Bangladeshis fear backlash
Bomb attack used as talking point
NEW YORK — When an immigrant from Bangladesh set off a bomb in New York City’s subway system this week, he was the only person injured. But New York City’s vibrant Bangladeshi community is worried that it, too, may ultimately get hurt by the attack.
Within hours of the blast, President Donald Trump was assailing the immigration system that had allowed the alleged bomber — and multitudes of lawabiding Bangladeshis — to enter the U.S.
Akayed Ullah, 27, got an entry visa in 2011 because he had an uncle who was already a U.S. citizen. Trump said allowing foreigners to follow relatives to the U.S. was “incompatible with national security.” He pledged to work toward a system that would give preference instead to people who had wealth or special skills.
That promised policy change struck a sour note with some Bangladeshis in the Brooklyn neighborhood where Ullah lived.
“If Trump is going to stop immigration visas, that’s not good for our Bangladeshi people,” said Fazlul Karim, 45, a livery car driver. “Because some people are waiting for their families — citizens who apply for their wives, children who are missing their father. So if they cannot come here, it’s going to be very sad. We are afraid.”
Kamal Bhuiyan, chairman of the Bangladeshi American Advocacy Group, said it would be unfair to hold the entire community responsible for the actions of one person.
According to the U.S. Census’ 2016 American Community Survey, there are about 90,000 Bangladeshis in New York City, out of a nationwide population of about 234,000.
The Trump administration this fall barred most citizens of several, mostlyMuslim countries from entering the U.S. on national security grounds. Bangladesh is not among them, but the attack prompted fears among Bangladeshis that they could be added to this list.
Even if it is not, Queens resident Syed Ullah, 76, said he worried Trump’s rhetoric could still lead to bureaucratic slow-downs of applications for travel visas.
“He is the chief of the country,” said Ullah, who is not related to the bombing suspect. “If he says something like that, the immigration authorities, the State Department, ... they will put hurdles in the way.”