November 18, 2009 | www.adc.org | The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) and its President, Mary Rose Oakar, are proud to announce that Sara Najjar-Wilson has been appointed to the position of ADC’s National Executive Director. Sara is an experienced attorney with more than 30 years of service in the Federal government, having served as a Trial Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division and as a Senior Attorney in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Office of the General Counsel. Among other leadership positions, she has served as Chairperson of the Federal Litigation Section of the Federal Bar Association (FBA) and as the Program Chairperson of the Washington Foreign Law Society. Ms. Najjar-Wilson represented NASA in several “high profile” activities, including the interests of the families of the late Challenger astronauts. Among many honors and awards, Sara received the NASA Exceptional Service Medal.
President Oakar said, “Sara has been active in ADC for many years, and has great knowledge of ADC’s mission of defending the civil and human rights of people of Arab descent and promoting their rich cultural heritage.”
Ms. Najjar-Wilson said, “It will be a pleasure to work with the outstanding ADC Community, including ADC’s highly respected leadership and professional staff. I look forward to continuing to foster ADC’s non-sectarian and non-partisan mission of protecting the civil and human rights of all people and upholding the American beacon of hope, equality and freedom.”
Nabil Mohamad will act as Deputy Director. Nabil is also the National Organizing Director for ADC, and has been with ADC since 1998. He is also active with many interfaith groups and has worked consistently for peace and justice in the Middle-East. President Oakar said "Nabil has been very responsible for maintaining and expanding ADC’s grassroots base across the Nation. He has an invaluable institutional knowledge about ADC and will be helpful in this leadership position."
Former ADC National Executive Director, Kareem Shora, worked for ADC for ten years, and is now a Senior Policy Advisor to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.
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NOTE TO EDITORS: The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), which is non sectarian and non partisan, is the largest Arab-American civil rights organization in the United States. It was founded in 1980, by former Senator James Abourezk to protect the civil rights of people of Arab descent in the United States and to promote the cultural heritage of the Arabs. ADC has 38 chapters nationwide, including chapters in every major city in the country, and members in all 50 states.
The ADC Research Institute (ADC-RI), which was founded in 1981, is a Section 501(c)(3) educational organization that sponsors a wide range of programs on behalf of Arab Americans and of importance to all Americans. ADC-RI programs include research studies, seminars, conferences and publications that document and analyze the discrimination faced by Arab Americans in the workplace, schools, media, and governmental agencies and institutions. ADC-RI also celebrates the rich cultural heritage of the Arabs.