Top of the News
The Muslim call to prayer can now be broadcast publicly in New York City without a permit. When Mayor Adams announced this effort to foster inclusivity last week, he said that Muslim New Yorkers “will not live in the shadows of the American dream.”
Also at the top of the news this week, a self-proclaimed white supremacist pled guilty to threatening jurors and witnesses in the Pittsburgh Tree of Life synagogue massacre trial, widely considered the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. He will be sentenced to 78 months in prison, which is at the highest end of the penalty range under Pennsylvania law for such an offense.
This month has also marked another increase in security threats for houses of faith and other public sites like the MacArthur Airport, particularly as the Jewish High Holy Days commence. Police have confirmed multiple emailed bomb threats in Nassau and Suffolk Counties this week, all of which were confirmed to be hoaxes. However, police are increasing patrols around temples and issuing warnings. Other security threats are facing houses of worship recently including, cyberattacks, and vandalism.
As noted last week, Perelman Performing Arts Center recently opened, announcing interfaith and community partnerships to broaden and deepen service to communities of New York. According to the Arts Center, “these strategic alliances, PAC NYC will collaborate closely with organizations that have deep experience serving New Yorkers across a variety of areas across New York City.”
Faith Communities Supporting Migrant Crisis
This week multiple faith communities in New York have been active in supporting migrants and asylum seekers. Students from an Upper East Side synagogue collected donations for asylum seekers, from which they raised $1,200 to purchase generators. Meanwhile, Catholic women advocates joined immigration and social justice advocates to ask Congress to support the people who are welcoming migrants. They specifically asked for a shift from a punitive response to migration and increased partnership and resources with nonprofit immigration and service organizations.
This is happening alongside reports of faith based organizations continuing to partner with city government, which has heavily relied on these organizations, to provide services inside and outside of the city-funded faith based shelter program and even beyond their own initial mandates in some cases.
The migrant crisis continues to increase in complexity with New York’s right to shelter policy going back to court this week over limiting shelter stays to 30 days, New York’s Comptroller considering revoking prior approval for the Mayor’s emergency migrant service contracts, and the federal government weighing raising the refugee ceiling next fiscal year. The issue also goes beyond racial and ethnic lines, as reporting reveals migrants from majority Muslim countries were disproportionately imprisoned in Texas triggering investigations into the disparities appearing across migrations at the southern U.S. border.
Environment and Local Land Use
This week is climate week and members of faith communities joined a number of other protesters in the March against Fossil Fuels in New York.
This comes amidst New York City’s building decarbonization law mentioned last week facets its first major test. An update to Local Law 97, which limits property carbon emissions, was released this week. The update clarified the benchmarks for what the Department of Buildings would consider a property owner’s good faith efforts to comply with the law.
The NYC Accelerator will be at the Bricks and Mortals Membership meeting this coming Wednesday, September 27th to give a full update on the law.
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