Member of Maryland Hate Crimes Commission resigns over ‘smear campaign’

Less than a month after a former member of Maryland's Hate Crimes Commission said she did not apply to join the group because it is undergoing reforms, Another member confirmed that he had withdrawn his appointment.

Ayman Nassar, CEO of the Maryland-based Islamic Leadership Institute, a nonprofit education and research organization that primarily targets youth ages 9 to 25, said he was Maryland Commission on Hate Crimes Response and Prevention after an “online harassment and defamation campaign” was launched against him.

“The energy that would be consumed by distractions from the work of the Commission can be more effectively channeled into building strategic alliances and partnerships that advance our shared goals,” Nassar wrote in an email to The Baltimore Banner.

Last month, Zainab Chaudry, director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in Maryland, said she did not apply after she came under fire last year for a series of allegedly anti-Israel social media posts that led to her suspension from the commission. She was later reinstated when Attorney General Anthony Brown's office said he did not have the authority to fire Chaudry.

The Commission then got an overhaul under new rules governing member selection established by a law passed during the last General Assembly session. The law forced the 25 members – including Chaudry – to reapply for the commission. Brown's office announced in July that it had selected a new commission from the applicants, which included Nassar.

Those elected serve as acting commissioners until confirmed by the Maryland Senate. A separate law signed by Governor Wes Moore this year gave All state commission chairmen have the power to remove their members before the end of their term.

Nassar accused the grassroots initiative Middle East Forum, which says it “promotes American interests in the Middle East and protects Western values ​​from Middle Eastern threats,” of orchestrating efforts to “smear” him.

“My appointment to the Maryland Attorney General's Hate Crimes Counteraction and Prevention Commission was accompanied by a coordinated Islamophobic hate campaign and online bullying by anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim groups led by Middle East Form under Benjamin Baird, based solely on my views on the atrocities and human rights abuses committed against the Palestinian people,” Nassar wrote. “It is disturbing to see the extent to which the forces of bigotry and online bullying can influence the leadership of our state. The campaign against me was not only a personal attack, but also an attack on the integrity of the Commission and the important work it is designed to do,” he added.

The Middle East Forum has accused Nassar of supporting pro-terrorist groups and making “offensive” social media posts. They also said they played a role in efforts to remove Chaudry from the commission.

“This is not just a case of guilt by association. Nassar's own social media history shows that he adheres to the same radical anti-Semitic views that cost his predecessor her seat on the commission,” wrote Benjamin Baird, director of MEF Action Middle East Forum.

Baird also accused Attorney General Brown of “acting recklessly and inexcusably negligently in appointing an even more extreme commissioner. His actions are an insult to the activists and lawmakers who have worked so hard to purge the commission, whose job it is to combat hate, of hateful influences.”

Baird added: “We encourage the Attorney General to exercise greater vigilance in selecting a third candidate to represent the state's Muslim community.”

This story will be updated.