To the leadership of CAIR Connecticut and Connecticut’s elected and community leaders:

CAIR Connecticut will be hosting Cenk Uygur as the keynote speaker at its annual gala on Saturday, November 14, 2026. Mr. Uygur's long public record of demeaning comments about women, Black people, Asian Americans, LGBTQ people, Muslims, and Jews is at odds with the values of dignity and inclusion that Connecticut stands for.

Uygur’s record is well documented. TheWrap reported in 2017 on blog posts in which Mr. Uygur wrote that "the genes of women are flawed," along with other graphic remarks about women. A former employee told TheWrap that his comments about women make female staff uncomfortable. He has used the N-word in full on his program, and has made offensive comments about Asian Americans as well. He has said that Orthodox Jews and Muslims teach their children things that are "Looney Tunes." In 2006 he said a "bulldozer" was his plan for Jerusalem. This year, the British government barred him from entering the United Kingdom, reportedly in part over concern that his rhetoric would exacerbate antisemitism. In 2015, he welcomed ex-KKK leader David Duke on his show for a discussion about how "Jews control everything."

These concerns are not new, and they are not partisan. When Mr. Uygur ran for Congress in 2019, the Los Angeles County Democratic Party called his comments "both heartless and disqualifying." The party said it stands for "the Democratic values of inclusivity, fairness, diversity, and compassion," and that his "shameful comments underscore the fact that he believes the opposite." It concluded that he "does not belong in Congress." Senator Bernie Sanders withdrew his endorsement of Mr. Uygur a day after giving it, amid outcry from progressive and women's groups over the same comments.

CAIR's claims to want to defend civil rights and challenge bigotry. Honoring a speaker with this record sends the opposite message to the women and Black, Asian American, LGBTQ, Jewish and Muslim communities of Connecticut.