It was billed as the first-ever congressional hearing on the civil rights of American Muslims. But it played more like an Act II than a premiere.
In many ways, the hearing led by Senate Democrats on Tuesday (March 29) was the dramatic antithesis of one House Republicans held earlier this month on homegrown Islamic radicalism.
Instead of gavel-banging, decorum prevailed. Sobering statistics stood in for emotional anecdotes, and laughter, not sobs, resounded in the committee room. While an audience packed the gallery, the dais was empty save for the six senators who came and went.
But the most striking change was the second hearing’s focus: Crimes committed against American Muslims, not by them.
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said he convened Tuesday’s hearing because of rising Islamophobia, manifested by Quran burnings, hate speech and restrictions on mosque construction.
Tags: dick durban, Hearing On The Civil Rights Of American Muslims, islamophobia, muslim americans, peter king hearings
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