equal access to rental of school facilities without regard for religious belief. That is how public schools often are used for church starts.
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The new twist in Texas is that by designating CAIR as a terrorist organization — a highly contested claim — Abbott effectively cut off access to Muslim groups.
CAIR is a visible and influential civil rights organization within the American Muslim community, serving as a prominent voice for advocacy, legal aid and political engagement. The organization claims on its website that it opposes “all forms of hateful bigotry, specifically including anti-Black racism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, anti-Palestinian racism, and antisemitism.” It also describes itself as “an independent American institution” that “is not and has never been an affiliate, offshoot, chapter or agent of any foreign movement, organization, political party or government.”
Islamic Games started in 1989 in Queens, N.Y. The program is for leagues, Islamic centers, sports academies, organizations and Muslim schools. The games travel from city to city hosting competitive events in soccer, tennis, basketball, volleyball, cricket, flag football, track and field and archery.
Local and state Republican officials denounced the games coming to Colleyville as dangerous and claimed the event has ties to terrorists.
Last year, 8,000 athletes from 750 teams participated in Islamic Games events held across the USA and Canada. Islamic Games says its events are “open to any individual or team regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality or religion.”