Ilhan Omar’s Islamophobia Resolution: Bad Idea
by Clare M. Lopez
April 2023
At a press conference held outside the U.S. Capitol on 23 March 2023, the first day of Ramadan, Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib, (D-MI) jointly introduced a bill they claim is intended to combat “Islamophobia”. The bill was co-sponsored by 20 Democrat Party members of the U.S. House of Representatives. In December 2021, Omar led an initiative in the House to pass a bill that would establish a special U.S. government envoy on “Islamophobia”, although the term is nowhere officially defined. To date, no “Islamophobia” envoy has yet been designated by the Biden administration, although Secretary of State Antony Blinken did issue a formal statement on 15 March 2023 in support of “International Day to Combat Islamophobia”.
H.Res.250 — 118th Congress (2023-2024) (track it here - no action as of this writing after it was introduced in the House)
Editor’s Note
As the Sharia TipSheet noted on 11/7/22, Islamophobia legislation is a bad idea, starting with the free speech problems it would create. Defining ‘Islamophobia’ was under consideration in Britain in 2022, but the government abandoned the attempt. B’nai Brith points out the problems with trying to define the term: B’nai Brith: “The group says the broad definition could lead to students or staff being punished for expressing dislike for the Republic of Iran’s persecution of LGBTQ people or restrictions placed on women in Saudi Arabia.” British government officials said defining the term would also hamper counterterrorism operations and stoke community tensions. Moreover, Islamophobia legislation criminalizes scholarship and public debate reaching to, among other things, university cultural studies, and political science, as well as criminal justice studies textbooks, discussions, research papers, theses, and dissertations. For example, see page 11, 38, and 93 of the text, The Criminal Investigator-Intelligence Analyst’s Handbook of Islam, for World View discussions that would run afoul of Islamophobia legislation.
In Other News
“IRS Allows Islamic Terrorists to Fundraise Through Leftist Nonprofit” by Daniel Greenfield, Jihad Watch, March 6, 2023
by Clare M. Lopez
April 2023
At a press conference held outside the U.S. Capitol on 23 March 2023, the first day of Ramadan, Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib, (D-MI) jointly introduced a bill they claim is intended to combat “Islamophobia”. The bill was co-sponsored by 20 Democrat Party members of the U.S. House of Representatives. In December 2021, Omar led an initiative in the House to pass a bill that would establish a special U.S. government envoy on “Islamophobia”, although the term is nowhere officially defined. To date, no “Islamophobia” envoy has yet been designated by the Biden administration, although Secretary of State Antony Blinken did issue a formal statement on 15 March 2023 in support of “International Day to Combat Islamophobia”.
H.Res.250 — 118th Congress (2023-2024) (track it here - no action as of this writing after it was introduced in the House)
- “Tell your Congress Rep to reject this “Islamophobia” Resolution being promoted by Ilhan Omar and designated terrorist group CAIR”, Bare Naked Islam, 27 March 2023
- “TOMORROW: CAIR to Join Press Conference Hosted by Rep. Omar to Announce Resolution Combating Islamophobia”, CAIR, March 22, 2023
- “Observing the First International Day to Combat Islamophobia”, Press Statement by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, March 15, 2023
- Last Congress: “House passes Ilhan Omar’s legislation to combat Islamophobia”, by Daniella Diaz, CNN, December 14, 2021
Editor’s Note
As the Sharia TipSheet noted on 11/7/22, Islamophobia legislation is a bad idea, starting with the free speech problems it would create. Defining ‘Islamophobia’ was under consideration in Britain in 2022, but the government abandoned the attempt. B’nai Brith points out the problems with trying to define the term: B’nai Brith: “The group says the broad definition could lead to students or staff being punished for expressing dislike for the Republic of Iran’s persecution of LGBTQ people or restrictions placed on women in Saudi Arabia.” British government officials said defining the term would also hamper counterterrorism operations and stoke community tensions. Moreover, Islamophobia legislation criminalizes scholarship and public debate reaching to, among other things, university cultural studies, and political science, as well as criminal justice studies textbooks, discussions, research papers, theses, and dissertations. For example, see page 11, 38, and 93 of the text, The Criminal Investigator-Intelligence Analyst’s Handbook of Islam, for World View discussions that would run afoul of Islamophobia legislation.
In Other News
“IRS Allows Islamic Terrorists to Fundraise Through Leftist Nonprofit” by Daniel Greenfield, Jihad Watch, March 6, 2023
- The IRS stands accused of allowing Non-Profit 501(c)(3) status for groups with questionable ties to leftist and even terror-linked organizations.