Condemning bigotry and violence against Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, South Asian-Americans, and Sikh-Americans.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 234 concerning the condemnation of bigotry and violence against Arab, Muslim, South Asian, and Sikh-Americans. As a co-sponsor of this resolution, I won't hesitate to vocalize my support for it and echo its import.

Racial Profiling and Terrorism

The events of September 11, 2001 have had a profound impact on racial profiling. Following the terrorist attacks, law enforcement agents have subjected individuals of Arab or South Asian descent, Muslims, and Sikhs to racial profiling. While national and local statistics are not yet available, anecdotal accounts of how Arabs, Muslims, and Sikhs have endured racial profiling abound the informational resources.

For example, in the months following September 11th, a new type of racial profiling has developed: ``driving while Arab.'' Arabs, Muslim, and Sikhs across the country were subjected to traffic stops and searches based in whole or part on their ethnicity or religion. On October 4, 2001 in Gwinnett, Georgia an Arab motorist's car was stopped, he was approached by a police officer whose gun was drawn, and he was called a ``bin Laden supporter'' all for making an illegal U- turn. On October 8, 2001, two Alexandria, VA police officers stopped three Arab motorists. The officers questioned the motorists about a verse of the Koran hanging from the rear view mirror, and asked about documents in the back seat. The police officer confiscated the motorists' identification cards and drove off without explanation. He returned 10 minutes later, and claimed he had had to take another call. On December 5, 2001, a veiled Muslim woman in Burbank, Illinois was stopped by a police officer for driving with suspended plates. The officer asked the woman when Ramadan was over, asked her offensive question about her hair, and pushed her into his patrol car as he arrested her for driving with suspended plates. The woman was released from custody later that day.

A particularly egregious form of terrorism profiling occurs when Arab men and women are detained and deported without due process. Since September 11th, hundreds of Arab and Muslim individuals have been detained on suspicion of terrorist activity. Practically none of these individuals was involved with terrorism. However, many were detained for weeks and eventually charged with minor immigration violations. Based on these minor immigration violations some were deported. In one case, two Pakistani immigrants were arrested and detained 45 days for allegedly overstaying their visas. In another case an Israeli was detained for 66 days before being charged with entering the United States unlawfully. In a particularly shocking case, a French teacher from Yemen, who was married to an American citizen and therefore eligible to become a citizen himself, was reporting for duty as an army recruit at Fort Campbell, Kentucky on September 15, 2001. The man was apprehended by federal agents, separated from his wife and interrogated for 12 hours. The agents accused him of violating immigration laws, conspiring with Russian terrorists, spousal abuse, and threatened him with beatings. The man was given a lie detector test which proved he was telling the truth when he denied being associated with terrorists.

Expounding upon the above issue is a trend of ethnic profiling against South Asian-Americans relative to the SARS pandemic. People have been treated with indifference and hostility because of their racial background. This treatment is simply founded upon ignorance. Human rights and the principles of due process, freedom of expression, and freedom of association should not be compromised by ignorance.

The Consequences of Racial Profiling

The consequences of racial profiling for minority groups in the United States, for Arab, Muslim, South Asian, and Sikh groups, and in the immigrations context are dire for individuals who are both innocent and guilty of criminal activity. In the case of the innocent, for every person in possession of drugs apprehended through profiling, many more law-abiding minorities are treated as if they are criminals. A 1999 Gallup Poll revealed that 42 percent of African Americans, and 72 percent of African American males between the ages of 18 and 34, believe they have been stopped by police because of their race. In fact, many minorities choose to drive certain cars, on certain routes, wearing certain clothes, to avoid drawing attention from police.

