The Council of Muslim Organizations will head to Capitol Hill this week for a two-day advocacy and lobbying trip, where they plan to ask Congress to stop sending aid to Israel. The lobbying tour could see hundreds of Muslim Americans on Capitol Hill at a time when Democrats are concerned about their standing among the demographic before this year’s elections. 

The council was founded in 2011 and represents hundreds of organizations around America. Their website states that it was founded out of an “unmistakable, urgent desire to unify American Muslims” and a “shared a consensus that coordinated communication and organizational work was essential to this goal and to healthy community development.”

On Monday, members of the council will head to Capitol Hill for their two-day lobbying tour, where they will likely meet with dozens, if not hundreds, of lawmakers and staff members. 

“Representatives from national, state, and local Muslim organizations and communities are strongly encouraged to join this two-day advocacy event. Delegates and activists will engage with congressional offices to address the pressing issues affecting American Muslims amidst today’s political landscape,” the council’s website says of the annual lobbying trip. 

“The issues we’ll be focusing on include combating the alarming increase in anti-Muslim hate crimes, safeguarding the free speech of Americans, ensuring the U.S. government does not remain complicit in Israel’s genocide and occupation of Palestinians, and more,” the group continues. 

The council’s secretary general, Oussama Jammal says he and his colleagues want Congress to know that lawmakers must earn their votes this fall. 

“Mobilizing Muslims to engage with their members of Congress is a time-honored tradition, and National Muslim Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill underscores our community’s commitment to civic engagement, ensuring that our voices are heard on issues that directly impact our communities, especially before a national election,” Ms. Jammal says. 

The council will be joined by the chief executive of the Muslim Legal Fund of America, Arshia Ali-Khan. Ms. Ali-Khan says that “Standing up for our rights and concerns is not just a Muslim duty but an embodiment of American principles, reflecting American Muslims’ dedication to the American values of justice, equality, and freedom for all individuals.”

During the annual advocacy day last year, more than 500 individuals from 20 states met with hundreds of members of Congress and their staff. 

Democrats have been facing intense criticism from their Muslim supporters, their young supporters, and their Arab-American voters. The greatest concern for the Biden campaign is now the critical battleground state of Michigan, which houses a sizable population of anti-Israel Muslims and Arab-Americans who are enraged by the president’s support for Israel.