Two Texas chapters for the Council on American-Islamic Relations sued Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton in federal court Thursday after the governor designated the group a foreign terrorist organization and banned it from owning land in Texas.
The suit, filed in the federal Western District by CAIR Texas chapters in Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin, comes two days after Abbott made the designation against both CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood. The governor pointed to a new law approved by the Texas Legislature earlier this year allowing him to declare a country or group in Texas a foreign terrorist organization solely for the purpose of preventing them from owning properties.
Thursday's suit comes just hours after Abbott directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to investigate CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood for alleged criminal activities.
Abbott also claimed CAIR has "repeatedly employed, affiliated with, and supported individuals promoting terrorism-related activities."
CAIR, one of the largest Muslim civil rights groups in America, was established with a stated goal to challenge stereotypes about the Islamic faith. Most of its work focuses on civil rights and anti-defamation.
Abbott has repeatedly called CAIR a "front group" for Hamas and a direct subsidiary of the Muslim Brotherhood.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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