For those individuals who have been convicted of felonies, racial profiling contributes to the disparity in arrest and crime rates that leads to the minority-majority prison population. Blacks are just 12 percent of the U.S. population and 11 percent of drug users, but Blacks are 38 percent of those arrested for drug offenses and 59 percent of those convicted for drug offenses. Hispanics make up 13 percent of the population and 10 percent of illicit drug users, but they are 37 percent of the overall prison population. Racial profiling increases the stops and arrests of minority

groups. Frequent stops and arrests of minorities generate more extensive criminal histories, and result in longer sentences. Nearly one in three Black males aged 20-29 on any given day is either in prison, on probation, or on parole. As of 1995, one in 14 adult Black males was in prison or jail on any given day. A Black male born in 1991 has a 33 percent chance of spending part of his life in prison. A Hispanic male has a one in six chance.

Racial profiling results in increased arrests and convictions of minorities. In many States, a felony conviction can impact a person's ability to exercise their basic social rights. In 46 States and the District of Columbia, convicted adults cannot vote. Thirty-two States disenfranchise felons on parole, while 29 States disenfranchise felons on probation. In part due to racial profiling, 1.4 million Black men, 13 percent of all adult Black males, are denied the right to vote. In two States, 31 percent of all adult Black males are permanently disenfranchised.

For the reasons stated above, Mr. Speaker and Ranking Member, I support the Resolution condemning bigotry and violence against Arab, Muslim, South Asian, and Sikh-Americans that I have co-sponsored. I would ask that my Colleagues join my fellow sponsors in fighting bigotry with H. Res. 234.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 234) condemning bigotry and violence against Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, South Asian-Americans, and Sikh- Americans.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Res. 234.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, introduced by the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa), House Resolution 234 condemns bigotry and violence against individuals of Arab, Muslim, South Asian and Sikh-Americans dissent. It was introduced in response to concerns about an increase in discriminatory backlash crimes following the commencement of military action in Iraq in March 2003. Specifically, House Resolution 234 recognizes the many contributions of Arab-, Muslim-, South Asian-, and Sikh-Americans to our culture and society, calls upon law enforcement authorities to work to vigorously prevent, investigate and prosecute discriminatory backlash crimes, and reaffirms the House of Representatives' commitment to assuring that the civil rights and civil liberties of all Americans are protected.

The weeks and months following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, saw a significant increase in the number of crimes committed against those perceived to be of Arab- Muslim-, South Asian-, and Sikh- American dessent. Take, for example, the FBI's hate crime statistics for 2001. According to this report, the number of anti-Islamic incidents grew 1,600 percent between 2000 and 2001 taking such incidents from the second-least reported category of reported religious-bias incidents in 2000 of the second-highest reported category of religious-bias incidents in 2001.

The oversight work of the Subcommittee on the Constitution has revealed a significant effort on the part of the Department of Justice to address this alarming increase in discriminatory backlash crimes. Shortly after the September 2001 terrorist attacks, former Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, Ralph Boyd, instructed the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division's National Origin Working Group to help combat violations of federal civil rights laws involving individuals perceived to be of Arab-, Muslim-, South Asian-, or Sikh-American origin.

Specifically, the Working Group now receives reports of violations based upon national origin, citizenship status, and religion; conducts outreach to vulnerable communities; and works with other Civil Rights Division components and governmental agencies to ensure accurate referral, effective outreach, and provision of services to victims of civil rights violations.

In addition, the Civil Rights Division continues to spearhead the criminal investigations and prosecutions of hundreds of backlash crimes. In April, Attorney General John Ashcroft announced that approximately 400 incidents of backlash discrimination have been investigated since September 2001 by the Civil Rights Division, the FBI and the U.S. Attorneys' Offices. Of these investigations, approximately 70 State and local criminal prosecutions were initiated and Federal charges were brought in ten cases. It is my hope that the Civil Rights Division continues to vigilantly investigate and prosecute those crimes.

Similar to House Concurrent Resolution 227, which was approved by the House just days after the terrorist attacks of 2001, House Resolution 234 will again express this body's appreciation for the contributions of Arab-, Mus- lim-, South Asian-, and Sikh-Americans to the Nation and condemnation of all actions of bigotry and violence towards such individuals. I applaud the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) for his leadership on this issue and urge my colleagues to strongly support this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood).

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time as well.

