NYPD Tries To Engage Muslim American Community to Combat ISIS
As ISIS continues to run rampant throughout the world, with the use of social medias and an extensive following, the NYPD has been trying to build a working relationship with the Muslim American community in an effort to fight back.
“It’s not the secret place that al-Qaeda is,” said John Miller, NYPD’s top counterterrorism official. “ISIL is on Twitter. They’re on Tumblr. They’re on Facebook. They’re on social media. Their videos are on Youtube. They’re living out loud the same way the constituency they’re trying to attract is.”
The group’s online strategy has helped to swell its ranks with young recruits and lone wolves to carry out violent acts. An estimated 20,000 volunteers have joined the Islamic State from more than 90 different countries, with more than 4,000 of those coming from Western nations, according to Capital.
ISIS has become extremely sophisticated, using video games and social media platforms to recruit youth. Miller hopes to engage the young Muslim American community, but has already seen resistance.
Miller said the counter message “can’t be from the police or the government,” and that “it’s got to be somebody from the community who has a voice and a face and a charisma that people accept and believe.”
“One of the major side-effects of the expansive surveillance of our communities has been the suffocation of open discussions, particularly around political issues,” Fahd Ahmed, the acting director of the DRUM-South Asian Organizing Center in Queens, told Capital. “The common expectation is that if you engage in political conversations, you will invite the attention of and targeting by law enforcement upon individuals, institutions, and the communities as a whole.”
Ahmed pointed out that the process is easier said than done. The Muslim community is fearful of law enforcement and less likely to participate in such a movement. Therefore, political conversations are not found within respectable Muslim places of worship.
“What happens when people feel uncomfortable, or institutions prohibit political conversations for fear of law enforcement?” Ahmed said. “What should be open and healthy dialogues are driven underground, into the dark corners of our communities, including online, which are then exploited by people with agendas, whether they are undercover officers, informants, or criminals.”
Linda Sarsour, the executive director of the Arab American Association of New York, said she doesn’t understand the message law enforcement officials want to give. Instead of telling people to not become terrorists, they need to be given an alternative positive outlet. They need to be given a reason to stay on the right track, just as with any troubled youth from any community.
“I’m not saying we ignore it. But what I’m trying to tell the government is, if you want Islamic organizations, Muslim organizations, mosques, youth centers to be pro-active, right, you need to provide resources for us to do this work. … The counter message should be what alternative are we providing to young people, without even mentioning ISIS. What kind of positive alternatives are we bringing to their communities?” Sarsour told Capital NY.
Source: jpupdates.com