In case you are not familiar with the BORDC: The Bill of Rights Defense Committee (BORDC) is a national grassroots organization that educates and mobilizes people from all walks of life to defend the Constitution in their local communities all across the country. Under the Bush administration, BORDC played a vital role in resistance to the USA PATRIOT ACT by coordinating local resolutions opposing its adoption in over 400 towns and cities across America. Today, BORDC continues to defend constitutional rights threatened by the so-called “war on terror” by promoting (a) democratic transparency as a solution to executive secrecy; (b) executive accountability for torture and other violations of the rule of law; (c) robust protections against profiling according to political speech or religion, race or ethnicity; (d) restoration of constitutional freedoms in response to warrantless—-and increasingly pervasive—-surveillance; and (e) debate and creative action addressing threats to privacy, the presumption of innocence, and other civil liberties.
Grassroots News
Patriot Award: Muhammed Malik
Each month, BORDC recognizes an individual who has done outstanding work in support of civil liberties and the rule of law by honoring that person with our Patriot Award. This month, we recognize Muhammed Malik of Miami, FL, for his contribution to protecting and defending civil liberties.
The event that sparked Muhammed’s activism occurred the day after September 11, 2001. Muhammed, 18 years old at the time, found himself attacked by several men who targeted him because of his faith. This, coupled with the discrimination he felt while driving and flying, prompted him to enter law school with the goal of combating racial and religious profiling and Islamophobia.
Muhammed now works with the American Civil Liberties Union in Florida, focusing specifically on racial profiling by law enforcement authorities and racial justice in other contexts. He advises groups in Boca Raton and Orlando working to stop racial profiling, and also collaborates with groups in Miami. His most recent project focuses on voter disenfranchisement in Florida, which has one of the worst records in the US, with 1.2 million people unable to vote. He will soon meet with the clemency board in order to seek restoration of voting rights for convicted defendants who have paid their debts to society.
In addition to his work with the ACLU, Muhammed also works with a variety of other groups in the state of Florida. He formerly served as the director of the Council on American Islamic Relations in South Florida, where he fielded complaints of hate crimes and spoke out against discrimination. Muhammed has worked with Amnesty International on a national campaign against torture, reflecting his perspective that racial profiling and torture are two linked problems that have not been addressed at a national level. Muhammed is also co-chair of theMiami-Dade County Green Party, an organization that works with local groups outside the two-party establishment and aims to build a more responsive and representative political system in Florida.
Inspired by the fervor of democratic demonstrations throughout the Middle East, Muhammed organized three recent rallies in support of the protesters in Egypt. His goal of putting pressure on Florida legislators to voice their support for democratic ideals prompted a recent article in the Orlando Sentinel.
Muhammed’s work across these various issues embodies BORDC’s multi-faceted work to restore the rule of law. His focus on organizing across ethnic and religious communities to secure change at the grassroots level offers a compelling example to any activist who aspires to affect national issues.
