 Start Bismillah Rahman Raheem Thank you to everyone for coming to this historic announcement I want to acknowledge the attendance of Phil Banks deputy mayor for public safety Edward Kuban NYPD commissioner Mark Stewart NYPD deputy commissioner of community affairs Cass Daughtry NYPD assistant commissioner Guilford Monroe's Faith advisor office of the mayor Asim Rahman commissioner of oath Meir Bashar chief administrative officer Deputy inspector Adeel Rana and Dr. Sarah Said director of Civic Engagement Commission and All of the faith leaders and elected officials that have joined here us here today. Thank you for coming The Adhan also known as the Islamic call to prayer is a beautiful and integral part of the Muslim worship and daily life It serves as a melodious reminder for Muslims to come together and engage in prayer It's captivating melody has a profound impact on the hearts and minds of those who hear it Beyond its religious significance The Adhan carries a sense of tranquility and serenity. Its sounds can create a meditative atmosphere inviting individuals to pause reflect and turn their attention towards the divine Whether heard in busy streets Or in the quiet corners of a serene village The Adhan has the power to stir the soul and strengthen the bond between the worshiper and their creator In essence the Adhan stands as a timeless and cherished tradition carrying centuries of devotion faith and reverence it embodies the essence of Islam Calling believers to prayer Offering a moment of connection with the divine in the midst of their daily lives New York City has the power to captivate cultures faiths and traditions and allow them to flourish under its skies We cannot be any more grateful to this administration and to Mayor Eric Adams from bring it for bringing us all here today for this historic announcement and Reminding us that our faith is equally important as everyone else's and giving our children a little taste of back home Here in this great city and now it is a great honor and pleasure to induce the greatest mayor of the greatest city Mayor Eric Adams Thank you. We're also joined by a freeze deputy commissioner as well And just really want to thank and I want them to say a few words our bar president of the borough of Brooklyn Tonya Rinoza Antonio represents probably Outside of Queens by the second most diverse borough the largest of course in the city of New York It was a city it would be the third or the fourth largest city in America and the senator Jackson Person who is a Muslim faith and Know how significant this moment is for him and I would love for you also senator to have an opportunity to speak Well one throughout my years in public life One thing that I took note of throughout this entire journey is how this was not a city for everyone This was a city that ignored so many cultures and communities This was a city with certain groups did not have their the right to raise their flags down at Bowling Green the number of people on January 1st, 2022 when I took office of The first year of them calling me and saying as a possible We can also celebrate our independence and our culture by having flag raising and over and over again our team from international affairs Had to give me the note. This is the first time we've ever done it This is the first time we've ever done it over and over again. The Japanese community for years. They wanted to parade On the streets like other cultural groups. They had to be Told they can only parade in Central Park that ended when I became mayor the Haitian community Wanted to celebrate their culture and say sapa say on the streets of Manhattan They were unable to do so that ended when I became mayor You will see over and over again the dismantling of a city that talked about diversity But in reality, it was not diverse and throughout my childhood. I heard the beautiful melodies of church bells At different times if it was on the hour or the half an hour It was a reminder of you know our spiritual lives While in the nine four precinct I'm bordering the nine old precinct. I will hear the sirens When we reached the point of the shabbat's observers And all my campaign trail Bahi and Assan and many of the members of the Muslim community Stated that they would like to have the call of prayer something that I heard when I visited Morocco when I visit Saudi Arabia When I visit Oman when I visited Jordan when I visited so many Arabs and Muslim countries I heard the call of prayer and know that it is a significant moment and to be able To state that this city is going to join a rich tradition cultural and faith belief to allow all groups to be acknowledged you will not live in the shadows of The American dream while I'm the mayor of the city of New York This is a promise I made on the campaign trail and with lists of so many other promises. This is a promise cap So to my Muslim brothers and sisters that are here. Asalaamu alaikum And so I want to thank you Bahi, you know your commitment everything from Diwali food. I mean for bringing the Diwali holiday to having a food in our school system To creating us a place for prayer Inside city hall You know, this is such a great moment that we're no longer talking about it We're we're being about it and commissioners to astute For what you have done to continue to move forward with this issue Assistant commissioner Daughtry and the entire team over at the New York City Police Department under Commissioner Caban of making sure we can get this right New York City, you are free to worship in New York City and we embrace our religion or faith Just returning from Israel and seeing the intersectionality of the Jewish quarter the Christian quarter The Muslim quarter and seeing right there all those religions are in the same place and Allowed to worship freely for too long There has been confusion about which communities allowed to amplify their calls to prayer today We are cut in red tape and saying clearly if you are Mars or a house of worship of Any kind you do not have to apply for a permit to amplify your call to Friday prayer You are free to live your faith in New York City Many of