MPAC Urges Revisions to Religious Liberty Report to Address Anti-Muslim Discrimination
Washington, D.C. | mpac.org | July 6, 2026—The Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) is deeply concerned that the Religious Liberty Commission's draft report, released for public comment, fails to meaningfully address Islamophobia and anti-Muslim discrimination in the United States.
A report intended to assess the state of religious liberty should reflect the experiences of all faith communities. Yet despite years of documented anti-Muslim hate crimes, discrimination, threats against mosques, efforts to restrict Muslim religious practice, and the disproportionate targeting of Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian communities, the draft report is largely silent on the challenges facing American Muslims.
Religious liberty is not reserved for the majority or for those whose faith aligns with prevailing political views. The First Amendment guarantees every American the right to freely exercise their religion without fear of discrimination, government targeting, or unequal treatment. Any serious examination of religious liberty must acknowledge when those protections fall short.
Through MPAC's First Amendment Center, we have worked directly with students, educators, families, religious institutions, and community members facing religious discrimination, anti-Muslim harassment, unequal treatment, retaliation for protected speech, and barriers to fully exercising their constitutional rights. These are not isolated incidents. They represent a persistent challenge to the promise of religious freedom in America.
We respectfully urge the Commission to revise its final report to include a substantive examination of Islamophobia, anti-Muslim discrimination, and the constitutional challenges confronting Muslim communities. Doing so would strengthen the report, better reflect the nation's religious diversity, and reaffirm that religious liberty belongs equally to every American.
Religious liberty cannot be selective. It must protect every faith, every community, and every person equally under the Constitution.
