Loading ...White House Announces First-Ever Strategy to Combat Islamophobia and Anti-Arab Hate
By: Arwa Almasaari / Arab America Contributing Writer
On December 12th, the White House announced its first-ever strategy to combat Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate. The plan includes over 100 measures to address violence, discrimination, and prejudice against Muslims and Arab Americans. This comes at a time when these communities are facing increasing threats. The strategy aims to tackle these issues through executive actions and calls to action across all sectors of society.
The initiative sets out four primary priorities: raising awareness of hatred against Muslims and Arabs while promoting recognition of their heritage; enhancing the safety and security of these communities; addressing discrimination and ensuring accommodations for their religious practices; and fostering cross-community solidarity to combat hate. The document builds on a similar national initiative President Biden launched in May 2023 to combat antisemitism.
The White House emphasized, “Over the past year, this initiative has become even more important as threats against American Muslim and Arab communities have spiked.” Among the tragic incidents was the heartbreaking October 2023 killing of 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi, a Palestinian American Muslim boy who was fatally stabbed in Illinois. “These heinous acts shattered an American family. And they spread a wave of horror and fear across our nation,” President Biden said in response to the incident.
Just a month later, in November 2023, three Palestinian university students speaking Arabic and wearing keffiyehs were shot in Vermont. One of the students, Hisham Awartani, was left paralyzed from the waist down. These incidents underscore the urgency of addressing anti-Muslim and anti-Arab violence, which has seen a significant rise in recent years.
The strategy itself states, “While individuals have sometimes been targeted because they are thought to be Muslim, it is also crucial to recognize that Arabs are routinely targeted simply for being who they are.” It also underscores the significant contributions of Muslims and Arab Americans to the nation. The strategy highlights the need for improved data collection to better understand the hate these communities face. Additionally, it calls for educational initiatives to promote greater awareness and appreciation of their cultural heritage.
One of the key elements of the plan is to promote effective practices that encourage Muslim and Arab Americans to report hate crimes. It also emphasizes that “discrimination against Muslim and Arab Americans in federally funded activities is illegal” within federal agencies, reiterating the need to uphold legal protections.
The administration claims that the strategy was developed in consultation with Muslim and Arab American communities, academics, and interfaith leaders. This includes organizations like the Islamic Network Group and the Nation’s Mosque. The administration also highlighted Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff‘s involvement in the process.
Despite the White House’s stated commitment to combating Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate, the initiative has drawn criticism, particularly from Arab Americans. Many view the administration’s global actions as contradictory to its domestic efforts. President Biden’s unwavering support for Israel in the ongoing war in Gaza, they argue, has intensified anti-Arab sentiment within the U.S. Arab and Muslim Americans, along with pro-Palestinian groups, have urged President Biden to stop weapons shipments to Israel. The voices of these communities have been largely ignored.
One notable difference between the Strategy to Counter Antisemitism and the one addressing anti-Arab hate is that the former does not mention Arabs at all, while the latter references antisemitism forty-four times across twenty-six pages. The discrepancy highlights an imbalance in focus between the two strategies. The frequent references to antisemitism in the anti-Arab hate strategy suggest a reluctance to center the specific issues faced by Arab and Muslim communities. This raises questions about whether the strategy adequately prioritizes the needs and voices of the communities it aims to protect.
While the strategy may seem like a step in the right direction, its effectiveness remains uncertain, particularly as it was released just five weeks before Biden is set to leave office. The growing divide in U.S. foreign policy and its domestic implications complicate efforts to combat hate.
Addressing Islamophobia and anti-Arab discrimination requires not only changes in domestic policy but also a reevaluation of how the rhetoric from government officials may contribute to fueling hate within the country.
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