WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden said on Thursday that his administration wouldn’t watch silently as Muslims in America are targeted by hate-mongers.

The White House announced on Wednesday the administration will develop a strategy to counter Islamophobia in the United States.

“We can’t stand by while hate against Muslims, and those wrongfully perceived to be Muslim, including Arabs and Sikhs, is given oxygen,” President Biden said in his statement.

“Silence is complicity. We won’t be silent,” he said, adding that’s why his administration was developing a national strategy to counter Islamophobia and related forms of hate.

Vice President Kamala Harris said taking on hate was a national priority and that’s why “we are developing a strategy to combat Islamophobia”.

“This action is the latest step forward in our work to combat a surge of hate in America,” she said.

The strategy is a joint effort led by the Domestic Policy Council and the White House National Security Council.

It aims to create a comprehensive and detailed plan to protect Muslims and those perceived to be Muslim “because of their race, national origin, ancestry, or any other reason, from discrimination, hate, bigotry, and violence,”  a White House official told CNN.

The White House will also work with the American Muslim community to define the strategy and to identify issues.

The US media noted that President Biden’s standing had taken a deep hit among Muslim Americans as anger swells over his handling of the Middle East crisis.

Last week, a small group of Muslim American leaders had a private meeting with the president and called on him to show more empathy toward Palestinian lives after he cast doubt on civilian death figures in Gaza, two attendees told CNN.

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2023