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New York City Bills
NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL – GET INVOLVED!
The Sikh Coalition has worked to introduce two bills to the New York City Council which take huge steps for the New York City Sikh community, as well as serve as a political precedent for all Sikh s in the United States. These two bills will help make New York City more accepting of all religious groups and help protect New York City’s communities that are vulnerable to hate crimes.
These two bills are the City Uniforms Anti-Discrimination Bill (Introduction No. 577) and the Backlash Mitigation Bill (Introduction 576).
City Uniforms Anti-Discrimination Bill
Recently, employee uniform policies have been a source of debate with respect to their application by New York City agencies. For example, two New York Police Department (“NYPD”) workers, followers of the Sikh religion, were dismissed subsequent to being informed that the NYPD dress code did not permit the turbans and uncut beards required by their religion. This violates § 8-107 of the New York City Administrative Code, which bars city agencies from imposing conditions of employment that would require a person to violate, or forego a practice of, his or her creed or religion. This bill reminds to comply with the anti-discrimination requirements of administrative code § 8-107. The legislation does not mandate a dress-code for the city: rather, it makes clear that New York City will be fair in the treatment of its employees.
Backlash Mitigation Bill
After September 11, there was an increase in hate-crimes committed against Arabs, Muslims, Sikhs, South Asians and those perceived to be so. For example, the New York Attorney General’s office reported that crimes that targeted Middle Easterners quintupled in 2001. Such backlash is preventable. Local government can take measures to mitigate this violence by, for example, identifying groups likely to be targeted, building relationships with community and religious leaders, airing public service announcements condemning violence and threatening strict prosecution, and training police officers to identify hate crimes. The creation of a backlash mitigation plan falls squarely within the responsibility and expertise of the Office of Emergency Management (“OEM”). However, OEM has not yet addressed the predictable and preventable problem of backlash crimes. This bill directs OEM to create a backlash mitigation plan in consultation with the relevant city agencies and community groups, to be implemented as needed by the NYPD and other city agencies identified by OEM.
Read the Full Text of the Bills
Backlash Mitigation Bill
Uniforms Anti Discrimination Bill
Backlash Mitigation Bill
Int No.
By Council Member Weprin, Yassky, Gennaro, James, Comrie, Palma, Liu, Brewer, Perkins, Lopez,
A Local Law
To amend the charter of the city of New York in relation to the Office of Emergency Management, the New York City Police Department and other related agencies to organize a backlash mitigation plan to be implemented immediately following an event that may initiate backlash, bias, violence or hate crimes against protected groups as defined in NYC Code § 8-102(22).
Be it enacted by the Council as follows:
Section One. Legislative findings and intent.
History demonstrates that events such as war, regional conflict, global health epidemics, economic stress, and emergencies perceived as acts of terrorism often spark bias crimes against particular protected groups . The City Council recognizes its responsibility to protect both those groups who are currently under threat, as well as those groups who may be targets in the future.
The events surrounding the tragedy of September 11, 2001 saw a wave of hostile sentiment directed towards Arabs and Muslims residing in the United States, and particularly those living in New York City. This hostility was demonstrated by an increase in hate-crimes committed against Arabs, Muslims, Sikhs, South Asians and those perceived to be so.
The New York Attorney General’s office reported that crimes that targeted Middle Easterners quintupled in 2001. The New York Police Department received 103 reports of hate crimes against Arabs and Muslims in the three months after September 11 th, though they usually receive only seven reports of bias crimes per year.
Nationally, the Federal Bureau of Investigation reported a seventeen-fold increase in anti-Muslim crimes during 2001. The Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee reported over six hundred September 11-related hate crimes committed against Arabs, Muslims, or those perceived to be Arab or Muslim. The Council on Islamic-American Relations reported 1,717 incidents of backlash discrimination against Muslims from September 11 through February 2004.
Beyond the events of September 11, 2001, New York City has seen past incidents have heightened tension against and between the city’s residents. The riots in Crown Heights during 1993 and the heightened backlash against Chinese-Americans during the SARs scare are two such examples.
Local government can take measures to mitigate surges of backlash violence aimed at identifiable and protected classes. City officials can identify groups likely to be targeted, build relationships with community and religious leaders, air public service announcements condemning violence and threatening strict prosecution, train police officers to identify hate crimes.
Though unique in their severity and extent, the post-September 11 violence against those perceived to be Arabs and Muslims was not unprecedented. And while those perceived to be Arabs and Muslims are the current targets, it is possible that any protected group as defined in NYC Code § 8-102(22) might become a target of backlash hate crime violence in the future.
New York City police and public officials took measures to reduce the post September 11 th backlash crimes and to investigate and prosecute perpetrators. The City Council believes, however, that New York City police and public officials should have the benefit of a pre-existing backlash mitigation plan which can be quickly implemented to protect New York City residents.
