Rozic Convenes Hate Crimes Coalition Roundtable
Diverse Group of Community Leaders and Advocates Work Together to Fight Hate
Rozic: An Attack on One Community is an Attack on All of Us
New York, NY – Assemblywoman Nily Rozic (D,WF-Fresh Meadows) hosted a roundtable discussion with community leaders and activists on the increase of hate crimes across New York. The group discussed how their communities can work together on legislative solutions and the grassroots response necessary following a hate-based incident. The roundtable follows the introduction of state legislation that would support local law enforcement by providing hate crime response and recognition training.
“It is clear that we must take action to combat the rise of hate-based crimes and incidents,” Assemblywoman Nily Rozic said. “An attack on one community is an attack on all of us so we are standing together to delineate that these hate crimes have no place in New York and no community should be subjected to hateful rhetoric and acts of violence.”
“The epidemic of hate crimes sweeping across the country is a national crisis,” said Council Member Mark Levine. “As we’ve seen in recent weeks, this is a battle being fought on our New York City streets every day. When hate crimes and threats occur, they are not just an attack on innocent victims, but on the values we share as New Yorkers. We have an obligation to guarantee the safety and security of every community that calls New York home. We must do everything we can to help protect the diverse communities that define our city.”
Evan R. Bernstein, Regional Director, ADL New York / New Jersey said: “We applaud Assemblymember Rozic and the many other New York Assemblymembers for their sponsorship of a bill that would require hate crime training for all New York law enforcement officers. At a time where hate crimes are on the rise in New York, this measure is absolutely essential.
Enabling law enforcement to better understand hate crimes, such as how they manifest and their unique impact on both individuals and communities, is an essential step in combating hate and bias in our state.”
Umair Khan, President of Muslim Bar Association of New York said: “The Muslim Bar Association of New York is grateful to Assemblymember Nily Rozic for her leadership and for convening a round-table on how to better protect communities across our state from hate crimes. We must confront the growing threat of bigotry and violence head on. The legislation introduced by Assemblymember Rozic and State Senator Todd Kaminsky will help ensure vulnerable communities are better protected. We look forward to partnering with them.”
Michael Schmidt, Director of AJC NY said: “All New Yorkers are entitled to live free of violence and fear of discrimination. For over 112 years, AJC has spoken out and advocated to promote human rights and democratic values for all. AJC New York stands in support of Assemblywoman Rozic’s legislation that identifies common sense solutions to preventing and reporting hate crimes.”
Yawar Shah & Bahman Farahdel, co-chairs of the New York Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council said: “The New York Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council is grateful to Assemblywoman Nily Rozic for convening the Hate Crimes Roundtable. Combating the rise in hate crimes is the central policy objective of the Council and it looks forward to working with the Assemblywoman on her bill that calls on better training for local law enforcement authorities to identify and address hate crimes. In a climate where the hate crime statistics show a disturbing increase year after year, it is important for policy officials to send a signal of zero tolerance on this issue.”
Carlyn Cowen, Chief Policy and Public Affairs Officer at the Chinese-American Planning Council said: “With the increase in hate crimes in New York the last couple of years, it is incredibly important that New York State take action to respond. We are grateful to Assemblymember Rozic for her leadership in putting this bill forth and taking steps to combat hate crime in our state.”
Pastor Gilford Monrose said: “Hate and bias crimes will not be tolerated in New York and we must stand shoulder to shoulder with our neighboring communities to fight bigotry and prejudice in all of its forms. I thank Assemblywoman Nily Rozic for convening this dialogue and for her efforts to make New York safer for all.”
Rozic was joined at the roundtable by representatives from Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish Committee and Muslim Jewish Advisory Council, Muslim Bar Association of New York, Sikh Coalition, Chinese-American Planning Council, Orthodox Union Teach Advocacy, and Pastor Gilford Monrose.
Rozic’s legislation would implement hate crimes recognition and response training for all law enforcement agencies in the state to ensure first responders are properly equipped to properly identify and handle hate-based incidents