Dear Friends,
Yesterday, a Federal Judge rejected a proposed settlement on police surveillance of Muslim New Yorkers on the grounds that it did not go far enough in protecting free speech and religion. According to Judge Charles Haight, the proposed settlement did “not furnish sufficient protection from potential violations of the constitutional rights of those law-abiding Muslims and believers in Islam who live, move and have their being in this city” (see the New York Times article here). ICNY supports this decision, having worked hard with allies last Spring to garner community input on this settlement. See our own statement on the Handschu/Raza proposed settlement drafted by ICNY’s Iman Boukadoum and submitted to the court last Spring.
In addition, ICNY has gathered religious leaders to offer their feedback to the courts about further reforms on the NYPD’s “Stop and Frisk” policies made possible in a Joint Remedial Process outlined in the Floyd, Davis, and Ligon cases. For more information about how your community or congregation can weigh in on policing reforms pertaining to “Stop and Frisk” practices, click here. Recognizing that accountability and education are inseparable when it comes to improving police-community relations, ICNY is currently working on a police religious diversity training video “Policing in Today’s Multifaith New York” that will be instituted as a regular part of officer training.
While North Dakota is a distance from New York City, ICNY is promoting a call from both Chief Arvol Looking Horse and Episcopal Priest The Rev John Floberg for religious leaders to come to Standing Rock on Nov. 2nd and 3rd to support the men and women who have so courageously risked arrest and injury to protect their rights and the environment against the Dakota Access Pipeline.
You may have read in the New York Post or Daily News that the Mosque of Islamic Brotherhood (MIB) was one of several organizations bilked of huge sums of money by a phony real estate agent. Please consider making a donation to this LaunchGood campaign to help them recover what has been lost.
Finally, on a personal note, I will be embarking on a two-month writing sabbatical from Nov. 18, 2016 until January 31, 2017 to make headway on my doctoral thesis in Christian Ethics at Union Theological Seminary. The focus of my work will be on Christian Peacemaking, Interfaith Work, and Islamophobia. In my absence from the office, ICNY Program Director, Dr. Henry Goldschmidt will be serving as Interim Director.
Best Wishes,
Rev. Chloe Breyer
Executive Director
The Interfaith Center of New York