House of Representatives Passes Combating International Islamophobia Act

WASHINGTON—Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed Rep. Omar and Rep. Jan Schakowsky's bill the Combating International Islamophobia Act, 219-212. Hours earlier, the Biden Administration announced the President's support for the legislation.

The bill requires the U.S. State Department to create a Special Envoy for monitoring and combating Islamophobia, and include state-sponsored Islamophobic violence and impunity in the Department's annual human rights reports. The creation of the Special Envoy will help policymakers better understand the interconnected, global problem of anti-Muslim bigotry, and will establish a comprehensive strategy for U.S. leadership in combatting Islamophobia worldwide.

"We are in the midst of a staggering of anti-Muslim violence and discrimination around the world," Rep. Omar said today in a floor speech. "At rise its worst, it is Uyghurs in concentration camps in China and a genocide against the Rohingya in Burma. But those atrocities are part of a deeper fabric of violence against Muslims and impunity for violence against Muslims at a global level. In India, Prime Minister Modi's government has moved to strip citizenship from millions of Muslims and has occupied Kashmir. In Sri Lanka, anti-Muslim laws and violence have imposed terror on the community. In Hungary, Belarus, and Poland, politicians have stoked fear of Muslim refugees and immigrants. In New Zealand and Canada, white supremacist violence has targeted Muslims, including at their places of worship. Earlier this year, the United Nations commissioned a report and concluded that Islamophobia has reached ‘epidemic proportions' and urged nations around the world to take all necessary measures to combat it. As a country that was founded on religious liberty, our leadership on international religious freedom depends on recognizing that Islamophobia is global in scope, and we must lead the global effort to address it. That's why Rep, Schakowsky and I have introduced this bill, to create a special envoy for monitoring and combating Islamophobia at the State Department."

"As a proud co-lead of the Combating International Islamophobia Act, I was thrilled to see it pass the House today," said Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (IL-09). "In the U.S. alone, nearly 70 percent of American Muslims have reported personally experiencing anti-Muslim hate, bigotry, and even violence. This anti-Muslim hate isn't just confined to certain areas of the country or the globe. It happens everywhere – including in the halls of Congress. It is well past time for the U.S. to seriously examine and address anti-Muslim hate at home and abroad."

This year, the United States has seen over 500 documented complaints of anti-Muslim hate and bias. In a recent study conducted by CAIR, found 69% of respondents personally experienced anti-Muslim bigotry or discrimination since 9/11. In a separate study conducted by the Othering and Belonging Institute, found 67% of Muslims personally experienced Islamophobia in their lifetimes. In March, the United Nations Human Rights Council cited discrimination and hatred towards Muslims has risen to "epidemic proportions."

There has been a staggering rise in incidents of violent Islamophobia incidents worldwide. Whether it is the atrocities being committed against the Uyghurs in China and the Rohingya in Burma, the crackdowns on Muslim populations in India and Sri Lanka, the scapegoating of Muslim refugees and other Muslims in Hungary and Poland, the acts of white supremacist violence targeting Muslims in New Zealand and Canada, or the targeting of minority Muslim communities in Muslim-majority countries like Pakistan, Bahrain, and Iran—the problem of Islamophobia is global in scope.

The Combating International Islamophobia Act is cosponsored by Reps Bass, Bowman, Carson, Correa, Dean, Dingell, Eshoo, García (IL), Green (TX), Grijalva, Jacobs (CA), Jackson Lee, H. Johnson (GA), Jones, Kim (NJ), Lowenthal, C. Maloney, McGovern, Newman, Norton, Ocasio-Cortez, Pascrell, Payne, Phillips, Pocan, Pressley, Rush, Sires, Tlaib, Watson Coleman, Williams, Jayapal, Davis, Castro, Meeks, Sánchez, Quigley, Raskin, Evans, Lawrence, Trone, Blumenauer, Sarbanes, Chu, Ruppersberger, Malinowski, Wild, Schneider, Scott, Lieu, Sherman, Brown, McCollum, Johnson (TX), Degette and Neguse.

The Combating International Islamophobia Act is endorsed by the American Muslim Empowerment Network (AMEN), American Muslims for Palestine, Americans for Peace Now, Arizona Muslim Alliance, Center for Victims of Torture, Church World Service, Common Defense, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), Human Rights First, ICNA Council for Social Justice (ICNA CSJ), IfNotNow, International Islamophobia Studies Research Association, Islamophobia Studies Center, Islamophobia Studies Journal, Jetpac Resource Center, Jewish Voice for Peace Action, Libyan American Alliance, MPower Change, Muslim American Society, Muslim Public Affairs Council, Oxfam America, Poligon Education Fund, Revolutionary Love Project, Secure Justice, South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT), Together We Serve, U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO), United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries, and Veterans For Peace.

Full text of the legislation is available here.

Rep. Omar's full remarks on the House floor can be found here and below:

Mr. Speaker, we are in the midst of a staggering rise of anti-Muslim violence and discrimination around the world. At its worst, it is Uyghurs in concentration camps in China and a genocide against the Rohingya in Burma. But those atrocities are part of a deeper fabric of violence against Muslims and impunity for violence against Muslims at a global level. In India, Prime Minister Modi's government has moved to strip citizenship from millions of Muslims . In Sri Lanka, anti-Muslim laws and violence have imposed terror on the community. In Hungary, Belarus, and Poland, politicians have stoked fear of Muslim refugees and immigrants. In New Zealand and Canada, white supremacist violence has targeted Muslims, including at their places of worship.

And of course we in the United States are not immune to this hatred. It is no secret that the previous President of the United States explicitly vowed a, quote, "complete and total shutdown of Muslims entering the United States." But Trump, was simply taking advantage of a much deeper culture of Islamophobia that has existed for the past two decades—from the Patriot Act, to the CVE program, to Abu Ghraib. None of these things are happening in isolation.

We must understand that these problems are interconnected. Earlier this year, the United Nations commissioned a report and concluded that Islamophobia has reached quote – "epidemic proportions" and urged nations around the world to take all necessary measures to combat it. As a country that was founded on religious liberty, our leadership on international religious freedom depends on recognizing that Islamophobia is global in scope, and we must lead the global effort to address it.

That's why Rep Schakowsky and I have introduced this bill, to create a special envoy for monitoring and combating Islamophobia at the State Department. The bill also adds violence and incitement targeted at Muslims to the Department's annual human rights report and international religious freedom report.

There are cynics who would rather see us divided on racial, ethnic, gender and religious lines, because it suits their political agenda. But I believe as Americans we should stand united against all forms of bigotry. In fact, this legislation is modeled on the special envoy to combat antisemitism, and I was proud to cosponsor and vote last Congress on legislation to elevate that envoy to a cabinet-level position. Because it is important that we live in a world where everyone is free of persecution based on their religious background or beliefs. And until everyone is free to practice their religion no one is.

So I want to thank the co-lead of this bill, a partner in justice, Jan Schakowsky, along with Chairman Meeks, Speaker Pelosi and the leadership team for their commitment to this legislation. I also want to thank the Council on American Islamic Relations for their advocacy on this, and all the groups, representing a cross-section of human rights, civil rights and faith coalitions, who fight for the religious rights of everyone around the world.

Thank you and I yield back.

###