host: amy spitalnick, chief executive officer of the>> "was- host: welcome back to "washington journal," we are joined by nihad awad. welcome to the program. guest: good morning. host: you cofounded cair in 1994. tell us how you are funded. guest: the mission is to enhance islam because we believe that muslims are not well represented . there is a lot about what islam is and the count is in the millions. we have to protect the civil rights of americans in the workplace, schools, government, so on and so forth. we also believe in empowering american citizens to encourage them to be more engaged to vote and run for elections themselves because service is important for us as muslims. also, we had coalitions with like-minded organizations who be -- and believe in civil rights for all. we are funded by the community. also, the people from the larger society, who believe in our mission. host: cair has come under criticism for connections to hamas, can you clarify any past or current connection you have with hamas? guest: we have no connection. i am proud to be palestinian. the organization h

first, amy spitalnick from the jewish council of public affairs. later, nihad awad from the council on american islamic relations. we will be right back. ♪ >> since 1979, in partnership with the cable industry, c-span has provided complete coverage of congress, from the house and senate floors, to congressional hearings, party briefings, and committee meetings. c-span gives you a front row seat to how issues are debated and decided, with no commentary, interruptions, and completely unfiltered. c-span, your unfiltered view of government. >> american history tv, saturdays on c-span two, exploring people and events that tell the american story. at 8:00 p.m. eastern on lectures, discussion on president lincoln's policies on emancipation during the civil war by paul quigley. at 9:30 eastern on the presidency, historian cw goodyear on james garfield, where he details garfield's life, including being a republican, union war hero, supreme court attorney and the last chief executive born in a log cabin. it highlights how july 1881, garfield was shot by a di

host: amy spitalnick, chief executivof

we are joined by amy spitalnick, the chief executive officer of the jewish council for public affairswelcome. guest: thank you for having me. host: can you talk about your organization and how you are funded? guest: the jewish council for public affairs is a nearly 80-year-old jewish national organization founded specifically because we understand that jewish community is best in societies that are inclusive, and we are in deep relationship with our neighbors, in which we are fighting against all people, particularly in this moment, we are focused on protecting democracy, fighting not just anti-semitism but the ways it connects to all other forms of hate in this moment. right now, given the horrific surge following october 7, we know that it is more important than ever. we are funded by individuals and organizations around the country. people who recognize the urgency of building deep relationships between the jewish community and our neighbors. in particular, we work closer with jewish community councils, which there are 125 across the country and we are supported by them and by loca