 Good afternoon to everyone and welcome to City Hall. It is good to be here with all of you. I'm Pastor Gilman Rose I'm the executive director of the Office of Faith Based and Community Partnerships along with our colleagues from the community affairs and we want to give special thanks to Mohammed Bahi for making this day possible of Everyday heroes the mayor always talk about the fact that there was an artist who was drawing a young man who had a scar on his face and He always said that we should not forget his face even though he has a scar I think that every New Yorker as you look at it. There's so many good deeds Could you imagine? If for one whole week that we only mentioned the good things that New Yorkers would do to one another How great New York would look? Well today if we want to celebrate we want to stop and pause for a moment We know we have a lot of issues that is happening in the city and throughout the world So much of heaviness, but today is a bright day for us in New York every day New Yorker. So This time I want to um introduce the mayor of New York City mayor Eric Adams Thank you, thank you so much Uh, I think it's important, uh, and you're right We often look at the day-to-day strife Uh, the day-to-day tension and we don't really emphasize Uh, how much as New Yorkers we come together particularly during those times of needs And this city is is an overwhelming number of New Yorkers that care for each other That come to the aid of each other and that uh coexist I think by that symbol of all the different religious and philosophical beliefs coexist This is a city that really is an example of how you coexist No one does it better than uh, New York We coexist every day and I think john personifies that story with john katanya Who stepped up to assist a fellow New Yorker on the transit system? You know 3.8 million people utilize that system We reached a level of 3.9 million and yes We have six felony crimes on average a day that we need to zero in on and make sure we have none But the reality is uh, that one of those 3.9 million riders Is john, you know, and it says a lot. There's so many John katanya is on our system every day doing the right thing standing up if someone needs a seat in front of them Giving them a swipe if they don't have enough to get on Coming in defense of someone who's treated unfairly or unjustly. We don't hear about them They're not part of our narrative Because I guess it's not attractive But we heard about you and we want to say thank you and as a former transit police officer I saw it every day during the Early 80s and we're sitting it every day here in the city We show both moral and physical courage When you swiftly Came to the aid of a young woman who was being attacked With a bladed weapon and you know, normally people run from that or they pick out their forms and take pictures And not go to the direct aid of their fellow new yorkers. Uh, you Did it while sustaining an injury, but we want to thank you and the victim Both are recovering both you and the victim are recovering and the most importantly the attacker was apprehended Which is extremely important because of your action So I I really admire salute your bravery and here at city hall We like to pause and just acknowledge what you're doing and you're brave every day. You're in the school system My teachers would tell you I noticed some little erics in our school system. So we know how we can be You know a teacher at scarred scarred dale high school of Our superheroes, uh, don't wear capes They're in the classroom. They are on our subway system. They're doing the job every day and your face of danger is really A symbol of what's great about this city and while this is an amazing place with amazing people That are doing amazing things. So on behalf of all new yorkers I want to give you a this proclamation To thank you for a job. Well done Whereas there's no greater example Of the grit that defines the exceptional people who drive our city forward Than the kindness courage and valor shown by john kantanya This true new yorker who possesses a bottomless well of compassion for others Embodies the very best our amazing city has to offer his his hero heroism selfishness And unshakable strength of character will inspire his fellow new yorkers for years to come It is contagious to see that level of benevolence together We will continue to work to guarantee safety and security for all who live and visit here and build a better Brighter new york city for all I eric adams Thank you on this day For being a hero and name this john kantanya a day eric adams may have the city of new york You have to say a few words Come on john your teacher you used to being up in york you used to being in front All right. All right. Let's keep it quick. But um, no, I'm just happy to be here Um, thank you for the recognition and i'm happy diamond is feeling well and doing good and Let's keep the positivity up, you know Love it. Thank you Okay Thank you Any questions on this before we do a few off topics Okay, what are your parents tell me teachers mom Okay, come on. Come on up and get in this photo. We'll take a quick photo before we do some more time Okay, okay So, so thank you all. Uh, no off topic yet. We're gonna be on topic for a minute. Um, we have a few speakers. Um, so we have Hasan navid who is here with us today. He's