Read more about these foreigners’ demands on American streets.

NYC World Refugee Day  – Stop the Refugee Ban, Save Asylum and Defend Temporary Protected Status (TPS)”

6:30pm – 7:30pm: March to/ Rally at Trump World Tower and Dag Hammarskjold Plaza (47th Street, between 1st and 2nd Avenue)

8:30pm – 9:30pm: Interfaith Iftar at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza (47th Street, between 1st and 2nd Avenue)

I focused on the preliminaries and their signs of LOVE and INCLUSION (for everyone except Donald Trump and patriotic Americans).

The orange dinghy brigade returned, waiting in the background.

No love for anything Trump.

Voice of America interviewed many participants, including this familiar protestor.

6:30 pm and the march to the U.N. was almost ready to go… until someone picked up those ORANGE dinghys.

The parade passed by, mostly for the benefit of a sympathetic media corps.

The sponsors were the usual suspects:

A Flickr slide show:

As expected, they made sure the “Iftar for infidels” would be covered — links were easy to find.  Videos posted show happy infidels praying at the Iftar — in the name of PEACE — snookered in to praying Islam:

Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition

The Interfaith Center of New York Lab/Shul

Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus

Jews for Racial and Economic Justice [JFREJ

One wonders how many of these groups would be welcome in Mecca.

New Yorkers rally on World Refugee Day

African Communities Together
We thank our faith leaders, who led us in prayer and unity on #WorldRefugeeDay

CityofRefuge

Photo Credits: David Moriya

African Communities Together and Audu Kadiri

“Thanks to everyone for organizing such an inspirational demonstration….The Iftar meal was delicious! —The Last Raft.

The Observer:

“The action […] condemned the administration’s efforts to bar refugees from war-torn Syria and other Muslim lands and defended Temporary Protected Status, which gives arrivals from nations enduring an armed conflict or natural disaster deportation immunity and work authorization. The march kicked off on 59th Street and Fifth Avenue and concluded […] (when) demonstrators held an interfaith iftar—the evening meal breaking the daytime fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

“We are celebrating the heritage and existence of refugees in this country and throughout the world,” Fatou Waggeh, a civic organizer for African Communities Together[…] “But we’re also coming together as a community to say that we stand against the refugee ban.”

“Waggeh recalled “feeling very sad and depressed” when Trump was elected in November but that she is now feeling “mobilized and hopeful.”‘

NYCDSA, The DSA Immigration Justice Working Group, also known as the NYC Democratic Socialists of America:

Just remember: It’s not you. It’s Capitalism

 PressSenza:

“United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called on the international community to provide support and solidarity to refugees. “We reflect on the courage of those who fled and the compassion of those who welcome them,” the Secretary-General said.”

There’s always a protest somewhere. NYC progressives and their allies never rest.

[Where indicated, pictures and video property of Pamela Hall]

March4Trump Patriots gathered to Support Our President.

This is a Pro-America rally in support of our President and to show our American pride.
Wear your USA and Trump gear. Bring your American flags, signs and pride. This will be a peaceful rally
VS
Standing Rock Climate Leftist Loons and their Comrades-in-arms

This was a National Uprising anti-Trump March

The march to Trump Tower was set to start at about 2 pm. While waiting, there was lots of music. In spite of the cold, the musicians seemed to manage.

Including a familiar pro-Trump patriot.

Never dull, visually. Donald Puppets, expected.

And disenchanted, brain-washed millennials like this mother and her dutiful spawn.

Always disappointed to see such sweet children sent down this path of global anti-Americanism.

The themes and complaints from the Leftists were many, as the slide show reveals:

Couldn’t walk with them – still dealing with my plantar churl – so bussed it to 56th street where I caught up with the March4Trump Rally.

Surprised to locate them at 57th street, a block from Trump Tower. The police had moved them further from the tower (and these are the GOOD guys!)

Scheduled from Noon to 3 pm, it was about 2:30, and they had a great group assembled. Diverse as always, NOT a group of WHITE supremacists, never.

From the NYPL on 42nd street, to 57th and Fifth, we found a LOUD show of support or resistance (depending on whose side they were on) with signs, shouting and cheering.

It was a civilized exit except for the rude finger-jabbing from this well-dressed “lady”. She very much enjoyed flipping-off the pro-Trumpers.

Becoming a bit shy once she saw my camera.

See Flickr side show of both sides  at Trump Tower

Typical of the left, their strolling musicians brought a bit of NOLA Mardi Gras to the scene. I must admit it was pleasing to the ear.

In conclusion, as I looked for media recaps, I found this report from the NY Post. It mentions the separation of the opposing factions before I arrived .