us may know the call to prayer as they are done as a chant that is played for one to two minutes on Fridays But for our Muslim brothers and sisters It is so much more than that. It is the voice of God a Reminder to take a moment an invitation to come together and pray for years The community has advocated for the right to express this fundamental part of their faith I'm proud. We are finally getting it done today Our Muslim community is the key to the prosperity and culture of our city and the diversity is just so evident When you look around the full scope of just like the Christian faith in a Jewish faith and other faith is Diverse so too is the Muslim community and we are committed to giving you the recognition you deserve That's why again and again you're hearing about the first over and over again. You're hearing the words This is the first time. This is the first time. This is the first time add this on to this is the first time And you're going to hear more first times again You look at what we've done the first ever E Celebration at Gracie mansion the first bangled a Benga dashi heritage celebration and just last week the first Arab heritage event We supported and funded the first citywide halal food program for students in our schools We introduced a breaking bread building barns a Lamona night assistant commissioner night and the team over at CAU under Fred Chrysman I'm bringing people of all different racial ethnic and religious backgrounds together to share 1,000 mills across the five burrows and we have put leaders in place that reflect the diversity of this community including Muslim senior advisor of the mayor's and the first Muslim executive director of the mayor's office for prevention of hate crimes Last week I visited Jerusalem as I stated and I saw the power of that diversity alive and well Each major religion is able to celebrate on a different day of the week You hear the adon on Fridays the Jewish community goes to temple on Saturday and hear the Christian church bells rings on Sunday I have had the opportunity to pray as some of the holiest sites in the Muslim Islam Judaism and Christianity it has inspired me it has lifted me up It has allowed me to understand the challenges that are in front of us But our destiny is larger than our individuality and we can come together with faith I have never made it unclear to anyone that I'm a man of God and I believe in faith And I will take that faith with me everywhere I go and we are a country of faith And that's clear on our dollar bill and God we trust So we're going to show the world how we come together with all of our faith leaders and under the law We are all treated equally. That's why I want to be very clear We are not changing the rules to benefit anyone or any one group New Yorkers should know the volume must be kept to a reasonable level And and it can be played between 12 30 p.m. And 1 30 p.m. Each Friday and during sunset prayers through the holy month of Ramadan In a few minutes we will hear what the call to worship sounds like probably the first time that call to worship has ever been Put in place here in city hall if you are part of a Mars or other religious community You can contact the mayor's office of faith-based and community partnership to learn more Clarity is important and again I want to thank of the commissioner and his entire team Which is working with us to ensure that New York is rights to worship is protected And that is includes on Mars across New York City They will know the rules and know how to participate in them correctly I also want to recognize all the Muslims and community leaders who are here with us today This is a very important and significant moment for them And I know how important it is and I want to thank them for helping us continue to unite our city during these Difficult times many of these mosques and leaders have played such a significant role And how do we deal with everything from violence to the asylum seekers? To just every day Addressing the mental health crisis that we are facing in our city and in our nation I want to thank them for what they do as they join with past my roles and many of the other faith leaders That have played such a crucial role in moving the city forward So again, thank you so much. This is a proud and significant significant moment for all of us Let's continue to uplift each other now. I will leave you in the same manner that I greeted you. Asalaamu alaikum Thank you, mr. Mayor, and I would like to introduce now the NYPD police commissioner Edward Caban Thank you Bahi. Thank you, mr. Mayor and thank you all for joining us today As we all know less than a mile from here our nation came to life Our first capital is here our first president was sworn in here and more than 230 years ago The laws of this new nation one nation indeed under God guaranteed freedom of religion for all But that freedom is an ideal Those law does not explain how to achieve it The contours of that freedom must be shaped by those governed by the law and today We are doing just that Today we are here to lend our support to all religions of our city Let our houses of worship know they may carry out their customs Particularly as relates to amplified sound without the need for a sound permit But today is about so much more than that Today we affirm that we do not merely tolerate freedom of religion in our city We celebrate it We embrace our civic virtue and the strength of our differences We see this in the NYPD every day We are a department with tremendous diversity including religion and yet we are united in purpose a Purpose that demands we uphold the rights of every New Yorker So today using our strong partnerships in the Community Affairs Bureau We commit to helping all religions worship in a reasonable manner And we do this with renewed focus on the importance of relationships Relationships between faith leaders Community stakeholders and residents alike I want to thank Deputy Commissioner Mark Stewart and the entire Community Affairs Bureau for all of their hard work This is an important initiative One that demands fairness for all. I am proud of all