gonna come Um, I know that we we have a short time, but I also want to um call after him a far nasa and then Teha abdel hadi and then mawa jihannini and then ivet Sela was in that order so that we can go to off topic questions. You could come Is this tall enough for me? Yeah, I think it is. Hello folks Okay musical chairs Uh Hello, uh, aslam aleykum to many of my muslim family here as well. Um, thank you pastor man rose. Thank you, mr Mayor My name is Hasan navid and i'm the executive director for the office for the prevention of hate crimes I also want to commend the bravery and courage of mr John catania There should be a day that's dedicated to heroes like this every day, right? Every muslim including myself is honored to call you a hero and it's something that I cannot forget When it comes to upstanders, it's something that our office really does work on We have our partners against the hate organizations that are really promoting Folks to be out there and to be upstanders. You exemplify the upstander that is direly needed in our city I also want to thank Miss diamond phillips as well too It is hard as an individual who is victimized by such an incident to come forward and to be able to talk about this incident at the same time This administration is committed to ensuring that this city is safe for everyone Regardless of who you are and what you are. We don't tolerate this sort of violence against anyone and as the mayor said Every new yorker, especially muslims will look back at this incident and remember it. So thank you mr Catania, and I'll keep my comments short Very much and and I'll thank you all so much I'm loving this little platform So good afternoon, samayakum greetings of peace. My name is ff nasher I am the executive director for the council on american Islamic relations new york I just want to thank again everyone who put this together From the mayor to brother behi to the office of prevention of hate crimes Which is assisted community organizations like ours to combat this proactively and as well as the pastor And of course our heroes who we're here to celebrate We want to remind everyone that the reason That so many muslims are in this room is because at the time of the assault There were some anti muslim rhetoric remarks that was made towards our sister diamond So that is the reason why we're treating this as a hate crimes And I have to say that as someone who has been in many hospital rooms where I've seen tears where I've seen broken bones In why I have unfortunately even been in neighborhoods in which we've had to bury people Because of death that has resulted from hate crimes This is a much better outcome where we saw an upstander putting himself To the line and actually helping somebody in need his fellow new yorker someone he didn't know Now I'd be remiss if I didn't mention something that care new york knows and that is we don't often report hate crimes Which is why what our sister diamond is doing is so important as well As a matter of fact only four percent of our community members report hate crimes And that is despite the fact that 64 percent of muslims in new york city Say they've experienced either a hate crime or a bias incident or both now John is a teacher 32 percent reported that their victims were a minor and I believe was 34 Outlined in our report that talks about these kinds of incidents happening even in educational institutions And of course our mayor has already talked about many of these incidents occurring on our public transportation systems These are numbers But the trauma that people face is real and that's what we need to focus on And so we offer our continued prayers to our sister diamond and brother john for our fast healing And we offer our support as community organizations and your fellow new yorkers And we applaud you for everything that you do and we ask the mayor and everybody who has a stake in this Which means every single one of us to also be Upstanders in every way that we can be which includes getting in there and trying to prevent hate crimes to begin with Some of the suggestions we outlined in our hate crime report, which includes educating people within the school system at city agencies Let's be proactive so that we don't have to come together on Unfortunately commemorating an occasion of violence So I thank you all and mostly thank our upstander john and our sister diamond for being as brave as you are and being role models For the rest of us And I thank the mayor's office and nypd and everyone who had a part in bringing this attacker Hopefully to justice and we're here as a recourse and a resource to every single one of you. Thank you Salam alaikum My name is tahir abdel haydi. I'm the executive director for the muslim american society of new york On behalf of mass new york and the muslim community as a whole We first want to send our prayers and blessings to diamond in our recovery physical and emotional recovery And uh, we we want to thank john for his courage and his bravery There's a teaching in the islamic faith that says if you see an evil you must change it with your hand And if you cannot change it with your hand then you speak out against it And if you can't speak out against it then at the very least you hate it in your heart And there was no better embodiment of this teaching and this lesson than what john did on that fateful