Pro and anti-Trump rallies collide at Trump Tower – NY Post

Another day on the streets of Manhattan. The left never rests. Neither should we.
March on. March on.

++Pictures and videos property of Pamela Hall++ [except where designated]

It seems that the popularity of New York City’s recently introduced municipal ID has exceeded the capacity of our notoriously competent government officials to meet burgeoning demand. Whether issuing tends of thousands of breeder documents to individuals who have a tenuous relationship with observing legal norms is a good idea remains to be seen. However, if  the New Haven experiment is any example by which to judge, we shouldn’t expect salutary results.

No matter. The open borders Mau Maus have moved beyond the small potatoes obtained at the behest of Comrade Wilhelm and his ethically-challenged lackey and are aiming for even bigger prizes, as our friends at The Silent Majority No More  remind us. Just as the repeated legislative rebukes from Congress did not deter those seeking to eradicate immigration enforcement and controls, so too does our local branch of the treason lobby refuse to relent.

 Those who hope to gain…will know no rest by day or night. Those who hope to gain…have agents everywhere, who descend in swarms on the electorate, urging the voters that sound and enlightened patriotism calls for the success of their modest proposal. In contrast, the individual who is threatened with losing [a small amount of money through taxation]-even if he is fully aware of what is afoot-will not for so small a thing forego a picnic in the country or fall out with useful or congenial friends, or get on the wrong side of the mayor or the prefect. In these circumstances the outcome is not in doubt: the spoiliators will win hands down. 

Something we in the patriotic immigration reform movement should keep in mind as we plow ahead.

One simple word which encapsulates the sum of the aspirations harbored by Iranians throughout the world, both those in exile and those living, and suffering, in the land of their birth. It was one of the demands invoked repeatedly throughout the pro-democracy demonstrations which took place last week at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza. These protests were held against the backdrop of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s last speech before the United Nations General Assembly, evoking memories of the election he purloined in order to remain in power.

Although various factions within the Iranian freedom movement were present, the bulk of those in attendance came from the MEK, an organization led by the woman seen in the placard above, Maryam Rajavi.

The president of the People’s Mujahadeen of Iran-and wife of Massoud Rajavi, the leader of that group’s political arm, The National Council of Resistance in Iran-she controls what is arguably the most controversial, and undoubtedly the most personality-driven, group within the anti-IRI opposition movement which has taken root among the Iranian diaspora created by the Islamic Revolution of 1979.

The cloud surrounding the MEK exists for a number of reasons, one of the most prominent among them being its inclusion in a list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations created by the State Department, which includes such illustrious fraternal associations as Abu Sayyaf and Lashkar-e-Taiba. 

At first glance, it would appear that this designation is appropriate. After all, as this ABC News report about the recent removal of the MEK from proscribed terrorist organizations makes clear, it was responsible for the deaths of Americans-both civilian and military-abroad, much like northern California jihadi John Walker Lindh. It was given sanctuary for decades by Iraq-itself considered a state sponsor of terror until the removal of Saddam Hussein from power-much like the Palestinian Liberation Front, a terrorist group responsible for murdering American citizens in the most callous manner.

So if the terrorist designation is applied to any group which has the blood of Americans on its hands, then the State Department should not have even contemplated de-listing the MEK. However, if that is the policy, then what explanation is there for the federal government’s consistent policy of embracing, if not feting, PLO leaders? Men who  are directly implicated in the murder of American diplomats, and who represent an entity responsible  for the deaths of more Americans  any other terrorist organization in the contemporary era-and whose hands are stained with blood much fresher than that taken by the MKO-with the exceptions of Al Qaeda and Hezbollah. The PLO might even outrank the latter in body count, if we consider that its chief operations planner was once a protege of Yasser Arafat.

If the criteria for inclusion is militarization and/or criminal activity, then it’s hard to explain why the Irish Republican Army has never been designated an FTO. After all, the IRA Army Council didn’t formally renounce its armed campaign until 2005, which marked the year it finally decommissioned its supply of arms. What’s more, members of the IRA have engaged not only in murder and obstruction of justice within the past decade-as well as other notorious criminal activities-but shared their bomb-making expertise with the most prolific terrorist group in the Western Hemisphere.

So what explains the MEK’s designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the State Department? Although obviously a self-interested stance, I can’t help but agree with the MEK itself, which concludes that this decision was made in an attempt at currying favor with the Iranian regime. A regime whose presidency was held by the pseudo-reformist Mohammed Khatami, assiduously courted by the Clinton administration, at the time this list was formulated. As others have pointed out, this policy of engagement with the Islamic Republic of Iran has not returned much in the way of political or diplomatic dividends.

