(IPT) The Combating International Islamophobia Act, which appears stalled in the U.S. Senate, is receiving a new boost from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO) and other Islamist organizations. It was among the issues pushed last month when a coalition of Islamic organizations gathered in Washington, D.C., to meet with elected officials and Congressional staffers.
The bill, introduced in October by U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., would create a new special envoy to monitor and combat Islamophobia globally. It passed the House last December 219-212, with near-unanimous support from Democrats.
It has not moved in the Senate, however. It is an ambiguous initiative that could create more problems than the ones it aspires to address. If this bill becomes law, critics fear it will contribute to weakening U.S. support of Israel, and disable criticism of Islamist activities both abroad and in the United States.
