New York, NY. – With hate crimes on the rise throughout the New York area and across the country, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand along with Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and faith leaders announced a new push today for additional federal anti-terror funding to help safeguard civil, religious and community institutions. The Senators are urging a $5 million increase for a total funding level of at least $25 million in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Homeland Security appropriations bill for the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) Non-Profit Security Grant Program (NSGP). This additional funding would help ensure the protection of non-profit facilities and places of worship from potential threats.
“No New Yorker should ever live or worship in fear,” said Senator Gillibrand. “With hate crimes on the rise throughout New York and across the country we can’t stand idly by and let these incidents go unanswered. We must make sure our places of worship, our community centers and non-profits have every resource necessary to be protected and safe from threats. I’m fighting for this additional Homeland Security funding because we must stand strong against threats, hatred and attacks against our community institutions.”
“As we witness an alarming rise in hate crimes across our country, not only should we condemn them whenever and wherever they may arise but also take concrete steps to protect those exposed to potential attacks,” said Sen. Menendez. “I am proud to join my colleagues in this effort to boost federal investments for the Nonprofit Security Grant program which provides critical funding to enhance security for some of our most vulnerable religious, community and nonprofit organizations.”
“It’s unacceptable that some of our most vulnerable non-profits and places of worship in New Jersey and our nation continue to face the threat of hate crimes,” said Sen. Booker, a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs. “I’ve made strengthening Homeland Security funding one of my top priorities, and was proud to fight to improve New Jersey’s competitiveness for DHS preparedness grants. We must remain committed to all levels of government working together to protect New Jersey’s most critical assets.”
“We need to do everything we can to protect every community, individual and place of worship in New York. This would be a wise investment, providing more protection and security for all our citizens,” said U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer.
“Today, the Jewish Community Relations Council devotes more resources than ever to assist organizations address their documented concerns about international terrorism and violent homegrown extremism. The Nonprofit Security Program is an essential element of our work. We reach out to organizations, provide training and maintain a dedicated webpage to assist grant applicants. We’ve been successful, but the need for additional funding is critical. We wholeheartedly endorse the efforts of Sen. Gillibrand and her colleagues to address the elevated threat level and meet the increased needs,” said Michael Miller, the Executive Vice President & CEO of JCRC.
“The FBI’s recent hate crimes statistics report provides a critical barometer of the risks to the nonprofit sector. This past year, the FBI thwarted attempted attacks on synagogues and Jewish community centers here at home by violent homegrown extremists intent on killing hundreds of innocents. These incidents are further evidence of the risk faced by the nonprofit sector generally, and the Jewish community in particular, in the post-9-11 environment,” The Jewish Federations of North America’s Washington Director, William Daroff, stated.
“We as a faith community support Senator Gillibrand’s appeal to the federal government for the increase in funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program assuring it has the resources needed to combat threats throughout our country. We have been plagued here in New York City with a rise of religious bias and hate crimes breeding fear and anger among our citizens, and creating a greater divide. This funding must be made a top priority in order for our churches, mosques and synagogues to get the protection they need and deserve,” said Rev. Que English, Co-Founder, New York City Clergy Roundtable.
“As a community that knows the crucial importance of a safe space—and fought long and hard to have one—we applaud U.S. Senators Gillibrand, Menendez and Booker for proactively seeking to protect such spaces in these uncertain times,” said Glennda Testone, Executive Director of The LGBT Community Center. “We stand proudly with all who share our commitment to protecting and celebrating the LGBT community, particularly our elected officials who are working hard to ensure that our voices continue to be heard in Washington, D.C.”
The Senators wrote a letter to federal appropriators requesting the additional $5 million be included in the federal government funding bill currently being debated in the Senate and set to be voted on next week. Below is the text of the letter:
December 4, 2016
The Honorable Thad Cochran
Chair
Senate Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable John Hoeven
Chair
Subcommittee on Homeland Security
Senate Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Barbara Mikulski
Ranking Member
Senate Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Jeanne Shaheen
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Homeland Security
Senate Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairman Cochran and Hoeven, Ranking Member Mikulski and Shaheen
We write to share our concern about the rising incidents of hate crimes that plague the United States. We urge you to support a $5-million-dollar increase for a total funding level of at least $25 million in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Homeland Security appropriations bill for the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) Non-Profit Security Grant Program (NSGP). This funding would ensure the protection of our communities and non-profit facilities from threats and disasters. Just last week the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released their report on hate crimes indicating that there were 5,818 single-bias incidents involving 7,121 victims. Of those victims, 59.2 percent were targeted because of a race/ethnicity/ancestry bias; 19.7 percent because of a religious bias.
“No Jews” swastikas, and racist messages have been spray-painted on streets, buildings, and sidewalks at locations across New York City, White Plains, and Ramapo, New Jersey, and in several other cities. Mosques across the country have received threatening letters and have been vandalized while women in hijabs have been assaulted. Meanwhile, members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community face harassment and physical attacks. The rise in hate crimes and pervasiveness of extremist ideology poses a threat to people around the world. This grant program provides essential resources to ensuring the safety and security of these non-profit facilities. It is of paramount concern that we provide our communities with the highest levels of funding available to support these programs. They provide critical support for physical security enhancements to sites at high risk of an attack. With credible threats becoming a daily occurrence against these sites there is a strong need to upgrade the security to these vulnerable locations.
As elected officials we cannot idly stand-by. We need to make sure that the Nonprofit Security Grant Program has the funding and resources needed to combat threats throughout the country. We strongly urge you to provide at least $25 million for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program in the FY2017 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill.
We urge the Committee to make this funding a top priority during appropriations negotiations. Thank you for your consideration of this request. We hope that you will continue to support these vital homeland security programs for our nation.
Sincerely,
Kirsten Gillibrand
United States Senator
Cory A. Booker
United States Senator
Robert Menendez
United States Senator