the NYPD is doing to achieve that balance. Thank you very much Thank you Commissioner Caban and our next speaker. I would like to introduce is Deputy Inspector Adeel Rana President of the Muslim Officers Society Salamu alaikum First I would like to thank our great mayor Mayor Eric Adams For not only for not only the occasion that we are here for but all the things that he has Accomplished in such a short time for all New Yorkers Thank You mr. Mayor for some of those Accomplishments are like the appointment of first Muslim senior advisor to a New York City mayor Then having a commissioner who is well qualified to lead the administrative court appointment of Chief Administrator officer and many more in his team that are also Muslim And I cannot forget appointing the best person to lead the greatest police department in the world Commissioner Edward Caban as everyone knows Azan is called to prayer prayer. That is one of the fundamental parts of Islam You all might have heard the call to prayer when you travel in various countries or when you're watching movies or shows It is a beautiful soothing sound that reminds you about your obligation to the creator So you know how important it is to the Muslim community For over 40 years. Some of the musthers have been offering the call to prayer Without any issues or frictions, but today mr. Mayor His actions is going to make it smoother and painless for everyone else and recently We had a Muslim officer a deep Fayaz that was killed During his funeral a local masjid which is a mosque conducted a call to prayer and a loud speaker in Return the masjid has been playing the louds the call to prayer on their speakers since then This shows you how important it is and how much the community wants it needs it and appreciates it To my fellow Muslim community my brothers and sisters as we embark on the new journey Please remember that in Islam you have to be kind Understanding and helpful to your neighbor. So when you are installing the speaker or when you are offering the call to prayer Please be mindful of your neighbors. Please have the openness Conversation that relationship with your fellow neighbors as My fellow New Yorkers I want to thank you in advance for your understanding For your openness and for ensuring that every religion in New York City has a right to worship as a police I encourage you to reach out to your fellow neighbor your fellow masjid and to learn about the call to prayer and Have that dialogue and relationship that would better serve your community The NYPD Muslim officer society is always in the forefront when it comes to serving the community Connecting our law enforcement and our community. We will always be here. I encourage our community to reach out to any one of us If they ever need any assistance, this is the best city in the greatest police department And we get a chance to serve connect and work along with the Jewish Christian see Hindu and all other religious officers Thank you, mr. Bahi and all the other people that put this together Thank you to our leaders that are standing here and those that could not make it Thank you again to mr. Mayor the police commissioner and of course, thank you to our New Yorkers This is another great example where working together. We can get stuff done God bless New York City and God bless the United States of America Thank you, and I would like to introduce now Imam al-Hajj dr. Talib Abdul Rashid Good morning Peace be unto you all, so now more equal I'm here this morning in my capacity as the chairman of the association of African-American Imams and as a special representative of the might of the Sassura, which is the Islamic Leadership Council of New York 33 years ago the city of New York was racked with gun violence throughout the five boroughs racial and ethnic strife and into that challenge Stepped our first and now previous African-American mayor Mayor David Dinkins And Mayor David Dinkins issued a call to the citizens of New York To celebrate what he called the gorgeous mosaic of ethnicities faith traditions and Languages and The interfaith community here in New York Embraced and answered and responded to Mayor Dinkins call and This served for a time as a healing balm to our city and I might add Help to sustain us during the difficult years that followed the Dinkins administration So here we are now Three decades later and the country itself is wracked by gun violence by strife between ethnic groups and There is a need for a call and an example From an elected official of the great city of New York to call us forth once again to unity Inclusion and diversity as a city That the city might be healed So we have the Muslim community. We are here to support the spirit and The leadership of Mayor Eric Adams It has always amazed me as someone who's lived in New York since I was a small child That people push back against Mayor Adams as The result of his open embrace of faith communities It's amazing when one considers that the largest Catholic community in America is in New York City The largest Jewish community in America is in New York City and The largest Muslim community in America is in New York City So it's not only a matter of good spirit. It's a matter of our mayor's good politics That we salute him for that And lastly Lastly over the past 30 years since the Maelty of Mayor Dinkins. There have been moments when the religious and spiritual life of New York City has taken a breath and Expanded to include Muslims it took a breath 30 years ago and added the two major Muslim Holy Days or sacred days to the New York City Transportation, Mr. Mayor calendar. It took a breath when Muslim inmates in the New York City Department of Corrections Were granted the right to have halal food on a regular basis the only jail system in America That enjoys that type of Accommodation it took a breath When the entire city was traumatized by the events of 9-11 and religious leaders of various faiths Responded with prayer and standing together and Love and compassion to heal our city And so we stand now in this crucial time with our mayor the mayor of all of the people of the city of New