In wake of Chelsea bombing, America's leaders need to follow the example set by New Yorkers
Linda Sarsour
Scratch me and I bleed Brooklyn. I’m a purebred New Yorker, and we New Yorkers are fast, sarcastic, brilliant, and resilient. I have never not been proud of the people in my city, people who come from all walks of life. We are black, white, Latino, Asian and Arab. We are Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Buddhists, Sikhs, and atheists. When my city is attacked, all of us are attacked.
In the wake of a bombing in Manhattan this weekend, New Yorkers have responded in their usual way: while the rest of the country panics, New Yorkers go about their lives, unfazed and unbowed.
Once again, politicians are exploiting New York to gain national platforms. Ted Cruz renewed calls for a ban on refugees from the Middle East, Hillary Clinton has called for an increase in surveillance and refugee scrutiny after Brussels attacks. Meanwhile, New Yorkers assert that politicians don’t speak for us, and that we stand stronger united than we do divided.
Donald Trump has of course joined the fray, doubling down on previous outlandish statements. In his latest comments, Trump asserted that terror attacks are taking place in this country because cops aren’tconducting enough racial profiling. Again and again, Trump’s comments have no basis in truth or reality, and this instance is no different.
Since the NYPD’s surveillance was uncovered in a series of Pulitzer Prize-winning articles from the Associated Press in 2011, it has been clear that there is no statistical evidence to prove that racial profiling is effective.
I’ll never forget former NYPD Chief of Intelligence Tom Gallati’s court deposition in 2012, where he emphatically stated that the Intelligence Division’s Demographics Unit, which spied on Muslim communities across the eastern seaboard, had generated zero leads. “I never made a lead from rhetoric that came from a Demographics report, and I’m here since 2006,” Galati said.
Furthermore, racial profiling is unconstitutional, and goes against the very values America aspires to: it violates our Constitution’s promise of equal protection to all and the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable search and seizure.
Trump is once again exploiting events for political gain. He doesn’t care about our safety – he cares about becoming the next president of the U.S. We need a leader who sees us all as Americans and organizes to unite, not divide. Treating communities as suspects further marginalizes them. We must treat all communities as equals and as partners. Terrorism impacts us all as humans seeking safety and security, and as Americans striving to stand for something greater. Like my shining city, we show our resilience through our unity.
Linda Sarsour is the executive director of the Arab American Association of New York.