Key Takeaways

The California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations has distributed over $64,000 in grants of $1,000 each to pro-Palestinian students disciplined by their universities for advocacy-related actions.

CAIR is currently under investigation for potentially misrepresenting fund usage to the IRS and has faced scrutiny regarding its political activities, including lobbying and support for protests against police actions.

The organization has legally supported pro-Palestinian activists, including a case that allowed a campus vigil to proceed despite opposition from the university.

A Muslim nonprofit is gifting checks for $1,000 to lawbreaking pro-Palestinian students who were disciplined by their universities.

The California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations raised over $64,000 in donations to “help students targeted for their pro-Palestine advocacy on college campuses,” according to a recent report from the Network Contagion Research Institute. 

CAIR used the donations to “Offer interest-free educational loans and unrestricted $1,000 grants for students who lost scholarships, housing, or other support because of their advocacy,” the report states. 

The students who received the funds remain anonymous, but they attended schools including Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard, according to the New York Post. 

“These programs support students after acts of criminality and violence, creating a reward structure for building the most militant face of the movement. This is how ideologies metastasize,” NCRI founder Joel Finkelstein told The Post.  

CAIR included a testimonial from one student in its information about the fund online. 

“The consequences of my pro-Palestine advocacy have been swift and severe. As a safety Marshal at a protest against the bombing of the Al-Shifa hospital, I was doxxed by Zionist students, leading to my information being spread to the far-right media,” the anonymous student stated. 

“I have endured relentless death threats, lost my summer law firm offer and its accompanying diversity scholarship. This ordeal has set me back at least $115,000 in lost income and legal fees, an overwhelming burden for my working class family,” he stated. 

Moreover, the NCRI report alleges the organization failed to fully disclose political lobbying to the IRS and hid millions in government grants on its IRS Form 990 filings.

It also states that in 2025, CAIR-CA published a report backing campus encampments. 

The report portrayed police actions to remove illegal encampments as violent and framed law enforcement as the main force escalating tensions at the protest sites.

According to its website, “CAIR’s mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.”

The organization’s California chapter is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and the California Fair Political Practices Commission for allegedly misrepresenting its use of federal funds, according to the NYP. 

CAIR’s Legal Defense Fund has also represented several pro-Palestinian student activists in court. 

Following a lawsuit by CAIR last year, a federal judge ruled that the University of Maryland Students for Justice in Palestine could proceed with its Oct. 7 vigil, The College Fix previously reported. 

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