York and We counsel everyone to patience every time there's a development There's always a little tension In fact, the only time there's been an expansion Where there was no tension was when the number of days for alternate side parking were implemented We never got any negative feedback about that But we stand with our mayor We counseled the Muslim community and our neighbors of all faiths in this great and diverse City to continue to move forward continue to grow continue to evolve Because it is our belief that by doing so That we add to the safety and security of our city and the future of our children Our grandchildren and the future generations Thank you so kindly And I would like to introduce the next speaker Tahir Abdul Hadi executive director of Mass, New York Salamu alaikum In the name of Allah the most gracious the most merciful first and foremost We thank Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala God for all of his blessings and mercy upon us We think Mayor Eric Adams this administration Commissioner Kaban and all of the Muslim leaders that have stood the past few decades at times of Turbulence for Muslim communities and at times like these when Muslim communities and communities of faith are celebrated There was a lot of beautiful points that were shared and I just want to supplement them with a few words first and foremost There could of course be some worry from our neighbors in the New York Community that Thens are now going to suddenly start blasting we want to reiterate that It is an integral part of our faith to be kind and courteous to our neighbors the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him said One whose neighbors are not safe from your harm is not from us meaning. He is not a believer Conversely an opposite of that Muslims are pushed and it is incumbent upon them to be a positive force in society So when we talk about it then as being a call to prayer it's also a renewal of faith and with that faith it is not just prayer and fasting a Muslims faith must manifest in all of their Interactions in life in their honesty in their integrity in their support of Muslims and the people of all faiths and I want you all to understand that our Massajid in New York City provide many services for people of all faiths. They have food pantries There are places for emotional and spiritual support for anybody to walk in during the iftars of Ramadan It's not just Muslims walking in anybody can walk in and have a meal with Muslims and enjoy some social interaction And with this celebration of the Muslim community and of people of all faiths it's important to also have expectations expectations on ourselves as religious groups within society and as Mayor Eric Adams has many times reminded us the importance of the role of Faith groups within society we talk about crime We talk about substance abuse issues in society mental health issues the city can only do so much from the outside there's 40,000 police officers for Millions of people in New York City if we want to make this city a better place a healthier place It must start at a grassroots level and that is through religious groups That's through houses of worship that have access to hundreds of people and can give it these positive messages and tell them be the Leaders of positive change fix your families Improve your marriages raise your kids in a better way And this is some of the messages of course that Islam teachers and a hundred percent mayor Eric Adams aligns with Faith and family and improving this city from a grassroots level up and we really think the administration We thank the leaders. We thank all of you for supporting again as commissioner Kaban said not just having tolerance Right tolerances if we have tolerance as the benchmark come down before it right, you know below We're right there at discrimination. Let's have celebrating different faiths and and believing that they can be a part of the solution For our great city. Thank you Thank you by the time I will like not introduce Sumea for Rosie principle of the ideal Islamic school Okay, so I'm a lake on everyone Okay, so first of all, thank you mayor Eric Adams for being a friend to the Muslim community Thank you for recognizing the importance of a than the call for prayer In the Muslim community, we are humble today for this opportunity As you can see that then plays a huge significance in the Muslim daily life our lives revolve around the daily Five prayers one of the theme in my school ideal Islamic school is we are Muslims 24 7 So Islam is our life not simply a religion my vision for my students is to help them Embrace their Islamic identity with confidence Our children are reminded of who they are when they hear the adhan They can embrace their religion with a sense of pride and inclusiveness having that that echo in their New York City Neighborhoods will make them feel part of a community that acknowledges them This is what we want for our children to feel wants it The to feel this is home a home where their religion is accepted not feared So we are now in 2023 I believe it is time just as the church bells ring on Sundays We ask that then to echo on Fridays for Jima prayer and in Maghrib the holy month of Ramadan. Thank you Thank you, sister. I would like not introduce me some Rosvi spokesperson for the al-hoi foundation Thank you. I was a ballahim and a shaitan in a regime. Bismillah. I'm on a Rahim In the law home a laika to who you saloon a la Nabi Yeah, I was in a man who's all the way he was a limo tasleem. Oh, I'm a Salli ala Muhammad Wali Muhammad I'd like to begin by congratulating Brother Eric Adam Eric Adams for making this historic and groundbreaking announcement today Adhan as it literally means an announcement is not just a call for prayers It is also a declaration that a mosque is not a closed space It's an open space and it is a sanctuary for not just for everyone regardless of what religion creed Ethnicity race or orientation that they belong to it has an open space and everyone is welcome. That's what the announcement is for finally The call for la ilaha illa Allah Muhammad and Rasool Allah Ali