Mayor declines to honor Muslim group
TAMPA (AP) – Tampa’s mayor has decided not to honor a controversial Muslim civil rights group this year.
Mayor Pam Iorio said Thursday she made the decision after hearing from people who complained that the Council on American-Islamic Relations has ties to terrorist groups.
Iorio ended the four-year practice of designating a day in November to honor the council, which is known by the acronym CAIR.
An anti-CAIR group called Americans Against Hate said it had been giving Iorio information detailing CAIR’s support for the terrorist group Hamas. CAIR denies any link.