51 Organizations Tell Congress that Hearings Targeting American Muslims Are Divisive

(WASHINGTON, DC) February 1, 2011–Today, Muslim Advocates, working in coalition with 50 faith, civil rights and human rights organizations, formally asked Congressional leaders to object to divisive hearings targeting millions of American Muslims that House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Peter King (R-NY) has called for later this month on the “‘radicalization’ of the American Muslim community.”

Given Chairman King’s recent insistence that the hearings proceed – despite growing public opposition to them – the organizations also asked that House Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi “…urge him to address violence motivated by extremist beliefs, in all its forms, in a full, fair and objective way. The hearings should proceed from a clear understanding that individuals are responsible for their actions, not entire communities.”

Among the diverse array of signatories to the letter are: Amnesty International USA, Human Rights First, the Japanese American Citizens League, the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, American Muslim Law Enforcement Officers Association, Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services and the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding. A complete list of signatory organizations follows the letter.

Read the coalitions’ full letter (PDF) to Speaker Boehner and Minority Leader Pelosi and view all of the signatories.