and Wali Allah and Haya Allah Kheril Amal is going to echo on the streets of New York Mr. Mayor, we are eternally grateful for you for having made this announcement May Allah protect New York City and may Allah bless America Wassalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakat Thank you. I will cannot introduce senator Robert Jackson Mayor Adam, thank you for bringing us all together. It's good to see so many sisters and brothers here and You may say well, why am I here? I am here because when I get the text message that there was going to be announcement that the call for prayer is going to be every Friday afternoon from now and to whenever and I was the first Muslim that was elected to the city council of New York in January of 2002 and also in the New York State Senate in the New York State Senate in January of 2019 and People have come to me and said I didn't know you were Muslim And I said well, what does a Muslim look like and I say to you that not knowledgeable a Muslim looks like everyone in this room and So this is about respect and understanding and appreciation for one another Even we have religious leaders coming up to the state Senate and saying a prayer before we begin our Deliberations and I always go up front and introduce myself Not to say I'm the first Muslim in the safe Senate But to say to them hello, how are you and when you say your prayer Can you say a prayer for peace and understanding throughout the world? But all you have to do is turn on the news or listen to the radios and you know That we need prayer that we need respect. We need understanding and so I'm here today as part of one to say in unity There is strength and that's we are strong here today. Thank you mayor Thank You senator I would like not to introduce Brooklyn Bottle president Antonio rey no soul First I want to just thank mayor Eric Adams for this great announcement the Brooklyn Muslim community has been reaching out to me constantly to talk about this issue and I don't have the The support of the NYPD and come on and and I'm not the mayor of the city of New York But I was I was telling them to do it anyway. I Told them do it and get the fines and we'll I'll give them to Erica. He'll take care of them But to hear this announcement happening now I'm just deeply grateful because we are we speak about being proud of our diversity in our city and people love Dancing music eating the food and celebrating all those cultures But those folks want to celebrate themselves as well And we can't let the have them hide while we get to eat great muscle great food allow food and enjoy it But when it's time for them to pray that we want to hide or we want to say that that can't happen It's all it's a culture of extraction is way too common in this city Well, we need to do is start appreciating each other and loving each other. So when I talk about faith I just talk about love think about What they're doing in these mass mashies. They're just praying for each other praying for you in Catholic churches and Christian churches Baptist churches in Synagogues just praying for other people and I believe that when you give the universe love The universe gives it back and that's all they're doing is a ball of energy calling on each other through prayer for love and Now I have on my special assistant mayor Adams Forgets sometimes that it's Friday and he's supposed to go pray and now he can't do that anymore There's no more excuses for Omar son. I know you've you've asked me to make sure he goes There's no excuse anymore, but this is just me coming from Brooklyn I don't like to travel on this bridge and come to Manhattan often, but But I do I gotta I gotta take time to thank our mayor for doing this for the Muslim community for my community In Brooklyn, I'm a deeply grateful for it and inshallah. May we keep this on for forever. Thank you so much. I Will like not to introduce Yusuf Salam member of the exonerated five Hamdolillah first I would like to say may the peace mercy and blessings From the owner of all peace mercy and blessings be upon you. I Say that because that's what we say in Arabic And a lot of times the confusion comes when you hear people speaking a different language But it's about being able to translate in the best way in the best manner. What actually is happening What I love about the Adhan is that the Adhan was gifted to a person of color To wake up the community that said we are those who let go and let God It's a it's a term that we've heard in our community all throughout because we are interfaith type of community I remember hearing my grandmother say let go and let God especially when I was going through the awful trials of being vilified as one of the then known central park five But the best thing about Understanding where we are at this particular place in time is that this is sacred time and in sacred time We get the opportunity to be reminded that we have to at various points in our day Regardless of what we're doing regardless of what faith we practice Acknowledge God in the best way that we can and that is by praying to God and What better way than having the announcement proclaimed? God is the greatest And to turn your attention From whatever you're doing Back to God so that all of the things that you do afterwards Content can continue to be works that are blessed works that are favored You know in our prayer just so that you know we say Iyakana abudu wa Iyakana staim Which means show us the straight path guide us in the straight path guide us to the straight way What is that path Sirota Latina and amta alehim the way of those that you have blessed Yes, we know about the history because we can pick it up and read it in a book We know about the history of those who have been blessed who have been following the sacred path But there are people right now Who are doing the work and so I want to say thank you to our mayor Adams For being a bright star Not only in the context of who he is for us as a people But in this great city of ours And thank you commissioner caban for being front and center When it always matters Thank you. Alhamdulillah. Assalamu alaikum. Thank