Rally Held To Support NYPD Surveillance Of Muslims

The narrator of “The Third Jihad,” a controversial documentary that uses dramatic footage to warn against the dangers of radical Islam, was among those who attended a rally Monday to support the New York Police Department’s aggressive counterterrorism efforts, even though city officials have disavowed the film.

Dr. Zuhdi Jasser spoke at the rally outside police headquarters, and said it was about more than just the film flap - it was important that Muslims show support for the department. “We feel the NYPD has been taking a lot of unfair hits,” he said.

Under a banner reading “American Muslims Support The NYPD,” this was essentially a call for equal time.

“We don’t ask to take away the free speech of any Muslims, but rather that we be given equal platforms in our communities,” said Dr. Jasser. He said there is no one Muslim voice.

The message of the rally was that many Muslims are grateful to NYPD and the wrong voices are catching the attention of the media.

The news conference was sponsored by the American Islamic Leadership Coalition and also drew Rep. Peter King, chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security. King has been a steadfast supporter of the NYPD. The committee last summer held hearings examining the radical Islamic terror threat in the U.S. despite criticism.

  

“The threat right now is Islamist terrorism - and that’s going to be coming from the Muslim community, it’s just a fact,” King said. “Just like the mafia came from the Italian community, and the Russian mob is coming from the Russian community.”

The department has been criticized by many other Muslim groups and politicians after The Associated Press reported the NYPD secretly monitored Muslims across the Northeast in the years following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“Obviously, if we’re talking about searches and seizures and we’re talking about wiretapping, all that requires court order. But as far as carrying out investigations, surveillance, trying to obtain information, the NYPD, I’m not aware of  any abuses whatsoever,” said King.

He insists the NYPD is not spying but carrying out “effective surveillance.”

“The Third Jihad,” produced by the conservative Clarion Fund, accuses some moderate Muslims of being more radical than they appear on the surface and uses vivid footage of bombings and terror attacks to illustrate the danger of radical Islam. Speakers interviewed in the film warn viewers repeatedly that Western civilization is under attack. Manda Zand Ervin, founder of the Alliance for Iranian Women, also spoke and was also interviewed in the film.

The documentary was played in the lobby of an NYPD training area after a sergeant brought it in, and was stopped after one of the trainees complained. Nearly 1,500 police officers went through the training and may have seen it. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said it was “terrible judgment” to show it.

The department initially said footage of Police Commissioner Ray Kelly appeared to be lifted, but Kelly later said he was interviewed. He appears in it for about 30 seconds. He said that after he saw the film, which he called “inflammatory and a little much,” he regretted doing the interview. He has apologized to the Muslim community for it.

CBS NY