The Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, announces that it has ended its participation in a boycott of Hilton hotels launched four years ago to protest the construction of a hotel on the site of a destroyed Uyghur mosque and is now transitioning to a new campaign aimed at convincing the incoming Trump administration and Congress to take executive and legislative action forbidding American companies from doing any new business in the Uyghur region of China until the genocide verifiably ends.
In a statement, CAIR said:
“We thank everyone around the world who participated in the boycott of Hilton hotels over the past four years to protest the construction of a hotel as part of a broader plaza on the site of a destroyed Uyghur mosque.
“With the arrival of a new administration and a new Congress, it is time for us to transition our focus from individual companies towards executive and legislative action that will require all Americans companies to uphold international human rights standards when operating overseas, including in China. Although we plan to continue holding individual companies accountable for their involvement in the Uyghur genocide, we must focus on across-the-board action to ensure that American companies do not do any new business in the Uyghur region of China unless and until the genocide verifiably ends.
“As our government confronts the Chinese government over economic issues, it is important to also address the plight of Uyghur Muslims. The incoming administration and Congress should demand that the Chinese government free the countless Uyghurs imprisoned in concentration camps, transparently account for those who have been killed, and stop interfering with the ability of Uyghurs to freely practice Islam. Until that happens, our government must ensure that American companies do not profit from the Chinese Communist Party’s human rights abuses against Uyghurs.”