you, brother. Yusuf And now I would like to introduce imam abdallah salam Imam of muslim community center of brooklyn who would be doing a live chanting of the adhan in arabic And who will follow it up with the english Translation imam abdallah Assalamu alaikum, please be upon you all Okay Now i'm gonna say in english God is the greatest god is the greatest God is the greatest god is the greatest I be witness that there is no one worthy of worship except god I be witness that there is no one worthy of worship except god I be witness that muhammad is a messenger of god I be witness that muhammad is a messenger of god Come to prayer come to prayer Come to success Come to success God is the greatest. God is the greatest. And no one worthy of worship except God. Thank you. Yes. Yes. Let go. Let God. Okay. Okay. You know, we do things in orderly fashion. We're going to get you your question, but you picked the first person that we're talking. Good. And yourself? Yeah, pretty good. Were there any incidents that precipitated the need for a rule like this? Did anyone get tickets or was it the owner's process of getting a permit? Sort of, what was the problem that this is now solved? The, which is, that's a, that's a fantastic question, but I've learned during my time in office as mayor, we have been doing a lot of things and no one can point to the rule. And so when I first inquired, why can't we have the call, the prayer of no one had an answer? People say, well, we never did before. And so I follow the law, but I make policy. And so I spoke with the police commissioner and the deputy commissioner of community affairs and stated, let's put the pieces in place to make this happen. And that's what they did and bring clarity. Clarity is the key. You, they weren't broadcasting the call to prayer because they weren't sure about them. Right. There was no real clarity on if you could, if you couldn't. And the Muslim community wanted to make sure they abide by the law and we brought clarity to it. I don't know if you or someone from the NYPD wants to speak to what that process and what that means, learning experience was to broaden this to out, to remove the permanent system to allow more masks and has the worship to help. I didn't play into it at all. I talked about this on the campaign trail when I sat down with my Muslims leaders, my Imams. When I visited the mosques and masjids, I talked about this over and over again. And so we just continue in the same pattern of promise made, promise kept. Hey, brother, how are you? Muslim around the world because New York has been followed worldwide. It's happened. And that, as one of the brothers just said, the first person who will make the announcement was Bilal. I know that he's also happy. What we want to know right now is, why was so much of a claim? And what are you going to do about the administration? What are you going to do about the cramp? It's sad, sad but it's gone. Well, you know, my brother, my brother really pointed it out, you know, you got to, you got to, you got to let go and let God. You know, there's no way I would have navigated the city out of COVID crime, 104,000 asylum seekers without one family and child sleeping on the streets, turning back our economy, getting people back on our subway system in a real way, recovering 99% of our jobs, getting a double A bond rating by Fitch, saying this is a good place to invest, having 56 million tourists, 65 million predicted to come this year, decreasing shooting and crime. I wake up in the morning and I don't try to guess. I turn on my GPS, guard position in satellite. Let go and let God. Yes, sir. You just came from Jerusalem and you started breaking bread building bond. Is it something that you can expand between Muslims and Jews so that it can translate into peaceful coexistence on the holy land? Well, let's be clear that with Assistant Commissioner Knight and Commissioner Fred Kreisman, Bahi, that whole team has done. I think we have a couple of thousand people who have already attended a breaking bread building bond. We started out with just doing 10 people at one table all coming from a different faith in religion. It has grown. I think the one that we did on Saturday, we had about either Saturday or Sunday, we had about 400 people. Last night, there was one in Ozan Park. Hundreds of people are coming and sitting down and reintroducing themselves to their neighbors. Breaking bread is just a simple way of just bringing people in the room. I think we underestimate the lubricating value of a meal, how it really takes down our defenses and really allows us to have a real conversation. We want to do a thousand different events and we are on target to doing that. They are doing an amazing job and people are eager. We did one with the Department of Correction over the weekend. New York City Police Department held one. Each one of our precinct's commanders are going to hold one. Our commissioners are going to hold one. The most challenging aspect of getting it done, we just can't seem to get our reporters to hold one. We want to get all of our news journalists. Maybe we can get Dana and I to sit down at the table and break bread and build bond together. You know? We never got invited. It is a historic day for the Muslim community. No doubt. But if anyone challenges this issue, all New York City will defend the Muslim community. We are doing that every day. There were some painful moments with the New York City Police Department and the Muslim community coming out of 9-11. There was just a very difficult period and I remember when a group of Muslim officers came to me while I was in uniform and they were providing safety for the city but their daughters and wives because they were wearing a hijab they were being attacked. I met with those Muslim officers back then in 2001 and gave them my attorney who started their first organization, organized them into an organization of we had to stand up and we see the population it has increased drastically and the entire Muslim presence in the police department I think there's a new day. Commissioner Caban is just well known in the Muslim