February 11, 2009

NY City Mayor Michael Bloomberg

Today, the Muslim Public Affairs Council - New York City (MPAC-NYC), together with other community groups, met with Mayor Michael Bloomberg to express their concerns about the mayor's "uncritical" support of Israel's recent attacks on Gaza.

SEE: "Gaza Strip Invasion is Right Thing to Do, Mike Bloomberg Says" (New York Daily News, 12/30/08)
SEE ALSO: "In Israel, Bloomberg Shows His Support" (New York Times, 1/5/09)

"In the interest of representing all New Yorkers, including Muslim and Arab American communities, we urged Mayor Bloomberg to avoid making unbalanced foreign policy statements," said Dalia Mahmoud, MPAC-NYC Board Member. "Such statements serve to alienate many New Yorkers at a time when the city should be seeking to foster unity."

"Community input is imperative when the mayor claims to speak on behalf of all New Yorkers," said CAIR-NY Community Affairs Director Faiza N. Ali, who also took part in today's meeting. "We look forward to future open and frank conversations that yield concrete solutions and benefit our city's diverse population."

Other groups participating in the meeting included the Salam Arabic Lutheran Church, Network of Arab-American Professionals of New York, the Arab Muslim American Federation, the Islamic Circle of North America and the Association of Muslim American Lawyers.

The groups called for the establishment of a task force that would provide consultation on issues affecting the New York Muslim and Arab American communities.