Amy Mek
November 7-8, 2024, marked a shocking development at the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) convention, as the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), a New York-based Islamic group with documented ties to terrorism, was granted a prominent platform. Under the leadership of NJEA President Sean Spiller, a prominent Democrat currently running for Governor of New Jersey, ICNA was granted prime access to educators. From this position, they distributed free Qurans and “teacher guides” as part of their controversial dawah campaign, which has the stated goal of targeting 10 million non-Muslims for conversion, designed to indoctrinate public school educators into promoting Islam in classrooms under the pretense of inclusivity and cultural awareness.
With over 300 professional development seminars, workshops, and programs, the NJEA convention is the nation’s largest gathering of educators. Thousands of teachers attend every year to improve their craft and gain insights into the latest developments in education. But this year, instead of focusing on academic excellence, teachers encountered ICNA’s insidious agenda to normalize Sharia law, push false victimhood narratives, and pressure educators into turning classrooms into vehicles for Islamic indoctrination.
Free Qurans and Teacher Guides: ICNA’s Mission to Indoctrinate
At the heart of ICNA’s efforts were teacher guides explicitly rooted in Sharia; furthermore, ICNA educational materials are modeled after the curriculum taught at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. While Al-Azhar is considered the most prestigious institution in Sunni Islam, it has also garnered infamy for encouraging extremism and terror, including teaching principles of unrelenting jihad, hostility toward non-Muslims, and subjugation of women. One professor at Al-Azhar even teaches that Muslims are allowed to rape non-Muslim women as permitted by Allah.
These teacher guides distributed by ICNA presented themselves as tools for inclusivity. Still, their true purpose was clear: to push Islamic law into the public school system under the guise of accommodating Muslim students. Specific elements of the guide include:
- Islamizing Schools: Teachers were instructed to give Muslim students designated prayer spaces and time, ensure halal food options, and adapt the school environment to align with Islamic practices.
- Enforcing Sharia on Female Students: The guide explicitly calls for educators to enforce modesty rules on Muslim girls, including wearing hijabs and ensuring they are never alone with boys or touched by the opposite gender. It demands that schools accommodate hijab-wearing students with long-sleeved gym uniforms, female-only swimming classes, private shower stalls, and even female sports partners for activities like karate.
- Sanitizing Islam’s History: The materials reframe Islamic history to omit its well-documented legacy of conquest, violence, and oppression, replacing it with a sanitized narrative that glorifies the religion while demonizing its critics.
- Pushing Religious Accommodations: Teachers are advised to avoid celebrating Christian holidays like Christmas and Easter in schools to avoid “alienating” Muslim students. Instead, the guide recommends neutral activities like winter-themed events, removing any explicit references to Christianity. Even holidays like Halloween are discouraged, with the guide citing “pagan origins.”
ICNA’s materials also mislead teachers about Islam’s stance on Jesus, falsely claiming that Muslims honor him as a prophet. However, they omit the fundamental fact that Islam rejects the divinity of the Jesus of the Bible and remains hostile to Christianity and its followers.
Manipulating Teachers With False Narratives
ICNA weaponized false “hate crime” statistics and narratives of victimhood to pressure schools into compliance. By portraying Muslim students as constant targets of discrimination, ICNA pushes educators to adopt disproportionate accommodations while silencing legitimate concerns about their extremist agenda.
One of the most concerning aspects of ICNA’s guide is its promotion of Islamophobia education, urging teachers to reframe any criticism of Islam as bigotry. The term “Islamophobia” was created in the 1970s by Iranian fundamentalists as a shield to protect Islam from scrutiny. ICNA’s guide calls for staff training by organizations like themselves—groups tied to terror—to promote this agenda and suppress necessary discussions about the dangers of this extremist ideology.
Dawah: A Legal Prerequisite to Jihad
Dawah is not just proselytizing; it is a legal requirement in Islam before Muslims can wage war on non-Muslims. According to the counter-terrorism group Understanding the Threat (UTT), the Quran emphasizes dawah as a necessary precursor before resorting to any punitive actions against non-Muslims. Quranic verses such as, “We do not punish until We send a messenger” (Quran 17:15), underscore the obligation for Muslims to extend invitations to Islam before considering any form of retribution.
Tafsir Ibn Kathir, which provides authoritative interpretations of Quranic verses, further explains that Muslims cannot punish non-Muslims until they have been warned and invited to Islam. This process is known as dawah.