Mr. Speaker, Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, South Asian-Americans and Sikh-Americans are a vital part of America. These communities join other ethnic and religious groups as they and their ancestors came to this nation in search of political freedom and economic opportunity. They have flourished in this nation and have made great contributions to our society. They have joined the ranks of service-members, law enforcement officers, teachers, doctors, lawyers, and business people. They also hold positions of

leadership in this society, including members of Congress and Cabinet members.

But, tragically in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks, some bigots turned against Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, Sikh-Americans, and South Asian-Americans, and singled them out as targets for violence and threats of violence. Hate crimes against these communities, including violent physical assaults, increased sharply. The FBI reported that the number of anti-Muslim incidents increased by 1600 percent from 2001 to 2002, largely in response to this post 9/11 backlash. Obviously this kind of increase has only added evermore to the awesome responsibilities facing law enforcement offices. Therefore, it is unfortunate that their resources must be directed to the unreasonable few rotten applies that take out their vengeance on the unsuspecting innocent.

Most Americans all over responded and came to the support of Arab- Americans, Muslim-Americans, Sikh-Americans, and South Asian-Americans, condemning the attacks and embracing these communities. A resolution at that time, which I cosponsored, was passed that condemned violence against these groups.

But, now again Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, Sikh-Americans, and South Asian-Americans are suffering, and it is again time to express support for them. Since the time when the war in Iraq began, hate crimes have seen another hike. There was a man who law enforcement believes was motivated by anti-Arab sentiment, when he allegedly shot four people to death in New York City during February and March. Even after President Bush declared that major combat operations had ended, the hate crimes against Arab, Muslim, South Asian and Sikh-Americans have continued.

These crimes are wrong and are opposed to the values of American society. We must condemn them in the most serious and strongest terms, and law enforcement must investigate and vigorously prosecute the perpetrators.

By the same token, we must pay close attention to the concerns of Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, Sikh-Americans and South Asian- Americans, that the federal government views them with suspicion, and they are being subjected to grossly heightened levels of surveillance as a result of their national or religious origins. Counter-terrorism efforts must not discriminate on the basis of national origin or religion or violate the civil liberties of innocent Americans. The government's efforts to combat terrorism must focus on criminal or terrorist behavior, not ethnicity or creed.

Discriminatory counter-terrorism tactics and those that violate civil liberties are wrong and do not make the country safer. We must look to history, which has shown us that respect for individual rights enhances our stability and security. Singling out mostly innocent Arab, Muslim, South Asian and Sikh Americans runs counter to the principle of rejecting the use of racial and ethnic profiling, while we need to focus on building trust and respect by working cooperatively with community members.

The resolution before us today, H. Res. 234, recognizes that Arab- Americans, Muslim-Americans, Sikh-Americans, and South Asian-Americans greatly contribute to American society and serve honorably in the military or law enforcement and it urges respect for civil rights and liberties, condemns bias-motivated crimes against members of these communities, and calls upon federal and local law enforcement to prosecute such crimes vigorously. I strongly urge all of my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 234. H. Res. 234 condemns bigotry and violence against Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, South Asian-Americans and Sikh-Americans, and I urge all of my colleagues to support it.

This resolution condemns bigotry and violence against individuals of Arab-American, Muslim-American, South Asian-American, and Sikh-American dissent. It was introduced in response to concerns about an increase in discriminatory backlash crimes following the commencement of military action in Iraq in March of 2003. Specifically, House Resolution 234 recognizes the many contributions of Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, South Asian-Americans, and Sikh-Americans to the Nation and calls upon law enforcement authorities to work vigorously to prevent discriminatory backlash crimes against such persons and to investigate such crimes that do occur and reaffirms the House of Representative's commitment to assuring that civil rights of all Americans, including individuals of Arab-American, Muslim-American, South Asian-American, and Sikh-American dissent, be protected.

In the weeks and months following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, this Nation saw a significant increase in the number of crimes committed against those perceived to be Arab-Americans, Muslim- American,

South Asian-American, and Sikh-American descent.

