BILL NUMBER: AJR 39INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Levine (Coauthors: Assembly Members Achadjian, Alejo, Arambula, Atkins, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Cristina Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gray, Roger Hernndez, Holden, Jones-Sawyer, Lopez, Medina, Mullin, Nazarian, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Mark Stone, Ting, and Weber) (Coauthors: Senators Allen and Block) MAY 19, 2016 Relative to Muslim Americans. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AJR 39, as introduced, Levine. Muslim Americans. This measure would commend Muslim Americans for their economic, political, and cultural impact on California and the United States. This measure would call upon Members of the United States Congress to respect the First Amendment, and to speak out against and reject efforts to monitor mosques, efforts to police and profile Muslim Americans, and efforts to prohibit Muslims from immigrating to the United States, and to speak out against and reject any efforts to pursue an immigration policy based on religion. Fiscal committee: no. WHEREAS, Approximately 3 million Muslim Americans live in the United States, with more than 1 million in California. As the fastest-growing religion in America, by the year 2050, the number of Muslim Americans is projected to more than double. California has the largest Muslim American community in the United States; and WHEREAS, Famous Muslim Americans have been very successful in a variety of fields. Examples include: legendary boxer, Muhammad Ali; civil rights activist, Malcolm X; American journalist for the Washington Post, Fareed Zakaria; retired NBA basketball champion, Shaquille O'Neal; surgeon, author, and television personality, Dr. Mehmet Oz; comedian and author, Aziz Ansari; Chairman of Ethan Allen, Inc., Farooq Kathwari; CEO of AST Research, Inc., and Professor at University of California Irvine, Safi Qureshey; and designer of the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower and the John Hancock Center in Chicago, Fazlur Rahman Khan; and WHEREAS, Muslim Americans work in various careers in commerce, public service, arts, the military, science, sports, and academia and have impacted the United States in practically every profession. They enrich political, cultural, and economic life in California and in the United States; and WHEREAS, Muslim Americans come from many different political, racial, socioeconomic, and ethnic backgrounds. Muslim Americans have come to the United States from more than 80 countries. Muslims have suffered through poverty, violence, wars, and ethnic and religious persecution, causing them to seek refuge in the United States where they can practice their religion freely; and WHEREAS, The history of Muslims in America goes back more than 400 years. During the 17th century, many of the slaves brought to America were Muslims. There is evidence that suggests that Muslims came to the Americas with Christopher Columbus. Scholars have estimated that around a quarter to a third of the enslaved Africans brought to the United States were Muslims; and WHEREAS, The first wave of Muslim immigration to the United States began in the late 19th century from regions under Ottoman Empire rule. In 1924, Muslims were prohibited from entering the United States under the Immigration Act. After World War II, many Muslims came to America as students seeking higher education and as refugees fleeing oppression. With the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, greater numbers of Muslims began migrating to America; and WHEREAS, The First Amendment of the United States Constitution guarantees all Americans the right to practice their religion. Nonetheless, the Muslim American community continues to face religious prejudice. Many members live in fear, facing isolation and discrimination. Recent polling shows that 50 percent of all American voters support a temporary ban on Muslims traveling to the United States. Approximately 55 percent of California Muslim school-aged children have been bullied. There is also a surge in hate crimes against Muslim Americans; and WHEREAS, Some American political figures have proposed or publicly supported " A] total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States." It has also been proposed that a federal commission be established to study immigration policies, including the proposed ban on foreign Muslims entering the United States; and WHEREAS, Some American political figures have also proposed or publicly supported monitoring mosques and policing and profiling Muslim Americans; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Assembly and the Senate of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature commends Muslim Americans for their economic, political, and cultural impact on California and the United States. California prides itself on cultural and religious diversity. Muslim Americans are a vital part of the community and should feel safe and are welcome throughout California and the United States; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature respectfully requests Members of the United States Congress to respect the First Amendment, which forbids Congress from restricting an individual's religious practices, and to speak out against and reject efforts to monitor mosques, efforts to police and profile American Muslims, and efforts to prohibit Muslims from immigrating to the United States, and respectfully requests Members of Congress to speak out against and reject any efforts to pursue an immigration policy based on religion; and be it further Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States, and to the author for appropriate distribution.