(Religion News) Calls are growing for Mayor Mike Bloomberg to apologize for his role in the New York Police Department’s long-running warrantless surveillance of area Muslims, which has seen renewed scrutiny since Bloomberg announced his candidacy for Democratic presidential nominee.
A coalition of leading Muslim advocacy organizations sent a letter to Bloomberg this week demanding he apologize for the blanket surveillance in the decade after 9/11 and condemn the use of similar spying programs.
“The NYPD’s mass surveillance program ostracized our community, created a rift between law enforcement and Muslims, chilled free speech, and resulted in long-lasting psychological trauma,” advocates wrote in a letter to Bloomberg. “Countless children and young adults who were befriended by individuals they later realized were undercover officers today mistrust new acquaintances. Many people stopped participating in religious life out of fear they might end up on NYPD’s Muslim database for the simple act of practicing their faith.”