According to hate crimes statistics compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, criminal acts motivated by bias against ethnicity/ national origin were the second-most frequently reported bias in 2001, more than doubling the number of incidents, offenses, victims and known offenders from 2000 data and the anti-other ethnicity/national origin category quadrupled in incidents, offenses, victims, and known offenders.

Similarly, the number of anti-Islamic incidents grew 1,600 percent between the year 2000 and 2001, taking such incidents from the second- least reported category of reported religious-bias incidents in 2000 to the second-highest category of religious-bias in 2001.

Mr. Speaker, there can be no room for hatred and bigotry in America. Our history has taught us that when we rise above such hatred, we are stronger as a Nation. Too often in our history, fear and panic have resulted in discrimination and even oppression by our government of groups perceived to be a threat. Invariably, when things calm down and cooler heads prevail, there is a great sense of national shame at the injustices perpetuated against innocent people whose only crime was their race, religion, national origin or ethnicity.

It is important that this House go on record as condemning these reprehensible acts which betray what is best about our Nation. We are a diverse Nation, and we are the stronger for it. We are we cannot permit blind hatred to destroy that.

In addition to this resolution, I would hope that this House will also turn its attention to the extent to which the government has assaulted the rights of innocent individuals simply because of their race, religion or national origin. In addition to the hate crimes perpetuated by individuals, we must be vigilant that the power of government not be abused and that people not be targeted by law enforcement even if they have done nothing wrong.

The right to live free from violence and discrimination is a fundamental right of all Americans. So long as one American is denied that right, no one can truly be free. I urges all my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Crowley).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Holt).

Mr. Speaker, I have no requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Texas for the time.

I rise today to voice my strong support to House Resolution 234, introduced in a bipartisan way by the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) and the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur). House Resolution 234 condemns bigotry and violence against Arab Americans, Muslim Americans, South Asian Americans, and Sikh Americans at a time when Americans in these communities are facing unprecedented levels of discrimination and abuse.

We cannot stand by and allow the ignorance of a few to overcome the tradition of tolerance in this Nation of Nations. I urge my colleagues to vote unanimously for this important resolution and, in so doing, send a clear and bipartisan message to all Americans that Congress will not accept, condone, or ignore acts of hatred.

Although the tragic events of September 11, 2001, united most Americans, some misguided individuals in our society have taken their anger and directed it at their neighbors because they look different or subscribe to a different religion.

We Americans have struggled throughout our history to purge ourselves of crippling stereotypes that spread a cloud of ignorance and despair on our otherwise great society. Members of this Congress and of the larger American community fought valiantly in the 1960s to end legal racial discrimination against African Americans. We have come a long way since the days of sanctioned racism, but we still have miles to go to eradicate the vestiges of bigotry that from time to time consume the ignorant among us.

In my home State of New Jersey, many of my constituents of Asian descent, many of Muslim religion or Sikh religion have suffered acts of violence simply due to their religion or the color of their skin. One of the most tragic cases involved the murder 4 days after September 11, 2001, of Waqar Hasan who was shot to death in his convenience store by a man who said he did it to retaliate against ``Arab Americans or whatever you want to call them.'' Hasan was a Pakistani immigrant who was murdered for no other reason than that he was a Muslim with a Middle Eastern face.

When Mr. Hasan was murdered, the visas and applications for permanent residency of his wife and four daughters died with him. After building lives in America for 9 years, the Hasan family has gone from being one step away from permanent residency to one step away from deportation.

Earlier this year, I introduced legislation, H.R. 867, to prevent the deportation of Waqar's wife and four daughters, who without this would be forced to leave America. I have been working closely with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and I am grateful to the chairman and ranking member of the Committee on the Judiciary and its Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security, and Claims for their bipartisan support of the Hasan family. I look forward to continue to work with them in the coming weeks to pass H.R. 867.

Today, Congress can take a step to help the Hasan family and immigrant families like them and any other families who are victims of racism and bigotry by passing House Resolution 234. We will be making a promise to the American people and all who seek a new life of opportunity on our shores that here in America we treat each other with dignity and respect.