Islamophobia ‘very present on both sides of the aisle,’ Tlaib says
Islamophobia "is still very present on both sides of the aisle" on Capitol Hill, Rep. Rashida Tlaib said Sunday.
In an interview on CNN's "State of the Union," Tlaib criticized prejudice against Muslims in the wake of a mass shooting at two mosques in New Zealand that killed 50 people.
Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat, referenced fellow Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who she said has "become very much a target," with both lawmakers receiving death threats.
"I have seen the letters and have seen the various posts from not only Democrats — from Republicans, but also Democrats, that, when we target or disagree, we need to be very careful, in that it's not feeding into the Islamophobia that is growing in our country," Tlaib said.
Tlaib and Omar, who are two of the three Muslims serving in Congress, have been slammed for their critical views of U.S. policy toward Israel. Omar was rebuked by both Republicans and Democrats for making comments about lawmakers' support for Israel deemed by many to be anti-Semitic, leading the House to vote to condemn various forms of hate.
Host Jake Tapper pressed Tlaib on recent comments she made that Islamophobia was prevalent both among Democrats and Republicans.
"This is what I saw, is this double standard," Tlaib explained.
"I pause and think to myself, is it because she's a black American and she's Muslim?" she said.
"And so that's where I pause and say to myself, is there an issue here? And I guess our mere presence there, the fact that now there's not only one, but now three Muslim Americans serving in Congress, that our mere presence is going to be able to possibly break down any of these kinds of racialized, you know, opinions, these — this kind of Islamophobia that I do feel like is still very present on both sides of the aisle," Tlaib said.
"I don't understand why some others can say similar, probably things that could be said to be anti-Semitic that are not being held to the same standard," Tlaib added. "That's what I'm saying."
Tlaib also slammed President Donald Trump's response to Friday's deadly mosque shooting in Christchurch, New Zealand. Though he expressed sympathy for the victims of the attack, Trump also said he doesn't see white nationalism as a rising worldwide threat.
Tlaib said Trump needs to "actually listen and understand the tremendous responsibility he has in being our president."
"We need to be speaking up against this, and it has to start with him reiterating the importance of real information and data that says it's on the rise," she said. "You can't just say it isn't, when the facts say the complete opposite. He needs to do better by us and the country. He needs to speak up and condemn this very loud and very clearly."
Article originally published on POLITICO Magazine