Later this week, Representative Peter King, a Republican member of the House of Representatives from Long Island, New York, intends to hold congressional hearings about so-called Muslim extremism. Regardless of his motivations, which I find suspect, the fact is that his hearing is stimulating the sort of ugly, racist, nativist, invective that damages all that America stands for. The Obama Administration is leery of King's hearing and so am I. In fact, no decent person can stand aside and watch this happen.
Despite what you might have heard, ours is not merely a Christian nation. It is a nation founded in support of liberty. And the 1st amendment requires a protection of religious liberty from government interference. The power of our nation is in the protections of all religious faiths (and none, for that matter). A congressional hearing to explore the intolerance present in all religions might be interesting (and even useful) but that's not what Representative King has in mind. He wants to conduct a McCarthy-esque circus of name-calling and accusations directed at Muslim Americans.
It makes my heart ache to think that Muslim Americans must fear for themselves while Peter King insults both their faith and their patriotism. All of our citizens deserve better than to be demonized by ignorant members of Congress. We must stand for more than ourselves.
Tell Representative King that he's part of the problem and ask him not to stage his ridiculous hearing. You can contact him here.
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