Ongoing Pain From 9/11 Bias

A portion of the discourse on the anniversary of 9/11 addressed the ongoing suffering of Muslims and those of Middle Eastern heritage. Immigrants are particularly vulnerable but bias against those of Middle Eastern ethnicity continues against all generations of Muslim Americans.  In 2017 Pew Research Center reported that assaults against Muslims exceeded 2001 levels.  Intimidation and property damage are two of the most common assaults on Muslims, along with all forms of discrimination.  Ignored are Middle Eastern and Muslim families who also lost friends and love ones in the 9/11 attacks.  The government is a major perpetrator of this discrimination. 

This week a U.S. district court judge, Alison Nathan, who this week "castigated federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York for repeatedly withholding exculpatory evidence in the case of an   Iranian businessman who was convicted of  funneling more than $115 million through the American financial system."  Prosecutors agreed to vacate the judgment after their improprieties came to light, including misrepresentations around discovery in the case.  Judge Nathan commented that "serious and pervasive issues related to disclosure failures and misleading statements to the court."

Judge Nathan was appalled that the federal ethics overseers declined to investigate the case. "The cost of such government misconduct is high.  With each misstep, the public faith in the criminal -justice system further erodes. With each document wrongfully withheld, an innocent person face the chance of wrongful conviction."