Bill Text: MI HR0095 | 2015-2016 | 98th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: A resolution to urge the Congress and the President of the United States to take action to protect the rights of Arab and Muslim Americans.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 25-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-05-26 - Referred To Committee On Criminal Justice [HR0095 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2015-HR0095-Introduced.html
Rep. Pagan offered the following resolution:
House Resolution No. 95.
A resolution to urge the Congress and the President of the United States to take action to protect the rights of Arab and Muslim Americans.
Whereas, Hate crimes have become all too common in this country with an acceleration of violence in recent years. Individuals of diverse ethnic, racial, and religious cultures are being victimized by discrimination that is manifested in many forms, hence, creating a climate of fear and intimidation; and
Whereas, Efforts to increase homeland security resulted in the exercise of numerous tactics that have compromised the rights of racial and ethnic communities. One such system---the national terror watch list---has stigmatized and in some cases ruined the lives of individuals under the guise of suspected terror. This system, rife with secrecy and covert in many ways, is in need of a systemic overhaul; and
Whereas, Laws have been passed at the federal and state levels to address hate crimes. Yet, we have seen a precipitous rise in hate groups and hate crimes that target Arab, Hindu, Middle Eastern, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian communities. It is of vital importance for the White House to respond by establishing a task force that addresses hate crimes that target Arab, Hindu, Middle Eastern, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian communities; and
Whereas, Post 9-11 profiling and abuses of Arab and Muslim must be given a formal place in public record. Congressional hearings focused on this issue will enable the aftermath of this tragic event and its impact on the lives of Arab and Muslim Americans to be publicly chronicled; and
Whereas, Local police have heightened acts of unwarranted surveillance of the day-to-day lives of Arab and Muslim Americans, and created a climate of anxiety, mistrust, and fear in these communities. Further federal action through passage of the End Racial Profiling Act (ERPA) would protect the civil liberties and human rights of groups that have long been subject to profiling by law enforcement agencies at all levels of government; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we urge the Congress and the President of the United States to take action to:
· Create a mechanism for oversight of the U.S. terror watch list.
· Establish a White House task force to prevent and respond to hate violence targeting Arab, Hindu, Middle Eastern, Muslim, Sikh and South Asian communities.
· Investigate civil rights abuses through congressional hearings.
· Promote local police accountability.
· Enact the End of Racial Profiling Act (ERPA).
· Reform the Department of Justice's racial profiling guidelines.
;and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation
