The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998

So after I wrote that entire novel for you all about the effectiveness of the Committee for International Religious Freedom, I felt a little like I had jumped the gun and deemed the entire thing useless when I had really read one silly page about it. I looked further into the subject and figured out that the committee was created because of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. This was some legislation that Clinton put into action, creating an Office for International Religious Freedom in the Senate, an Ambassador for Religious Freedom position, and of course the committee itself. The idea was that this system would research further into which countries were persecuting it's people for their religious beliefs, and they would suggest actions that could be taken to the president. Now that I have thoroughly bored you, the point behind my vivid description of this whole idea, is that maybe I was too quick to judge. (Shocking for someone my age, I know). I tried to find some reading on how effective the act has been or any idea of what they have accomplished, but to no avail. All I could find was reviews of the act from Christian websites, which actually were not entirely a dead end. Being a student in AP U.S. history, I am very aware of the stubborn, fearful, and often irrational nature of our American   society. For most of our history it has been very difficult for us as a whole to consider the lives of others around the world and of different nationality, valuable. So for me to deem the committee of Religious Freedom "ineffective", I will admit is a bit forward. In fact it is enormously progressive for our nation because it entails further acknowledgement and acceptance of other religions. It may be a stretch but one could also argue that this progression foreshadows the acceptance within our own country of Homosexuals and Illegal Immigrants on social and civil rights issues. I believe it is a large step for America to include religious freedom in it's policy, and whether it is really making effective change in people's lives every day or not, it is an appropriate and necessary move in the right direction...finally. Again, hope I didn't bore. I get really excited about ideas like this after immersing myself in the oppressive and awful conditions people lived in during the 1890's-1920's. Which was of course following the ever mood improving unit on slavery and their unwinnable battle. So anyways. Enjoy.