community and that defense is having a very clear offense that we're not going to tolerate any forms of hate and we're going to continue to do that. It's about everyone living safely in the city and the right to worship in the city. How are you? Are you going to come to our breaking bread building? Okay. Bahi sat down and mapped out the exact way I like to speak to the community and figure it out that was what Bahi presented during the month of Ramadan it's going to be at every sunset and during the year it's going to be during Friday prayer and I think that there must be a very clear understanding that out of the many towns, villages and cities across America, New York could never be outdone. Thank you. Well this is New York. 8.5 million people, 35 million opinions. No matter what you do in New York there's always going to be the numerical minority that's going to say we should or shouldn't do that. The overwhelming people in the city respect faith and understand the power of faith who stated it but it was clear when you are in a masjid a synagogue a temple a church when you are praying you're not going out to create harm or someone. The more prayer we have the greater we're going to be and I don't care what anyone is saying it's time to pray. We're in some challenging times with so many different levels and prayer works in a different way. Feel offended these brothers and sisters from the Muslim community they're going to invite them in. People who are offended over the expression of worship I believe they're in a painful place the only way you can heal that painful place of what I say over and over again we have to move from being worshippers to practitioners. Let's engage in dialogue let's go to the community board meetings the precinct council meetings so yes there will be those who will find a reason for us not to do it and that's okay. We'll be alright they will get used to the sound and maybe some of them will come in and join in prayer it's just time to pray. I should keep y'all all here with me why they ask me these other questions thank you so much thank you I just see them as concerns I saw them that they gave feedback but let's be clear and this is just so important to understand talking about the downstream approach is not the answer it's the upstream approach so to say what are we doing with asylum seekers when they're in our city without addressing how do we stop the flow to New York City so each time we open a new space that's not an answer it's not sustainable if you're averaging 10,000 people a month and if the national plan is have New York City continue firing spaces that is not an answer and if the national plan is that slowly see if New York can move more on the waiting list to get work authorization that's not an answer so we appreciate their observation we're happy they really engage in this conversation but we have not had a lack of clarity we need people to have the right to work which is an American tradition we need an emergency declaration we need locations to sort of deal with the overflow right now and we need funding so when you look at that analysis that was given it answered none of those prevention this is an intervention what you saw how do we stop this flow yes they didn't give any clear answers and you know look at the low hanging fruit like an emergency declaration we can free up some things here in the city finding they gave us a list of spaces we're going to look at those spaces really doing a decompression strategy at the border is important you know I just I am just really baffled around that very smart people believe that this is sustainable for New York City to continue to get more and more and more and more and more and more and more and more people in the city a month New York is frustrated and it's spilling over you know if the status quo stays we're still spending $5 billion right it's just like as New York is we have to ask what are they doing to us what is it about New York we're going to look at all the sites and we're going to give a preview of where the sites are I want my team to have an opportunity to do so and then we'll come back and give you a list of all the sites and what's the outcome and if we can use them we're willing to use them but you know Kelly I just want to again lean into the answer to this question is not can we find more places for migrants to fit in New York City and in New York State that's just not the answer the answer is how do we stop the flow and if we don't engage in that conversation then we have a problem and the beauty here is that you saw the letter all of you is open to everyone you know the letter and so when you read through it you have to say to yourself okay how does this solve the problem I mean that's the question that we with the question we're asking what is the problem and you just see the answer how to solve the problem you said you saw an answer hey maybe you guys can move people out faster through the process maybe you could do this maybe we can do that but you know but how do we solve the problem that's what we need from the national government what are you talking about that would be open to everyone well anytime you start out a question with the name Curtis Sliwa that it would do a disservice to me and other New Yorkers for me to even respond to that Curtis Sliwa I mean if you go look in the dictionary for the Rory Buffon and tell me what picture you come up with how's it going President Biden I said this when I was in Israel dealing with the conflict between the protest movement and Prime Minister both the protest movement and the Prime Minister they love Israel President Biden loves America Governor Hoku loves America Eric loves America when something is rooted in love you're going to have disagreements if you're married you're going to have disagreement with your spouse you have disagreement with your children Jordan and I have disagreements from time to time but it doesn't mean we don't love each other we disagree on this issue we have an unbelievable partner with the subway safety plan with cycling out of COVID with helping me partner on housing the new New