The Reliance of the Traveller (Um Dat al-Salik), an authoritative text on Islamic Sacred Law approved by Al-Azhar University in Egypt, explicitly codifies dawah as a condition for waging jihad against non-Muslims. Book O, Justice, section o9.8 states:
“The caliph makes war upon Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians provided he has first invited them to enter Islam in faith and practice, and if they will not, then invited them to enter the social order of Islam by paying the non-Muslim poll tax (jizya)… and the war continues until they become Muslim or else pay the non-Muslim poll tax in accordance with the word of Allah Most High.”
The Reliance of the Traveller is recognized across Sunni and Shia Islamic jurisprudence as a definitive manual on Sacred Law, emphasizing that dawah is not merely a religious act but a strategic step before advancing jihad.
Islam’s “most perfect example of a man,” the Prophet Muhammad, mandated this practice. Al-Hidayah, a classical manual of Hanafi law, asserts:
“When the Muslims commence battle, and they have surrounded a city or a fort, they are to invite the inhabitants to accept Islam, due to what is related by Ibn ‘Abbas: ‘The Prophet did not commence combat with a people without first inviting them to Islam.’”
First comes dawah, then comes jihad. This sequence is codified in Islamic law as a strategic and theological requirement.
Pressuring Teachers to Convert
ICNA’s efforts to indoctrinate educators weren’t limited to written materials. At the convention, four teachers converted to Islam on-site after reciting the shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith. Videos from the event show teachers pledging: “I testify there is no one worthy of worship except Allah, and I testify Muhammad is his messenger.” This showcased ICNA’s ultimate goal: to recruit teachers as ideological allies who can bring their agenda directly into the classroom.
A History of Extremism: ICNA’s Ties to Radical Movements
ICNA’s Ties to Radical Movements ICNA’s connections to extremism are long-established and well-documented. Founded in 1968 as the American branch of Jamaat-e-Islami, ICNA is directly tied to an organization that has supported terrorism and called for violent jihad. Jamaat-e-Islami’s militant wing, Hizbul Mujahideen, was linked to the compound where Osama bin Laden was killed.
ICNA’s events have featured speakers who openly promote suicide bombings, jihad, and the implementation of Sharia law in the United States. Internal documents reveal that ICNA views Western institutions, including public schools, as battlegrounds for advancing Islamic supremacy. This agenda is outlined explicitly in ICNA’s 2010 Member Handbook, which preaches the ultimate goal of establishing a global Islamic Caliphate governed by Sharia law. The handbook lays out a five-stage strategy for achieving this goal, beginning with proselytizing and social outreach to infiltrate Western institutions and ultimately culminating in global Islamic governance.
The handbook makes it clear that ICNA’s outwardly moderate public image is a façade. It instructs members to use deceptive tactics in their outreach campaigns to non-Muslims, portraying the group as a proponent of cultural understanding while masking its ultimate objective: the eradication of Western political, economic, and social systems in favor of Islamic dominance.
One required reading in ICNA’s educational curriculum advocates for rejecting Western law and calls on Muslims to “lay down their lives” to establish Islamic governance. This curriculum is heavily influenced by the teachings of Jamaat-e-Islami founder Sayyid Abul A’la Maududi, whose works dominate ICNA’s reading lists. Maududi openly advocates for the destruction of secular governments and the establishment of the “Kingdom of God on Earth.” His writings declare that it is the duty of Muslims to “snatch away the power of legislation and lordship from those who do not fear God.”
ICNA’s connections to terrorism extend beyond its ideological foundations. The group’s magazine has published interviews with terrorist leaders in Pakistan and encouraged young Muslims to join violent jihad in Kashmir. In December 2009, five members of an ICNA-affiliated mosque in Virginia were arrested and convicted on terrorism charges after attempting to join Pakistani terror groups.
ICNA also maintains its allegiance to Jamaat-e-Islami through its ongoing partnerships with senior members of the organization. Yusuf Islahi, a high-ranking member of Jamaat-e-Islami in India, regularly teaches at ICNA’s headquarters. The group continues to distribute Maududi’s radical literature, including works that predict the collapse of Western political systems under the rise of Islamic governance.
