CAIR-NY shares in the Muslim community's deep concern over the recent arrest and detention of two 16-year-old Muslim girls from New York City. Despite the continuing protests by immigrant and civil rights communities following 9/11, the Federal government's implementation of ethnic and religious profiling and its use of immigration proceedings to circumvent the constitutional protections of the criminal justice system persist.
Muslim men were singled out for Special Registration, solely on the basis of their national origins, and thousands were deported from this country as a result
of this program. Despite the vigorous surveillance and crack-down on our communities, however, the Federal government's efforts have not resulted in any
successful terrorism prosecutions, nor have they shown any evidence that these methods have made America safer for anyone.
Today, it appears that the profiling of Muslim men has grown to include Muslim women and children. In this case, two minors are being linked to terrorism based
at least in part on their interest in and observance of the Islamic religion.
Neither of the girls has been formally charged with any crime, but both have been detained indefinitely in facilities far away from their homes and families. CAIR-NY is equally concerned with the conditions in the girls' detention facility, including reports that their ability to observe religious practices has been restricted.
As a community-based civil rights organization, we sincerely hope that these cases do not develop into a new example of baseless religious profiling and unfair
targeting of American Muslims, both of which have become disturbingly frequent in post-9/11 America.
CAIR-NY calls upon all community organizations and elected officials to join us in closely monitoring the respect of the two girls' rights afforded by the constitution and humanitarian principles.
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