U.S. releases strategy to combat anti-Muslim, anti-Arab hate
The United States Friday December 13, 2024 released its first ever national strategy to combat Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate
Washington: The United States Friday December 13, 2024 released its first ever national strategy to combat Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate.
"The Strategy was developed through a whole-of-government collaboration with a broad range of civil society partners to describe and address the bias, discrimination, and threats Muslim and Arab Americans have long faced", the White House said in a statement released today.
The 64-page document comes weeks before the inauguration of former President Donald Trump, who imposed a travel ban on people from some majority Muslim countries during his first term that Biden rescinded on his first day in office.
"Threats against Muslims, Arabs spiked"
This initiative has become even more important as threats against American Muslim and Arab communities have spiked over the past year, the White House said, recalling how 6-year old Wadee Alfayoumi, an American Muslim boy of Palestinian descent, was viciously killed in his home in Illinois in October 2023.
In a foreword to the strategy, the outgoing President, Joe Biden, called the attacks on the Chicago boy and his mother “heinous acts”.
“Muslims and Arabs deserve to live with dignity and enjoy every right to the fullest extent along with all of their fellow Americans,” Biden wrote. “Policies that result in discrimination against entire communities are wrong and fail to keep us safe.”
"Over 100 Executive Branch Actions"
The Strategy contains more than 100 Executive Branch Actions and more than 100 Calls to Action to every sector of society to prevent and address such violent attacks and to ensure that Muslim and Arab Americans enjoy the liberties and opportunities that are the bedrock of our country.
"With this initiative, we are creating a path for progress, in partnership with all levels of government, civil society, and the private sector, both now and over the long term", the White House said.
The initiative noted that Muslim and Arab Americans are facing discrimination in settings such as education, employment, public accommodations, land use, housing, health care, and access to financial services even though they are illegal.
"The Administration has instituted new practices to accommodate religion and produced a wide range of resources and trainings on nondiscrimination and religious freedom", the White House said.
While emphasising on the need to build cross-community solidarity and collective action to counter hate, the White House stressed, "Threats to one community must be treated as threats to all."
"Everyone deserves to live their lives without fear of violence, harassment, or discrimination. The Strategy addresses the targeting of Muslim and Arab communities, including through unprecedented investments in strengthening the security of nonprofits and increased efforts to ensure easier access to those funds; correction of discriminatory travel restrictions; and new tools to address transnational repression, doxing, swatting, and hoax threats", the White House said.
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