White House to Convene Muslim and Sikh Leaders to Discuss Discrimination, Violence
Senior White House officials are meeting Monday with American Muslim and Sikh leaders increasingly concerned about violent attacks on members of their communities in supposed retribution following recent terrorist incidents in the U.S. and Paris.
Senior adviser Valerie Jarrett, Domestic Policy Council director Cecilia Munoz and Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes will attend the meeting with the Muslim community, while Ms. Munoz will lead the meeting with Sikh leaders, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
The White House also said it will convene an interfaith conference call with Ms. Jarrett and Melissa Rogers, executive director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. President Barack Obama is not expected to participate in any of the outreach efforts.
Mr. Earnest said the White House would use the outreach to discuss the concerns of the communities and discuss “efforts to combat discrimination and highlight the need for welcoming all faiths and beliefs.”
The meetings come as several Republican candidates have suggested more or less directly that Islam and Muslims are threats to national security. Republican front-runner Donald Trump has called for a ban on Muslims traveling to the U.S. and has suggested he was open to a government registry of Muslims. Former neurosurgeon Ben Carson expressed concerns about electing a Muslim president, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has said Christian, but not Muslim, refugees from Syria could be admitted to the U.S.