Hate Crimes Against Muslims: NYPD Officers Request Meeting With Trump After Spike In Racist Attacks

A group of Muslim New York City police officers, including one who was the victim of an alleged hate crime earlier this month, have requested a meeting with President-elect Donald Trump for “guidance on how they will be protected” in the wake of such crimes.

In a letter to Trump, Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams wrote of the heightened tensions following the “long and arduous national elections” which manifested into “a disturbing and dangerous pattern of hate crimes in big cities and small towns across America.”

According to the New York City Police Department (NYPD), there has been 115 percent spike in hate crimes targeting Jewish, LGBTQ and Muslim communities since Nov. 8.

“Without a doubt, the rhetoric of this campaign season has been a driving factor in a large number of these incidents,” Adams wrote in the letter last week.

He requested a meeting between Trump and representatives of the 900 Muslim-American officers belonging to the NYPD, the largest Muslim force in the country.

“This meeting request is rooted in both deep substance and symbolism. The 900 Muslim-American members of our nation’s largest police department, part of a greater law enforcement fraternity that encompasses thousands of our citizens and their families, deserve guidance on how they will be protected amid this uncertain national climate, just as they protect our streets every day. Moreover the welfare of these officers speaks to the greater welfare of the millions of law-abiding Muslim-Americans, many of whom are fearful at this critical juncture in our history,” Adams wrote.

Adams also mentioned the incident in which Aml Elsokary, a Muslim-American policewoman, and her teenage son were attacked when she was off duty. Elsokary did not identify herself as a police officer during the attack.

She confronted the man who shoved her son on a Brooklyn street. The attacker, Christopher Nelson, said Elsokary was a member of the Islamic State terrorist group and told her to go back to her country. He was later charged with menacing as a hate crime and aggravated harassment.

Trump’s transition team confirmed on Friday the real estate mogul had received the letter but no meeting had been scheduled yet.

“President-elect Trump needs to hear from and respond to the concerns of Officer Elsokary and other Muslim members of our law enforcement community. They are not only the first line of defense on our streets; they are ambassadors of the American diversity that they represent, and millions of their brother and sister citizens are as concerned about their welfare as they are their own. Whether or not we have an invitation to Trump Tower, I promise that their message will be directly delivered,” Adams told Yahoo News.