And it’s all but certain Herman Cain will be crucified over his recent comments on Muslims in America.
NEW YORK (AP) — After a decade of the police spying on the innocuous details of the daily lives of Muslims, activists in New York are discouraging people from going directly to the police with their concerns about terrorism, a campaign that is certain to further strain relations between the two groups.
Muslim community leaders are openly teaching people how to identify police informants, encouraging them to always talk to a lawyer before speaking with the authorities and reminding people already working with law enforcement that they have the right to change their minds.
The outreach campaign follows an Associated Press investigation that revealed the NYPD had dispatched plainclothes officers to eavesdrop in Muslim communities in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, often without any evidence of wrongdoing. Restaurants serving Muslims were identified and photographed.
Hundreds of mosques were investigated, and dozens were infiltrated. Police used the information to build ethnic databases on daily life inside Muslim neighborhoods. Many of these programs were developed with the help of the CIA.
At a recent “Know Your Rights” session for Brooklyn College students, someone asked why Muslims who don’t have anything to hide should avoid talking to police.
“Most of the time it’s a fishing expedition,” answered Ramzi Kassem, a law professor at the City University of New York. “So the safest thing you can do for yourself, your family and for your community, is not to answer.”
New York Republican Rep. Peter King said this kind of reaction from the Muslim community is “disgraceful.”