Chairman Crowley Statement on Increase of Anti-Semitic Crimes in New York City

Chairman Crowley Statement on Increase of Anti-Semitic Crimes in New York City

(Washington, D.C.) – House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley (D-NY) made the following statement after a New York Police Department report released today detailed a spike in hate crimes during the first weeks of 2017 in New York City.

“This report has me deeply concerned. Hate crimes against any individual because of their race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity are unacceptable and will not be tolerated in New York City or in the United States. It is not hard to see the connection between the hateful language used by President Trump since his inauguration and during his campaign and the rise of hate crimes in the U.S. When our leaders allow the darkest aspects of our society to flourish for political gains, the door opens for hate-filled attacks on individuals based solely on who these people are or what they believe. This is not what makes America great.”

New York has seen an increase in hate crimes in recent months, prompting the state to create a special police unit tasked with investigating and preventing these crimes. The NYPD analysis found that 56 hate crimes were reported between Jan. 1 and Feb. 12, 2017 – with anti-Semitic hate crimes seeing double-digit growth. In 2016, NYPD reported more than 300 hate crimes.

Chairman Crowley has led the effort in the House of Representatives to call on President Donald Trump to change the White House statement that deliberately failed to mention that Jewish people were victims of the Holocaust. Chairman Crowley introduced a resolution condemning President Trump’s statement and asking Congress to reaffirm its commitment to acknowledge the terrible facts of the Holocaust.

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