Press TV
December 21, 2015

Muslim leaders in the United States are unveiling initiatives in an effort to tackle Islamophobia, which has particularly peaked in the country due to anti-Islam statements by GOP candidate Donald trump.

The plans, including voter registration drives and open-house days at mosques, were announced in Washington on Monday, a day after an emergency summit over the matter was attended by 100 leaders from across the country, the Associated Press reported.

Officials with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America, and the Muslim Public Affairs Council were among the participants at the event.

The organizers said they aim to cooperate with civil rights and interfaith groups in an effort to “defeat politicians with bigoted views,” as AP said in its report.

Anti-Islam rhetoric specifically escalated when Trump called for a “complete” ban on Muslim immigrants entering the US.

His remarks followed a shocking attack by a Takfiri couple in San Bernardino, California, which left 14 people dead.

The billionaire developer and former reality TV star is not the only GOP candidate with an anti-Muslim stance.

In mid-December, Republican candidate Ben Carson described CAIR as “an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood and a supporter of terrorism.”

The row between the retired neurosurgeon and the Islamic advocacy group initially began in late September, when the GOP candidate said a Muslim president should not be allowed into the White House.