Should an Office Be Established in the State Dept. to Monitor & Combat Islamophobia Around the World? (H.R. 5665)

What is H.R. 5665?

(Updated February 24, 2022)

This bill would establish the Office to Monitor and Combat Islamophobia in the State Department, which would be modeled off of a similar State Dept. office dedicated to monitoring and combating anti-Semitism. The office would be led by the Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Islamophobia, who would be responsible for monitoring and combating acts of Islamophobia and Islamophobic incitement that occur in foreign countries, and coordinating and assisting in the preparation of reports assessing and describing the extent of those acts.

Argument in favor

Islamophobia is on the rise around the world, particularly in Burma and China. This bill would establish an office in the State Dept. that’s dedicated to monitoring and combating Islamophobia, similar to the office to monitor and combat anti-Semitism.

Argument opposed

Islamophobia around the world is unfortunate, but not much would be gained by the State Dept. establishing a duplicative office within the federal bureaucracy that's dedicated to monitoring and combating Islamophobia.

Impact

The State Dept.

Cost of H.R. 5665

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) introduced this bill to establish an office in the State Dept. that would be dedicated to monitoring and combating Islamophobia around the world. Omar explained in a press release:

“We are seeing a rise in Islamophobia in nearly every corner of the globe. In my home state of Minnesota, vandals spray-painted hate messages and a Nazi swastika on and near the Moorhead Fargo Islamic Center. These types of incidents are all too common for Muslims in the United States and beyond. As part of our commitment to international religious freedom and human rights, we must recognize Islamophobia and do all we can to eradicate it. That’s why I’m proud to partner with Rep. Jan Schakowsky to create a special envoy to put an end to this bigotry.”

"The deliberately partisan bill before us today has no Republican cosponsors, and committee Democrats made no effort to work toward a mutually agreeable approach prior to markup. It seems less like a serious legislative effort to enact a necessary law, than a rushed, partisan sop to the most progressive wing of the Democrat party. The bill does not condemn persecution or gross violations of internationally recognized human rights against Muslims, and Democrats voted down an amendment that would have appropriately focused the new office's efforts of the plight of the Uyghurs and Rohingya, in particular. Instead, H.R. 5665, creates a duplicative office and a new special envoy in the State Department, which it charges with combating 'Islamophobia and Islamophobic incitement,' two deliberately vague terms that appear nowhere in federal statute and are defined nowhere in the bill."

This legislation has the support of 52 cosponsors in the House, all of whom are Democrats.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) Press Release

• Sponsoring Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) Press Release (Committee Passage)

• House Foreign Affairs Committee Report
  

Summary by Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: iStock.com / ozgurdonmaz)