Ever since Najibullah Zazi, a Colorado resident born in Afghanistan who also lived in Pakistan and Queens, spent a night at the apartment of an old friend in Flushing, Queens, many Flushing residents have felt under siege by law enforcement. Zazi is in custody on terrorism conspiracy charges – after police found he had bought bomb-making materials and compiled bomb-making instructions on his computer – while his host for one night in September, Naiz Khan, is free. But others in the neighborhood say that since the Joint Terrorism Task Force raided several apartments Sept. 14 in an effort to find co-conspirators or evidence, everyday life has become more uncomfortable if you are – or might look like you are – Muslim or of Afghan or Pakistani descent.
“An entire community and religion should not be profiled because of an investigation,” said Monami Maulik, executive director of the South Asian advocacy group DRUM (Desis Rising Up and Moving), which led a rally last month outside the Flushing branch of the Queens library. Yet some say this is exactly what has happened. In the weeks since the raids, staff from DRUM say they have spoken with more than 100 families in Flushing and have heard numerous stories of people being questioned on their way to or from work, and being asked for identification in their own homes, said organizer Ayesha Mahmooda.
According to Mahmooda, "We had one male who said he was questioned over 10 times, and the police searched his house without a warrant." Another man said he was approached by police and asked to be an informant, reporting back on activities at his mosque. He declined, but the officers continued to call him, Mahmooda said, and even showed up at his home after he had made it clear he didn’t wish to be an informant.
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Incidents like these have led DRUM to partner with the CUNY law school on creating a complaint database, and to submit a series of recommendations to the FBI which it believes could help safeguard civil liberties and promote a better relationship between law enforcement and the South Asian community.
The recommendations include creating policy change and accountability mechanisms beyond "diversity training," and ending the use of agent provocateurs in mosques, Muslim businesses, organizations, and other neighborhood sites. “This practice makes a racial and religious presumption of criminal activity that is biased,” DRUM's letter states – and lower attendance at mosques in Flushing reflects the current climate of suspicion, some report.
Sultan Faiz, a member of the Abubakar mosque on Union Street where Zazi attended prayers, reported that numbers at Friday Juma prayer have dropped significantly since the raids. According to DRUM, members of another area mosque, Masjid-al-Saaliheen – whose imam was charged – reported similar drops in attendance.
