Post by 14elesvik on Dec 4, 2012 21:20:32 GMT -5
Too often when people are faced with fear they use prejudices. This is dangerous because they may make irrational decisions and persecute people without proof. Not too long ago, the New York Police controversial spying incident perfectly exemplifies this idea. Their refusal to let go of their belief, led to violation of Muslims’ privacy; they believed the Muslims were guilty, before proven innocent.
“One of the most aggressive intelligence operations in the country” has been monitoring Muslims and invading their privacy; this operation has been hidden from the public eye since 2007. Controversial programs of this New York Police operation, like the Demographic Unit program, had plainclothes officers go undercover. They went into Muslim neighborhoods, eavesdropped on civilians and created profiles of the minority group. The profile information included everything from license plates to fingerprints of the Muslims. All this was done covertly in both New York and New Jersey, completely unknown to even New Jersey’s Governor, Chris Christie. This was all justifiable according to Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The mayor said the operation was “appropriate” because Islamic communities are “potential places where terrorists might hide out while they prepare attacks against American citizens”; Bloomberg was afraid of another 9/11. This perfectly parallels Judge Danforth’s kangaroo court. In the Crucible, Judge Danforth hanged all the suspected witches with no proof out of a fear of witches. Similarly, the New York Police’s view that all Muslims are terrorists made them violate this minority group’s rights. In both situations, the Muslims and the alleged witches were considered guilty, before proven innocent because of fear and prejudice.
The New York Police department had done terrible, unforgivable crimes because of their prejudices that all Muslims were guilty of being terrorists. One can clearly see the danger of fear and irrationality. With this fear the New York Police Department, who was supposed to protect the public, ended up targeting and persecuting the Muslim community. Unfortunately, this event will result in a more cautious society who cannot trust even the ‘finest of New York’.
Word Count: 480
Works Consulted:
Stainburn, Samantha. "Mayor Michael Bloomberg Defends NYPD Monitoring of Muslims." GlobalPost. GlobalPost, 25 Feb. 2012. Web. 02 Dec. 2012. <http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120225/mayor-michael-bloomberg-defends-nypd-monitoring-muslims>.
Suarez, Ray. "'Mosque Crawlers,' 'Rakers' Monitoring U.S. Muslims for NYPD." PBS. PBS, 28 Feb. 2012. Web. 02 Dec. 2012. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/law/jan-june12/nypd_02-28.html>.
“One of the most aggressive intelligence operations in the country” has been monitoring Muslims and invading their privacy; this operation has been hidden from the public eye since 2007. Controversial programs of this New York Police operation, like the Demographic Unit program, had plainclothes officers go undercover. They went into Muslim neighborhoods, eavesdropped on civilians and created profiles of the minority group. The profile information included everything from license plates to fingerprints of the Muslims. All this was done covertly in both New York and New Jersey, completely unknown to even New Jersey’s Governor, Chris Christie. This was all justifiable according to Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The mayor said the operation was “appropriate” because Islamic communities are “potential places where terrorists might hide out while they prepare attacks against American citizens”; Bloomberg was afraid of another 9/11. This perfectly parallels Judge Danforth’s kangaroo court. In the Crucible, Judge Danforth hanged all the suspected witches with no proof out of a fear of witches. Similarly, the New York Police’s view that all Muslims are terrorists made them violate this minority group’s rights. In both situations, the Muslims and the alleged witches were considered guilty, before proven innocent because of fear and prejudice.
The New York Police department had done terrible, unforgivable crimes because of their prejudices that all Muslims were guilty of being terrorists. One can clearly see the danger of fear and irrationality. With this fear the New York Police Department, who was supposed to protect the public, ended up targeting and persecuting the Muslim community. Unfortunately, this event will result in a more cautious society who cannot trust even the ‘finest of New York’.
Word Count: 480
Works Consulted:
Stainburn, Samantha. "Mayor Michael Bloomberg Defends NYPD Monitoring of Muslims." GlobalPost. GlobalPost, 25 Feb. 2012. Web. 02 Dec. 2012. <http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120225/mayor-michael-bloomberg-defends-nypd-monitoring-muslims>.
Suarez, Ray. "'Mosque Crawlers,' 'Rakers' Monitoring U.S. Muslims for NYPD." PBS. PBS, 28 Feb. 2012. Web. 02 Dec. 2012. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/law/jan-june12/nypd_02-28.html>.