ICNA’s charter is explicit in its objectives, calling for the “establishment of the Islamic system of life” across all spheres, including economic, social, and political domains. The group sees itself as part of a broader “Islamic Movement” that spans the globe, actively working toward the re-establishment of the Caliphate and the unification of all Muslims under a single Islamic state.
At the societal level, ICNA disguises its radical ambitions through outreach programs like WhyIslam, which claim to build “bridges of understanding” with non-Muslims. However, internal documents reveal that WhyIslam is primarily a vehicle for proselytizing and spreading Islamist ideology. The handbook instructs members to misrepresent the group’s mission, presenting it as an educational initiative rather than the proselytizing or Dawah campaign it truly is.
In its handbook, ICNA outlines a step-by-step process for advancing its agenda, starting with individual and family-level education and escalating to societal, state, and global influence. At the state level, ICNA envisions a society where Islamic governance takes root and secular laws are replaced with Sharia. The final stage, referred to as the “Global Level,” aims for the formation of coalitions among Islamic states, ultimately leading to a unified Caliphate.
This militant vision has led to ICNA’s affiliations with other extremist organizations. For example, ICNA frequently partners with the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist group committed to the overthrow of secular governments. ICNA also works closely with South Asia’s Jamaat-e-Islami, whose founder, Maududi, declared that the rise of Islamic political power would bring about the “destruction of Western political and social systems.”
The influence of ICNA’s ideology is evident in the group’s persistent efforts to infiltrate American institutions, particularly public education. By presenting itself as a charitable and educational organization, ICNA has gained access to schools, libraries, and community centers, where it promotes a sanitized version of Islam while advancing its radical agenda behind the scenes.
Countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan have taken action against Jamaat-e-Islami by banning its literature and arresting its leaders due to their involvement in militancy. Yet ICNA continues to operate freely in the United States, spreading the same ideology under the guise of cultural understanding and social justice.
Hijacking the NJEA Convention
The NJEA, under Sean Spiller’s leadership, bears full responsibility for this infiltration. By granting ICNA a platform, the NJEA effectively endorsed a group with a documented history of promoting extremism and anti-American values. Materials distributed by ICNA at the convention are now circulating among New Jersey educators, potentially finding their way into classrooms.
Many believe that terror-linked groups like ICNA are being deliberately granted access to New Jersey’s public schools as part of NJEA President Sean Spiller’s calculated political strategy to secure the Governor’s office. By pandering to terror-tied Islamic organizations, Spiller appears willing to compromise the integrity of New Jersey’s educational system in exchange for their political backing. If successful, this alliance would not only bolster Spiller’s gubernatorial ambitions but also grant dangerous Islamic groups influence over one of New Jersey’s highest government offices—a dangerous foothold for those seeking to advance their anti-American agenda.
A Trojan Horse in Public Education
ICNA’s agenda is not about inclusion; it’s about domination. Their teacher guides serve as a Trojan horse, introducing Sharia principles under the guise of equity and multicultural education. Through subtle manipulation, ICNA is pushing for:
- The normalization of Sharia law in public schools, including special privileges for Muslim students during Ramadan and the enforcement of Islamic dress codes.
- Rewriting classroom discussions to align with Islamic narratives, discouraging critical examination of Islam while demonizing Western and Christian traditions.
- Embedding ICNA-affiliated organizations in staff training, ensuring their influence extends beyond the classroom and into school policy.
Who’s Accountable?
The decision to invite ICNA raises urgent questions:
- Why did NJEA President Sean Spiller allow a group with ties to Islamic terror to participate in the convention? Was this decision merely to help him get Isamic votes in the upcoming 2025 gubernatorial race?
- What measures will be taken to ensure ICNA’s materials are not introduced into classrooms?
- How will the NJEA rebuild trust with parents and educators betrayed by this reckless decision?
A Call to Action
The NJEA’s partnership with ICNA represents a dangerous precedent. By allowing this Islamic extremist group to infiltrate one of the most influential educational events in the country, the NJEA has jeopardized the integrity of New Jersey’s public schools. Parents, educators, and community leaders must act now to demand accountability.
This issue extends beyond New Jersey. ICNA’s agenda is national in scope, and its presence at the NJEA convention is a test case for broader infiltration of public institutions. Left unchecked, ICNA will continue using public schools as platforms for advancing their extremist ideology, undermining American values and freedoms.
The time to expose and resist this threat is now—before ICNA’s dangerous curriculum takes root in classrooms nationwide.
RAIR Foundation
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