Veronica Laizure doesn’t want Oklahomans to get the wrong idea about Afghan refugees — or any refugees — in Oklahoma.
Laizure is the Deputy Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR Oklahoma, and a civil rights attorney. She said Oklahomans should remember that one or two people’s extreme actions do not represent any community.
Her message is in response to news of Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, an Afghan citizen living in Oklahoma City who was arrested by the FBI and charged by the Department of Justice for plotting an act of terror on Nov. 5 — the day of the general election.
Also arrested was Tawhedi’s brother-in-law, who is a minor-aged high school student living in Moore.
“Extremist violence is happening, but it’s across the social, political and religious spectrums,” Laizure said. “If we are not vigilant about it, if we're not watching, understanding what our kids are seeing online, what kind of content they're being exposed to, if we're not having conversations in our own communities about fighting extremism, this becomes the result.”
The foiled attack was “targeting large gatherings of people” on Election Day, court records show. The two individuals planned to die as martyrs.
“I understand that it is very frightening to think that someone would want to target those who are trying to vote,” Laizure said.
Even so, she says Oklahomans should not let fear deter them from getting to a ballot box this November.
Oklahoma elected officials condemn terrorism, question Afghan refugee vetting
Gov. Kevin Stitt was among the first to comment on news of the foiled plot. He thanked law enforcement and threatened accountability for those who threaten national security.
“I want to extend my deepest gratitude to our investigators and law enforcement officers for successfully uncovering and stopping this terrorist plot before innocent lives were put in danger,” Stitt said in a press release. “Those who seek to harm our nation, threaten our freedoms, and disrupt our way of life will be held accountable and face the full force of the law.”
Attorney General Gentner Drummond told The Oklahoman he thinks Tawhedi is an example of what President Joe Biden’s hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan brought to the United States because of his administration’s lack of proper vetting of refugees.
"We face the unsettling prospect that Tawhedi is not the only terrorist brought here by our own government," Drummond said.
Laizure stands by the vetting processes Afghan refugees underwent as they were relocated across the state and the country. She said the Afghans living in Oklahoma and those who helped resettle them are a testament that individuals like Tawhedi are the exception, not the rule.
“Our Afghan community have been great neighbors, partners and friends,” she said. “They came here with the blessings and the support of all Oklahomans, who really opened their arms to the new Afghan neighbors as they were building lives here in our neighborhoods and communities.”
Laizure had a message for refugees in Oklahoma: Keep an eye out for bullying against your child in school, be aware of your rights and be able to express them, and know that even though hate rears its head in times like this, there is legal support out there to help you navigate it, should that be necessary.
“We know that bullying deeply impacts our young Muslims and that schools and administrators need to be very careful in addressing anti-Muslim and Anti-refugee rhetoric where it occurs in the classroom and outside of the classroom because it has really detrimental effects on these kids and their ability to maximize what should be a safe space and get the most out of their education,” she said.
She said Oklahomans experiencing or witnessing Islamophobic or anti-Asian hate can report it on CAIR Oklahoma’s website to help the organization track incidents and potentially help with legal action.
