About Us

Since its founding in 2005, the Association of Muslim American Lawyers (AMAL) has organized and participated in seminars, panel discussions, and old-fashioned community activism, to promote not only the administration of justice, but also an awareness of American and Islamic jurisprudence among minority and immigrant (and especially Muslim) communities in the Tri-State area — all while emphasizing the highest standards of professionalism and integrity.

Below are some highlights of AMAL’s body of work:
• Conducting educational and sensitivity training for the NYPD and the FBI with respect to the Muslim community, where issues of discrimination, hate crimes, and racial profiling were emphasized

• Submitting evidence on the issue of racial profiling to the International Court of Justice Eminent Jurist Panel. The Panel is an independent body established by the International Court of Justice to conduct a global inquiry into terrorism, counter-terrorism and human rights

• Submitting a brief to the New York City Council to support the City Uniform Anti-Discrimination Bill, Intro. 577 — the bill became law in 2011

• Meeting with the Jane Holl Lute, Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, to discuss civil rights issues affecting the Muslim and Arab communities, especially issues pertaining to delays in obtaining citizenship status that members of these communities were experiencing

• Submitting a brief to the Office of Home Land Security following the enactment of Transportation Security Administration standards mandating enhanced security measures for individuals arriving from predominately Muslim and Arab countries

• Submitting a detailed letter to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, in conjunction with the Muslim Americans Civil Liberties Coalition and on behalf of various civil rights and community groups and Muslim Student Associations, asking that his office investigate the NYPD for certain policies (including racial profiling, stops-and-frisks, and spying programs) that targeted the Muslim community

• Partnering with Islamic Center of New York University, Islamic Law Students Association at NYU, Muslim American Society, and Arab Muslim American Federation to host an event during the 2009 New York County District Attorney’s race, where democratic candidates Cyrus Vance and Richard Aborn spoke about their political platforms and agendas for that office, and fielded questions from the audience

• Partnering with Pace University Administration, on behalf of the Muslim Students Association there, to ensure that an incident involving desecrations of the Muslim Holy Book, the Quran, was classified as a hate crime, and that a formal investigation was opened and vigorously pursued

• Coordinating a panel discussion, in conjunction with the Muslim Legal Fund of America, where panelists discussed case studies of recent attacks on Mosques, Islamic Centers and religious leaders, and how to fend off defamatory attacks and lawsuits against Muslim and minority communities

• Working in conjunction with the New York City Commission on Human Rights, the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP to present a panel discussion about Religious Diversity in the workplace — with a focus on religious accommodation, discrimination, and understanding

• Hosting an Iftar which provided young minority attorneys with strategies on how best to use their skills as attorneys to become activists in their communities, and which featured a Key Note address by the Honorable Kiyo A. Matsumoto of the Eastern District of New York

• Working with the Association of the Bar of the City of New York to present a seminar on specific challenges and stereotypes facing Muslim Lawyers in the post 9/11 world, and how to overcome those challenges and stereotypes

• Working with Fordham University Muslim Law Students to present a discussion geared toward advising recent law school graduates on the various career paths available to them