Khizr Khan, father of deceased Muslim U.S. Soldier Humayun S. M. Khan, holds up a booklet of the US Constitution as he delivers remarks on the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 28, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Khizr Khan, father of deceased Muslim U.S. Soldier Humayun S. M. Khan, holds up a booklet of the US Constitution as he delivers remarks on the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 28, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
  • President Biden appointed Khizr Khan to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.
  • Khan gained notoriety when he blasted then-candidate Donald Trump in a speech at the 2016 DNC.
  • He and his wife Ghazala are the Gold Star parents of Captain Humayun Khan, who was killed in Iraq.
  • See more stories on Insider's business page.

President Biden announced on Friday that he was appointing of Khizr Khan — a lawyer and Gold Star parent — to serve on the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.

Khan rose to prominence in 2016 when he denounced then-presidential candidate Donald Trump's disparaging comments about Muslims in a speech at that year's Democratic National Convention.

"You're asking Americans to trust you with their future," said Khan at the convention, standing beside his wife Ghazala. "Let me ask you– have you even read the United State Constitution? I will gladly lend you my copy."

Trump later attacked Khan with Islamophobic insinuations, questioning whether she was permitted to speak as she stood silently alongside her husband on the stage.

Khan's son, US Army Captain Humayun Khan, died in a suicide bombing at a military base near Baghdad, Iraq in June 2004. Because Captain Khan died in the line of duty, his immediate family members are given the "Gold Star" label.

In addition to being a Gold star father, Khan is also the founder of the Constitution Literacy and National Unity Project.

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom was created in 1998. It monitors religious freedom issues around the world and issues policy recommendations based on its findings. Khan's appointment as commissioner will last 2 years, and he is eligible for re-appointment.

Biden also appointed Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, who leads Congregation Beit Simchat Torah in New York City and is openly lesbian, to the commission.

The White House also announced the nominations of Rashad Hussain to serve as Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom and Deborah Lipstadt to serve as Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism.

Read the original article on Business Insider