NO TO FEAR
Death threats don’t stop her CUNY speech
or canceled transactions to steal the cash at two storefronts called Girox Express Multiservice, prosecutors said.
Twenty one people allegedly fell victim to the scam between Nov. 1 and Dec. 28, while trying to send money home to relatives for the holiday. A PALESTINIAN-American activist hounded by death threats and condemned by critics offered a message of love and solidarity Thursday as she addressed CUNY graduates.
Linda Sarsour received a standing ovation as she encouraged City University of New York’s Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy grads to speak out against oppression and to stand up for one another.
“We in this room together must commit to never being bystanders to poverty, lack of jobs and health care,” Sarsour told the crowd at Harlem’s Apollo Theater.
“In the age of alternative facts, fake news and emboldened racism and xenophobia, we cannot be silent,” she added. “We cannot allow the voices of hate and divisiveness to be louder than the voices of solidarity and love.”
The Brooklyn-born civil rights fighter, one of the primary organizers of the Women’s March on Washington in January, was targeted in the weeks leading up to the commencement speech by conservatives and members of the alt right.
Critics have accused Sarsour of holding anti-Semitic views because of provocative statements she has made on Islam, Middle Eastern politics and Zionism. For instance, she has supported the boycott, divestment and sanctions, or BDS movement against Israel.
Others have falsely said she supports ISIS and the implementation of sharia law in the U.S.
CUNY administrators stood behind the decision to have Sarsour deliver the keynote address. The school’s dean, Ayman ElMohandes, said it was important to listen respectfully to differing ideas.
David Aboudi, 28, of Astoria, Queens, who graduated with a master’s degree in biostatistics, called Sarsour’s speech “energizing.”
“I felt she didn’t say anything controversial and that she was excellent and the perfect choice for the inaugural address for the School of Public Health, which does focus on social inequalities. It was a fitting choice.”
But opponents disagree. A protest last Thursday outside CUNY’s Midtown headquarters descended into chaos as pro-Trump and right-wing demonstrators clashed with supporters of Sarsour.
There was little evidence of the uproar sparked by CUNY’s invitation to Sarsour on Thursday.
Dozens of Sarsour supporters filled the sidewalk outside the Apollo, easily drowning out a couple of protesters.
“No one in this country should ever be a victim of violence for their words,” said freelance editor Amy Plattsmier, 42, of Kensington, Brooklyn. “Our country was founded upon free speech.”
Sarsour, who began her work as an activist following 9/11, has gained greater attention in recent months following the Women’s March.
Earlier in the ceremony, Mayor de Blasio made a surprise appearance to present a bouquet of roses to his wife, Chirlane McCray. McCray received an honorary doctor of science in public health degree for her mental health advocacy in the city.