York plan and President Biden was here when we went to Washington to get resources for during the gun violence a point in an ATF had so we've done great things together we love this country right now we are at a disagreement I need the national government both houses to come up with a real immigration reform package I need the issues that we pointed out and the governor has made it clear that she believes this is something that is basically New York City we just disagree on that I believe this is a statewide issue and it should be managed by the state but that has nothing to do with the fact that I believe she has been an amazing partner and we've had a great relationship and there are going to be other times that we disagree on things like you know Dana and I we don't agree on a lot I've been calling you a lot today right see he called on you because I kept calling on you I thought he should have received MSG should have received 10 years but the council used their authority they spoke with the councilmen in the area and they made that decision I respect that you know the within their authority within their power we made our recommendation but they have certain powers and you know this is a great system checks and balances no one can get away with doing whatever they want and so they made a decision I respect this decision by the council and the reelection part of this and how it impacts the president I don't know the answer he has his he has his advisors they could better tell him on that I need to know what's happening in the city and I'm focused on that let's look at this for a moment we are going to four borough based jails four borough based jails right now I think the population is around 40 the most those borough based jails can take us about 4200 we're projected to have over 6000 so those who are on right is now because of bell reform and because of other reforms you really have to do something bad to go to rikers so now we as a city willing to say that 2000 extremely dangerous people because we don't have enough space we're going to turn them back into the streets and back to the communities that they committed these crimes in the first place and so I think the city council must look at this plan with 50% of the people there have mental health illness and see how do we come up with a plan that gets the reform we're looking for and the safety that we're looking for now the law says Eric you have to do a I'm going to do a I'm never going to break the law I'm going to attempt to show people that we have to remain safe as a city as the plan currently is it's a question that is this a good public safety decision including the cost of that has ballooned to a level that's unbelievable so I think we all as leaders need to come back and say how do we deal with this issue that we are faced with in a few years and based on my partners I have to go with whatever the outcome is I'm not going to get my way on everything I get I have some of the greatest numbers of people who receive fund raises I get a ton of fund raises I get a ton of people who stop me on the street being a mayor don't ever underestimate a mayor that is among people as much as I am the number of people that come to me I am inundated every day all day with people you are at events and you see how many people come at me so if you have to ask me did I know everyone who came or hosted an event or what have you no I don't know everyone that hosts events I don't know everyone that wants me to come to this event being a mayor particularly a mayor that does not live in a bubble I am constantly having people around me every day and so those who hosted events I don't know all the names I don't know all the faces I have a fund raising team in there handling that Marsha I'm sorry the what I'm sorry the what I'm sorry the what I'm sorry the what I'm sorry the what I'm sorry the what I'm sorry the what I'm sorry the what I'm sorry because again reception well he he the sites that we got that were on state facilities we could not go to the president and say can you give us authorization to use a state site So sites that are under federal control, we can't go to the governor and say, can you give us right to use those sites? So the federal government controls their sites, the state controls their site, and the city controls their site. So the federal government tells us we can use this site. We're going to listen to what the federal government states. Responding to the letter from Secretary of my office, said she was opposed to letting the city use those 11 sites because she wanted all of the migrants to be in New York City and not to go beyond the five boroughs. So are you saying that if there are federal sites that they make available beyond the five boroughs, that you will send migrants there even if she doesn't want them? No, we don't have an option. New York City has run out of room. And think about it for a moment. Think about a plan that states all of the migrants must stay in New York City. We're close to 60,000 that are still in our care. 10,000 a month. So any plan that wants, that states, all migrants must stay in New York City, that's a failed plan. Any plan that does not include stopping the flow at the border is a failed plan. And so if the national leaders are saying, we're not going to stop the flow, that's a failed plan. And if the state leaders are saying it must stay in New York City, that's a failed plan. And it's just not fair to New York City residents. You know, we have 0.05 of the landmass, but we have 99.9% of the migrant asylum seekers. Governor Sestian, you can use a court trial for the plunder of state. Are you going to do it even though the governor opposes it? We are going to use any space that's available to take the pressure off of New York City residents. Whatever space we could use within the authorizing power, we're going to use. If I get permission from the governor to use a state facility, we're going to use that. If I get permission from the federal government, we're going to use that. We're going to use any space that folks come in and say you have the authorization to use. Okay.