CAIR Philadelphia Offers K-12 Outreach that Sanitizes Sep. 11 and Discusses "Jewish Power," Investigation Reveals
The organization explicitly advises teachers to "avoid using inaccurate and inflammatory terms" such as "radical Islamic terrorists" when discussing the September 11th attacks
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Philadelphia chapter has been offering to provide Pennsylvania and Delaware K-12 schools "educational resources" and workshops that critics argue promote antisemitic narratives, sanitize terrorism, and advance divisive political agendas in classrooms. According to an investigation from the watchdog group K12 Extremism Tracker, CAIR Philly’s educational offerings include sessions on "Jewish Power in America" and guidance that instructs teachers to avoid terms like "Islamic terrorists" when discussing the September 11th attacks.
Sanitizing Terrorism in 9/11 Education
Among CAIR Philadelphia's controversial educational is its comprehensive guide for teaching about September 11th, which instructs educators to avoid language that accurately describes the nature of the attacks. The organization explicitly advises teachers to "avoid using inaccurate and inflammatory terms such as 'Islamic terrorists,' 'jihadists,' or 'radical Islamic terrorists'" when discussing the deadliest terrorist attack in American history.
The 6-page document, distributed to schools across Pennsylvania and Delaware, goes further by instructing educators to "refrain from asking students to engage in educational activities that simulate the roles of perpetrators, targets, or bystanders" and warns against "language that validates the claims of the 9/11 attackers by associating their acts of mass murder with Islam and Muslims."
This approach, according to critics, strips the September 11th attacks of their ideological context, preventing students from understanding the religious extremism that motivated the hijackers.
Workshop on "Jewish Power in America"
Among CAIR Philadelphia's most alarming educational offerings is a workshop titled "American Jews and Political Power: Myth or Reality?" The session, presented by Jacob Bender, promises to examine "the controversial topic of Jewish political power in the U.S. in a fair and balanced manner" while discussing "key organizations in the American Jewish community, such as ADL, AIPAC, ACJ, and JCRC."
The workshop description also notes "the heated debate inside the Jewish establishment over Israel's occupation of Palestinian lands" and highlights "young Jewish activists who are supporting the BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions) campaign against Israel." This framing effectively transforms what purports to be educational content into political advocacy designed to inculcate anti-Israel sentiment among students and educators.
Bender, according to K12 Extremism Tracker, who previously served as executive director of CAIR Philadelphia, has characterized Hamas' October 7th massacre as merely the "first day of the Gaza war," thereby downplaying the atrocities committed by Palestinian terrorists that day. Bender has been appointed to the School District of Philadelphia Superintendent's transition team as part of the "anti-racist district culture" sub-committee.
CAIR Philly’s Leadership
The organization’s Executive Director, Ahmet Selim Tekelioglu, has been documented engaging in anti-Israel activism, including participation in a pro-Hamas encampment at the University of Pennsylvania in April 2024.
Five days after the October 7th massacre, Tekelioglu posted on Facebook that "Politicians should show care and also care about context," apparently suggesting the mass murder of civilians required "context" rather than condemnation.
Documented Ties to Terror Organizations
CAIR’s parent organization has long been plagued by accusations of terror connections, as its origins trace back to the Muslim Brotherhood network in America. A 2013 FBI Inspector General report revealed that evidence presented during the 2007 Holy Land Foundation trial "linked CAIR leaders to Hamas, a specially designated terrorist organization, and CAIR was named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the case."
The FBI subsequently developed a policy to "significantly restrict the FBI's non-investigative interactions with CAIR and to prevent CAIR from publicly exploiting such contacts with the FBI." This official recognition of CAIR's terror ties led to congressional calls for investigation, with Senator Tom Cotton noting in August 2025 that "recent news and longstanding evidence demonstrate CAIR's ties to terrorist organizations, including Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood."