FORUM: The General Assembly First Committee

QUESTIONOF: Measures to combat Islamophobia in North America and Europe

SUBMITTED BY: United States of America

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

Aware of the promotion and protection of human rights as the rudimentary foundation of the issue concerning Islamophobia which leads to a violation of freedom of religion and belief,

Reaffirming that Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights […], endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood”,

Recalling the ratification of United Nations (UN) General Assembly Resolutions A/C.3/64/L.54 (2009) and A/C.3/64/L.27 (2009), Human Rights Resolution 2005/3: Combating Defamation of Religions, E/CN.4/RES/2005/3, 1999/82 of 30 April 1999, 2000/84 of 26 April 2000, 2001/4 of 18 April 2001, 2002/9 of 15 April 2002, 2003/4 of 14 April 2003 and 2003/6 of 13 April 2004, on the issues of defamation of religion and elimination of racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerances,

Deeply concerned about nations openly promoting democracy and multiculturalism in contrast to their Islamophobic actions,

Taking into account only 5% of domestic terrorist attacks in USA involved Muslim culprits as stated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation of USA,

Acknowledging the effort of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) on its Ten-year Program of Action 2005 and of 2025,

Deeply concerned with the fact that according to a study performed by the Pew Research Center, 50% of Germans, 23% of Britons, and 40% of Spaniards hold unfavorable views of Muslims and Islamic culture,

Emphasizing the high potential of isolated Western Muslims to join radical terrorist groups with promises of a discriminatory-free society, especially with already more than 2000 foreign fighters in theIslamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) from more than 80 different countries,

  1. Encourages Member States to integrate promotion of equality into national education curricula for all educational institutions through means such as but not limited to:

a)urging the ministries of education and private institutions of higher education to:

  1. firmly reiterate to the student body as well as the staff that Islamophobia will not be tolerated
  2. amend their policies if needed to accommodate this idea

b)educating teachers and instructors of public schools on potentially destructive and malignantresults of Islamophobia, such as hateful atmosphere, truancy, depression and suicide

c)ensuring aspects of religion are included to supplement existing courses such as humanities and world studies, as well as elementary education curriculum for children and teenagers to learn concepts such as but not limited to:

  1. the ideals and traditions of different religions
  2. the necessity of respecting other ethnicities
  3. the differences between religion and terrorist groups

d)seminars, education courses, and counseling provided for parents who express discontent with unbiased information on religious diversity being included in curriculum, including information such as but not limited to:

  1. the curriculum designed purely to be informative for youth about different ideas
  2. the importance of raising open minded and tolerant children
  3. the global impact of religious prejudice in creating conflict and unfair discrimination;
  1. Encourages both intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), such as the Open Societies Foundation (OSF), Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic World International Conference, Islamic Society of National Vision (IGMG), and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), to support and send help to the people who are directly affected by discriminatory acts against Muslims through ways such as but not limited to:

a)alleviating the negative effects of vandalism on religious or personal property through ways such as but not limited to:

  1. sending in volunteer workers from various NGOs listed above to quicken the pace of reconstruction
  2. aiding the initiation of reconstruction by partial payment to get whatever damaged property back to its former state

b)providing medical aid through a range of ways such as but not limited to:

  1. offering any and all medical fees caused by discriminatory acts against innocent Muslims
  2. supplying psychological aid for those affected by discriminatory acts

c)urging Member States of the UN to partake in the annual Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) summit, submitting reports on their efforts to decrease the level of Islamophobia within the States as well as the transparency of the use of funds;

  1. Urges all Member States to raise the general public's comprehension of religions by informing populations about Islamophobia and the positive sides of Islam with above-cited and other organizations through ways such as media campaigns and ensuring information is distributed to places such as but not limited to:

a)both public and private schools

b)workplaces in both the public and private sectors

c)public spaces and transportation (e.g. buses, parks, etc.);

  1. Requeststhe executive branch of the government of all countries to forcefully crack down on both reported and unreported cases of such crimes by enhancing media literacy, especially on the subject of religious propaganda, in youths and adults through campaigns and projects initiated by the government and related NGOs;
  1. Encourages all targeted Muslims to take action and ameliorate their living environment by protecting their rights in ways such as but not limited to:

a)reporting and addressing acts of Islamophobia and anti-Muslim discrimination throughmeans such as but not limited to:

  1. installing an emergency hotline for the reporting of anti-Muslim crimes,
  2. ensuring privacy and anonymity of the informant

b)actively supporting local, regional, and national Muslim organizations;

  1. Asks all Member States to promote unity between Muslims and other religious groups through raising awareness with regard to the importance of religious diversity as well as the threats they face through both governmental and non-governmental organizations by methods such as but not limited to:

a)forming fundraisers with the implementation of well-known, influential figures, such as goodwill ambassadors Emma Watson and David Beckham, in order to raise awareness about Islam and other religions by teaching basic, proper information such as but not limited to:

  1. the many similarities between religions like Christianity and Islam that are usually thought to be radically different
  2. religions used in the name of terrorism do not advocate violence and brutality

b)creating a religiously comfortable and diverse environment through means such as but not limited to:

  1. creating television advertisements and billboards that display natural interactions between people of different religions
  2. encouraging a more frequent inclusion of models of different religions in fashion brands
  3. recommending Muslims to actively participate in community activities.