MJF Condemns Detention of Salah Sarsour and Pattern of Anti-Muslim Enforcement
Muslims for Just Futures (MJF) unequivocally condemns the detention of Salah Sarsour, a respected Palestinian community leader and business owner in Wisconsin. ICE agents targeted Sarsour, a lawful permanent resident of over 30 years. They detained and transferred him across state lines, unjustly separating him from his family and community.
As stated by Dr. Hatem Bazian, “Salah is an honest man in the fullest sense—not merely law-abiding, but principled, a man whose word is his bond and whose reputation as a Milwaukee business owner and community leader is beyond reproach. He has spent decades hiring workers who needed a chance, supporting neighbors who needed a hand, and building advocacy organizations that gave a voice to immigrants, Palestinians, and Muslims across Wisconsin and the country.”
This detention is a clear act of political targeting, directly tied to Sarsour’s identity and advocacy. His attorneys and community leaders confirm he is being targeted for speaking out on Palestinian rights. The government is shamelessly relying on decades old allegations from a foreign military court system, one notorious for coercive practices and lack of due process. This action echoes the deliberate targeting and deportation of Rasmea Odeh, another Palestinian organizer and leader from the Midwest.
“There is a national campaign across the United States where Muslim and Palestinian leaders are being surveilled, targeted, detained, deported, and dying in ICE custody. The detention of Salah Sarsour is a calculated attempt to send a chilling message that Muslim leadership will be punished, Palestinian advocacy will be criminalized, and dissent will be silenced.
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ICE has repeatedly demonstrated a profound disregard for Muslim and Palestinian life, safety, and basic human dignity. The evidence is devastating, from the homicide-ruled death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam in ICE custody, to the deportation of Chicago small-business owner Asif Amin Cheema, who collapsed from serious medical conditions during detention at O’Hare Airport. This lethal pattern spans the country. In Texas, Marwan Marouf, a beloved 30-year Muslim community leader, was politically targeted and deported. Recently, Mohammad Nazeer Paktiawal, an Afghan father, died within 24 hours of being taken into ICE custody. These deaths are a growing record that exposes the lethal consequences of this system.
There is a national campaign across the United States where Muslim and Palestinian leaders are being surveilled, targeted, detained, deported, and dying in ICE custody. The detention of Salah Sarsour is a calculated attempt to send a chilling message that Muslim leadership will be punished, Palestinian advocacy will be criminalized, and dissent will be silenced.
MJF rejects the weaponization of immigration enforcement to suppress political speech. We reject the criminalization of Muslim and Palestinian lives. We reject a system that operates with impunity, tearing families apart and costing lives.
We demand the immediate release of Salah Sarsour, full transparency and accountability for his detention. We demand an end to ICE’s discriminatory and abusive practices targeting Muslim communities nationwide.