day He truly showed what every new yorker should be doing standing up and and opposing any evil and opposing injustice And you know, uh mayor adams mentioned all you know people pulling out their phones And I think we all see these videos of crimes happening and it's very disappointing and and it's like We're not able to see these crimes, but sometimes the most alarming thing in these videos Is all of the people just kind of standing around and you're like wait, there's a whole train full of people A bunch of grown men not one person stands up And you know john was one of those people that stands up And even in our city when we look at how we can have a a more loving and cohesive city We sometimes look outwards. What's the city gonna do? What's nypd gonna do? But we need to look inwards as a community and you know muslim american society We work on nurturing people and inspiring change and our focus is really trying to get people to be kind of like john Right, you see something you say something you prevent it. You be a positive engine of change Um, and again on behalf of everybody. Thank you john for what you did. You're an example for everybody Okay, my name is i'm sorry. My name is Yvette silo and i'm a fellow new yorker who rides the train um, it's a quote in the coran that talks about If you hurt one person you hurt mankind All right, if you do if you help one person you help mankind. All right, john. I want to thank you Because it was very important that you showed bravery and courage when you seen um, the young lady in in distress, okay Uh, I would also like to say mom and dad you raised a brave And you should be very proud Of your son and last but not least i want to take a page out of the mta If you see something say something All right Assalamu alaikum and good afternoon Thank you all for gathering today to join in recognizing and celebrating a new york city hero john katanya As a mother and as a woman as a mother to two muslim daughters It is empowering to see us coming together to stand and say in unison That we will never tolerate hate My name is mudwall janini, and i'm the executive director of the arab american association of new york a community-based Organization that has been serving south brooklyn and all of new york city for over 20 years We have been there for our community members as they have weathered overwhelming and often violent islamophobia Living with the fear and the reality of muslim surveillance and abuse from institutions meant to protect us And learning to navigate these challenges in light of the historical apathy to tackle these injustices head on i'm sure many of my muslim cbo leaders Will agree with me when i say that tackling hate in our communities have been for years a seamlessly hopeless task AAA and y has been fortunate to build relationships with partners like care new york under the leadership of sister afaf nasher To be able to provide bystander intervention trainings to tens of thousands of new yorkers People like mr. Katanya creating safe zone for our most vulnerable community members Developing resources and tools to support survivors and more AAA and y is also currently an anchor organization and path forward a citywide initiative that supports cbo's throughout new york city To develop anti-hate programming and services Path forward is a recognition from the mayor's office that this work requires heavy investment if it is to be successful Progress has been made sure But much more investment is needed to curate the change. We also desperately seek I want to thank the mayor's office for its effort to take on hate and for recognizing a true new york city hero today It reflects the mayor's commitment to taking on this challenge and doing whatever it takes to ensure those on the ground has Have the necessary resources to do the work that is needed We need the people we need the investment and we need community buy-in Mr. Katanya, I want to thank you for your bravery My heart is broken that you were ever in such a situation to begin with But I stand in awe for what you did for my sister diamond phillips As a muslim we believe that to save one life is like saving all of humanity Imagine the gratitude one might have towards someone who saved the world. That is the gratitude. We hold for you Thank you First any on topics for the yes It's a I'll say not much it was a bit more reactionary than than like a logical decision. I mean I saw someone Get attacked and it was very violent out of nowhere and I mean someone needed to do some and I was standing there I mean it was it fell on my shoulders. I guess I mean everyone else kind of jumped away And I mean what what else do you do? I can't let someone that that Situation is just like a moral thing. It had to happen in front of me. There was no real thought about it. It was just I had to help Simple as that Yeah, I'd say so I'd say so she looked very alone and clearly injured in the moment. So Um, I just tried to do my best try to intervene and stop any more violence I'm hoping I could do that. You know, I myself got a little injured, but that's all right Wouldn't really encourage people as we roll out our breaking bread building barn a thousand dinners across the city 10 people at each dinner And doing something revolutionary uh talking to each other And we aren't going to encourage individuals to participate It's