(COLUMBUS, OH, 6/27/19) – On Thursday, June 27, CAIR-Columbus visited the central Ohio offices of multiple members of Congress to deliver 950+ letters urging the legislative body to pressure the Chinese government to end its Uyghur concentration camps where up to 3 million people are being held arbitrarily.
Detainees are separated from their families, forced to eat pork, drink alcohol, and tortured until they renounce their faith. According to some reports, Uyghurs have also been victims of organ harvesting and must endure a homestay program, a policy which involves Chinese Communist Party members living in Uyghur households.
The letters were collected via CAIR-Columbus’ petition drive in support of H.R. 649/S. 178, the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2019.
Numerous community members accompanied CAIR-Columbus. Letters were delivered to U.S. Reps. Troy Balderson, Steve Stivers, and Joyce Beatty as well as U.S. Sen. Rob Portman.
CAIR is America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. The CAIR-Ohio affiliate has three chapters in Ohio – Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati. Their mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding