Dr. Asif Mahmood, a Pakistani-American, has been named by the US administration to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). He is identified as the USCIRF Commissioner.
US House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries appoints him to the important position. Mahmood, a seasoned Democrat, is the second American Pakistani-American to hold a significant position in a US government.
Formerly, from August 2021 until May 2022, Gold Star father Khizr Khan served on the Commission.
Asif Mahmood is a physician in practice, a human rights advocate, an organizer of the interracial and interfaith communities, and a philanthropist, according to a press release from the USCIRF. He oversaw the promotion of numerous South Asian-focused human rights campaigns.
His current positions include board member of Hope the Mission, one of the biggest homeless shelters in California, and chair of the Organization for Social Media Safety (OFSSMS).
The US commission is a nonpartisan, independent government organization that acts as a watchdog in addition to issuing policy advice.
On its official website, “USCIRF monitors the universal right to freedom of religion or belief abroad; makes policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress; and tracks the implementation of these recommendations.”
