Public Employee Press

2001-2011
Hate begets hate
Anti Muslim Bias

By JANE LaTOUR

BETWEEN JAN.1, 2001, AND SEPT. 10, 2001, the New York Police Department reported zero bias incidents against Muslims, Arabs, and people of South Asian origin in New York City. But following the attacks on Sept. 11, the NYPD reported 96 bias incidents in the 112 days after 9/11. In response, the New York City Commission on Human Rights developed the 9/11 Discrimination Project.

Members of DC 37 Local 154 at the CHR participated in the project. The Human Rights Specialists distributed a survey developed to document incidents and types of bias. They worked to increase and improve contacts with major Arab and South Asian community organizations and to involve them in the work of the project. They organized forums in each borough to help people understand the scope of the harassment and hate crimes against the community.

"The role of the Human Rights workers is to help protect all the members of the community and to prevent hate and misinformation," said Local 154 President Juan Fernandez. "It's one of the key things we do at the Human Rights Commission. This is at the core of what American society is perceived to be."

The report from the survey was issued in the summer of 2003. Findings showed that 69 percent of respondents perceived discrimination or bias-related harassment; 79 percent felt that their lives were negatively affected by 9/11. They felt more afraid and minimized their contact with the general public or made their religion or ethnicity less evident. Types of discrimination/bias harassment included religious and ethnic insults (36 percent); employment discrimination (26 percent); discrimination in public accommodations (25 percent); housing discrimination (11 percent). Most of the bias incidents took place in Brooklyn, which has the oldest and largest Arab and Muslim communities in New York City.

Ten years after the attacks, unease among these communities is still prevalent. A Pew Research Center poll released last month found that 43 percent of Muslim Americans reported experiencing harassment within the last year. The national furor last year over the proposal to build the Park Place mosque and cultural center in Lower Manhattan erupted again on the 10th anniversary of 9/11.