Islamic Commission bill proposes merger of mosque and state “at all levels of government”

"commission may request from all state agencies whatever information and assistance the commission requires"

A highly controversial and constitutionally questionable proposal by State Senator Jamie Eldridge would create a powerful one-of-a-kind commission “on the status of people who practice Islam” that would attempt to embed members of the Islamic faith in posts “at all levels of government” and require “all state agencies” to provide “whatever information and assistance the commission” requests.

Senate 2134 and House 3351 are set for a Beacon Hill hearing today.

No other faith has a similar commission.

The hearings come as acceptance of Muslim political leadership appears to be at an all time high, with Zohran Mamdani widely expected to be elected mayor of New York City next month.

Powers of the commission include identifying and recommending “qualified American Muslims for appointive positions at all levels of government, including boards and commissions, as the commission considers necessary and appropriate.”

According to far-Left Cornell Law School:

The Establishment Clause prohibits the government from establishing an official religion or unduly favoring one religion over another. The modern interpretation of this doctrine was articulated in the landmark Supreme Court case Everson v. Board of Education, 330 U.S. 1 (1947). Writing for the majority, Justice Hugo Black invoked Thomas Jefferson’s famous phrase describing the Establishment Clause as erecting “a wall of separation between Church and State.” Justice Black emphasized that this wall must remain “high and impregnable,” meaning that the government, whether federal or state, must not:

• Establish or support a church,

• Aid one religion or all religions,

• Coerce individuals to attend or avoid religious services, or

• Punish individuals based on their religious beliefs or practices.

The proposed commission shall also “assess programs and practices in all state agencies as they affect American Muslims…advise executive and legislative bodies on the potential effect on American Muslims of proposed legislation…and generally undertake activities designed to enable the commonwealth to realize the full benefit of the skills, talents and cultural heritage of American Muslims in the commonwealth.”

According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations of Massachusetts the bill, which has failed in numerous previous sessions, has been re-filed this year in “response to data collected by CAIR-MA showing 48% of Muslim students in Massachusetts were bullied last year, a rate that is twice the national average, and that 35% of hijab-wearing students in Massachusetts experienced physical harassment in 2024.”

Mamdani recently admitted to fabricating a story about his “aunt” who unable to ride the subway wearing a hijab after 9-11.

The commission will also be empowered to “serve as a liaison between government and private interest groups with regard to matters of unique interest and concern to American Muslims in the commonwealth.”

In 2023 MASSterList of the State House News Service labeled opposition to the proposal as “backlash from right-wing media at a time when hate — from antisemitism and homophobia to islamophobia — is on the rise across the board.”

Eldridge told the SHNS in 2023 that opposition was “disappointing” and “to be clear the purpose of this commission is merely to address Islamophobia. To be representative, we need more Muslim Americans to run for office, to be in civic leadership.”