Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Maryam Khaldi, Advocacy and Civic Engagement Manager at Arab American Association of New York
4:36:36
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136 sec
Maryam Khaldi, representing the Arab American Association of New York (AAA NY), testified about the organization's efforts to combat hate crimes against Arab, Muslim, and Palestinian communities. She highlighted the increasing incidents of hate crimes, the impact of the PATH program, and requested increased funding support from the NYC Council.
- AAA NY has conducted numerous trainings and workshops on hate crime prevention, self-defense, and bystander intervention.
- Since October 2023, 290 reports of hate crimes or bias incidents against Palestinian, Arab, or Muslim New Yorkers have been received.
- Despite the PATH program's success, funding has been cut, prompting a request for increased investment to meet growing community needs.
Maryam Khaldi
4:36:36
Good afternoon.
4:36:37
My name is Mariam Al Khaldi, and I'm the advocacy and civic engagement manager at the Arab American Association of New York.
4:36:42
Since 02/2001, AAA and Y has fought against the continued rise of hate crimes against our communities.
4:36:48
And in 2021, we joined the partners against the hate forward initiative under the office of the prevention of hate crimes.
4:36:55
AAA NY and our grantees have led hundreds of self defense trainings, trained thousands of community members in bystander intervention and de escalation tactics, provided hate crimes prevention workshops and resources to thousands of New Yorkers, and advocated both on the local and statewide level for legislation that protects our communities from hate violence.
4:37:15
One of our grantees, Council on American Islamic Relations New York, has been collecting data on hate crimes against Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim New Yorkers, many of which go unreported to the NYPD and city offices.
4:37:27
Since October 2023, they've received 290 reports of hate crimes or bias incidents against community members on the basis of their identity as Palestinian, Arab, or Muslim, or for showing pro Palestine solidarity, including a 34 from students in the k to 12 and university levels.
4:37:46
At triple a and y, we've seen firsthand the scope and and trauma of this hate violence.
4:37:51
We've worked with clients whose hijabs were ripped off, mosques that were vandalized with hateful words, and much more.
4:37:58
Our organization has also faced hate crimes, including threats of physical violence, and our staff has experienced harassment, stalking, and threats because of our identities and the work that we do.
4:38:10
The PATH program allowed us to serve thousands of clients and provide supports to hundreds of victims of hate.
4:38:16
Despite the program's success, each PATH anchors funding was cut by 30,000 for FY '26 by OPHC.
4:38:23
At a time of hate, rising fear, and with the federal administration spewing anti immigrant hate, our services are needed more than ever.
4:38:31
And so we asked the NYC council to increase investment in our safety work to meet the needs of our communities that we serve and the funding be restored for the patch the path initiative.
4:38:41
AAA and y has been and will continue to be on the front lines working to combat hate violence, promote community safety, and we hope that the New York City Council will continue to support us in doing so.
4:38:51
Thank you.