time for the good people of the city to know each other and not allow their scar To define us. We want people to see our face. So again, thank you Thank you so much for what you have done and just continue to do in a great person You are and educated that you are Do a couple off topics Yes, you don't want to sleep for this Yeah Where were you on Thursday and Friday? The I was in, uh, the, uh, U.S. Virgin Islands Uh, and you know, it was interesting That, um after 365 days of working Without a day off Uh, sun up to sun down. I was really surprised at your response You know, I saw a live of live, uh the press conference and I was amazed to see how you responded, you know, this is my second Christmas without my mother And last year I was really the state of depression And would I put my staff through? And I said I can't do that again So after 365 days of commitment to the city I decided to take two days to reflect on mommy And to watch how you responded to my two days out of this city Was really alarming I deserve Good work life balance like you do. I bet you you went on a vacation I bet you have not broke 365 days in the city I bet you have not dealt with people being killed fires police officers dying And you probably still have your parents. I don't And so if I take times out off to get my mental capacity together so I could take the city through the crisis I deserve those two days and my fellow new yorkers believe I deserve those two days Yes What information is, you know, owed to new yorkers about your whereabouts do you know? Obviously blueberg often went away on weekends and didn't tell people where he was like, how do you think about that sort of question? well Every maria traveled away I deserve private time I'm a believer of that I deserve to walk out of a building without a reporter hiding behind a flower pot Without someone following me I deserve a moment to really deescalate And there will be many days that my body and my mind is going to tell me Eric you need to get away No way in the city charter does this state I have to report to the new york city press where my whereabouts are And i'm not going to do that and i'm not going to apologize for having a mental and physical capacity That's needed to do the second most difficult job in politics in america all of you who cover me in the press You know what time my days start, you know what time they end You tell me another mayor that has had that level of rote that I have I do my job well and I know what's needed to do that job and so When you look at The fact of what this city has gone through all of these days That all of you covered both of you and all who else is in this media You realize how much it took out of any human being And to take two days to reflect on that I do a disservice to my team and myself And the most important thing last year the first year mom was not here I couldn't take off we were building a team My team responded to a fire Where we lost loved ones my team responded to a storm My team responded to the incidents Before leaving I responded to a shooting involving a police officer when I landed that day I was at the hospital responding to an officer who was stabbed When my plane landed there was a fire at jfk When you look at the accumulation of a big city every day something is happening in this city So if I put my mental capacity on hold for nothing to happen in this city I would never have that opportunity To reflect No, no finish because if we don't He's going to I wasn't criticizing no one was criticizing taking a vacation. The question was where you were and what would trigger a return Just 90 miles to the south the mayor of philadelphia went on the same weekend went under for surgery There was a major winter storm and they put out a press release advising That he was under for surgery and that he wouldn't be in charge of the response and that it would be delegated to his deputy Do you think you owe the public that same level of disclosure to sort of follow on? Which disclosure which disclosure That you're going to be out of town sort of what your whereabouts are and that And I guess over the week that the rain gorilla would be overseeing the city's storm response I think what is important is what we must do is follow the city charter The city charter lays out my responsibility in my absence. The first deputy mayor is responsible for the city That was in place. You saw my first deputy mayor hold a press conference Given a complete diagnosis of what was happening in the city We followed the city charter There are things that I would do that the mayor of philadelphia may not do And so to hold me to what another mayor is doing is not how i'm going to run this city I followed the laws in the city charter now if you find a place in the city charter that is states I am supposed to announce my whereabouts when i'm out of the city Then I apologize because I didn't follow that rule. I don't know any of that Maybe you do. I don't I follow the city charter and I follow the rules on what's happening They are going to be days in the future That i'm going to leave without letting you know beforehand But we will have the right people in place to run a complicated city But i'm not going to always tell this press Where I am to have you sitting outside the location and saying my every move. I learned enough of that Okay, thank you