The New York City Office of Emergency Management (“OEM”) was created to provide the city with the highest level of emergency preparedness. In the aftermath of any event likely to provoke backlash crimes, OEM should be prepared to immediately implement a plan to respond to and mitigate both immediate and long-term backlash crimes.
The prevention of backlash hate crimes falls squarely within the mandate of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”). The NYPD should play an integral part in developing a backlash mitigation plan to be carried out by its officers during an emergency.
The lack of a city-wide plan to immediately protect against threats of violence against identifiable and protected groups after an emergency warrants legislation in this area.
§ 2. Paragraphs a and d of section 497 of chapter 19-A of the New York City Charter are amended to read as follows:
§ 497. Powers and duties of the commissioner. The commissioner shall have cognizance and control of the government, administration, disposition and discipline of the department. The commissioner shall have the powers and duties to:
* * *
a. Coordinate the City's response to all emergency conditions and potential incidents which require a multi-agency response, including but not limited to severe weather, threats from natural hazards and natural disasters, power and other public service outages, labor unrest other than the keeping of the peace, events that spark bias against identifiable groups as defined in NYC Code § 8-102(22) , water main breaks, transportation and transit incidents, hazardous substance discharges, building collapses, aviation disasters, explosions, acts of terrorism and such other emergency conditions and incidents which affect public health and safety;
d. prepare plans for responding to emergency conditions and potential incidents, including but not limited to plans for the implementation of such emergency orders as may be approved by the mayor to protect public safety and facilitate the rapid response and mobilization of agencies and resources [;] . Such plans shall include a backlash emergency mitigation strategy to address any emergency conditions and incidents that may cause backlash, bias, violence or hate crimes against groups as defined in NYC Code § 8-102(22). In preparing said plan, the commissioner shall consult and coordinate with the New York Police Department, Mayor’s Office, affected community groups, and any other public or private agencies or sources as determined by the commissioner such as the Immigrant Affairs Office, Community Assistance Unit, Department of Youth and Community Development and/or the Department of Education, to assist in promulgating the most effective strategy feasible and to conduct, at minimum, one public hearing in each borough of the city of New York for the development of said plan. The commissioner shall be required to submit an annual report which shall be submitted to the City Council and the Mayor’s Office, presented in a public hearing, and posted on the OEM website. The report shall outline the backlash mitigation plan, describe events where the plan was implemented, and outline the successes or failures of the plan including a statistical record of the affect on backlash hate crimes.
§ 3. This local law shall be effective thirty days after its enactment.
Uniform Anti Discrimination Bill
Int. No.
By Council Member Weprin, Yassky, Gennaro, James, Comrie, Palma, Liu, Brewer, Barron, Perkins, and Lopez,
A Local Law
To amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to precluding all uniformed city agencies from mandating that their employees comply with a uniform code that would require such person to violate or forego a practice of his or her creed or religion.
Be it enacted by the Council as follows:
Section One. Legislative findings and intent.
Recently, employee uniform policies have been a source of debate with respect to their application by New York City agencies. For example, two New York Police Department (“NYPD”) workers, followers of the Sikh religion, were dismissed subsequent to being informed that the NYPD dress code did not permit the turbans and uncut beards required by their religion.
These disputes resulted in one employee filing suit in federal court against the city and one worker petitioning for a hearing before the New York City Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (“NYCOATH”). Subsequent to the hearing, a NYCOATH Administrative Judge determined that the NYPD had committed a civil rights violation and recommended reinstatement. Based on this decision, the NYPD ultimately rehired both individuals.
Employee uniform policies have been also been a source of debate for state agencies. For example, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority ("MTA") recently reassigned four Muslim women bus drivers because they refused to remove their religious-mandated hijabs and reassigned a Sikh subway operator for one day because he refused to remove his turban. The MTA's action in reassigning the four Muslim women is currently the subject of federal lawsuits filed by the Muslim women and the United States Department of Justice. While such lawsuits are not targeted against city agencies, it is the hope that city agencies will not be the subject of such suits in the future.
§ 8-107 of the New York City Administrative Code sets forth that no city agency shall impose upon a person as a condition of obtaining or retaining employment any terms or conditions that would require such person to violate, or forego a practice of, his or her creed or religion.
Accordingly, legislation prohibiting uniformed city agencies from compelling their employees to comply with a uniform policy that conflicts with the practices or creeds of their religious beliefs is warranted.
§ 2. Chapter 1 of title 12 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended to add a new section 12-140, to read as follows:
§ 12-140. It shall be unlawful for any agency of the city of New York, which by its own rules and regulations mandates that its employees wear specialized attire or uniforms, to impose upon a person as a condition of obtaining or retaining employment any terms or conditions, compliance with which would require such person to violate, or forego a practice of, his or her creed or religion, including, but not limited to, adorning traditional religious headwear or maintaining customarily distinctive facial hair, providing the practice does not unduly interfere with the safety of the work environment.
§ 3. This local law shall be effective thirty days after its enactment into law.
T.S.F.
LS# 1688
02/03/05
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