Even so, the MEK’s fiercest adversaries do pose some valid objections. The organization does have a very sordid past, a past which Kenneth Timmerman has extensively and eloquently limned over the years. And despite some exaggeration of the dangers it poses, there is an inexorably cultish quality to the organization created by Maryam and Massoud Rajavi, although it should be noted that there are numerous cults in this country which do not engage in terrorism. At least, as it is generally defined.

Another valid critique of the Mujahadeen-e-Khalq  is the assertion that it is not a genuinely grassroots opposition movement. Anyone who has observed an MEK rally firsthand can’t escape the impression that the astroturf accusations are not completely devoid of merit. The man above didn’t seem to have much interest in the internal political dynamics of Iran, much less the MEK, although the fact that he was at a rally with fans of the Redskins and Giants did speak to a rare intra-divisional amity this NFL season.

Even protestors with more substantive concerns-such as these Cameroonian men-did not seem particularly interested in the issues that animated others at this rally.

Notwithstanding the occasional references to “Iranian freedom,” most of their chants focused exclusively upon the injustice of Paul Biya’s lengthy dictatorship over the people of Cameroon, and the persecution their countrymen endure for opposing it.

Finally, the allegation that the MEK bought its way off of the State Department’s list of proscribed terrorist groups must be addressed. The fact that the former head of the Department of Homeland Security is willing to speak to crowd of MKO supporters, and urge other nations to facilitate the resettlement of MEK members now living in Camp Liberty, speaks to the efficacy of their lobbying efforts.

As does the bipartisan nature of the support they receive. Which runs the gamut from avid motorist Patrick Kennedy,

to former New Mexico governor-and Clinton fixer-Bill Richardson,

to the far more reputable, and decidedly conservative, former United States Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton. Whatever motivates these public figures to support their cause-to a greater or lesser degree-it can’t be disputed that the  mobilization of the MEK within the halls of American power has played a significant role in their political rehabilitation.

That said, it strikes me as slightly hypocritical to bemoan the (legal) lobbying by an anti-IRI organization while ignoring the corresponding public relations campaign undertaken by friends of the mullahcracy. Even if you truly believe that the MEK is a monstrous organization, how much more bestial and inhumane is the regime it stands against?

Which isn’t to imply that the MEK is worthy of political support-either through taxpayer subsidies or individual donations-or a model which Iranian dissidents should emulate. Personally, I find the idea of it serving as “the government” of any future, post-Islamic Iranian republic fairly ludicrous. And of course, there already exist opposition activists with much compelling, forward-thinking platforms.

Nevertheless, the widespread efforts to demonize the MEK-for all its failures-seems to be profoundly misplaced. Even if we were to concede that this organization comprised the most detestable collection of rogues known to man, its continued existence is itself a byproduct of the brutal theocracy which has ruled Iran for the past three decades.

Their goals might be more ignoble than those of the Green Movement, and more incoherent than those of the constitutional monarchists and the left, but they exist within the context of opposition to the Islamic Republic of Iran. A regime which rules largely-ironically enough-because of their past actions. However, the past is the past. To use the actions a group took decades ago, however heinous, as a justification for arbitrary political decisions, even those that might be enjoy widespread popularity, would be mistaken.

As many of you who are followers of American Rattlesnake know, one of the most infuriating aspects of our nation’s unsecured borders is the number of violent crimes, including homicides, that are committed by illegal aliens who have evaded the criminal justice system precisely because of our government’s lax attitude towards their initial crime. One of the most horrific crimes of this kind was committed in this city nearly five years ago by an individual who was an Ecuadorian national living here illegally. I bring up the case of Diego Pillco, which I’ve covered in the past, because of a disappointing ruling by  Justice Louis York in a civil lawsuit filed by Adrienne Shelly’s widower, Andrew Ostroy. To exculpate Bradford General Contractors, the company that employed Mr. Pillco when he callously murdered Mr. Ostroy’s wife, then proceeded to cover up his barbaric crime, from responsibility altogether is bad enough. But even more outrageous is the rationale the judge used when clearing them of blame. To assert that there was no tangible connection between Pillco’s illegal status and the crime he committed-which was done in order to prevent Mrs. Shelly from calling law enforcement-is absolutely preposterous. To then go even further and claim that Pillco’s illegal status didn’t imply his willingness to break other laws, despite the documented link between the two, is positively galling. 

While Mr. Ostroy’s attorney promises an appeal of this judgment, I think New Yorkers need to be reminded of the impunity with which many of these construction firms operate, not to mention the thousands of potentially dangerous individuals they employ. This environment has only been exacerbated by Governor Cuomo’s craven decision to kow tow to special interest groups and withdraw New York State from Secure Communities. The fight for justice in this case continues, but there is also a corresponding battle to ensure that public officials don’t allow criminals to roam our streets freely simply to burnish their political credentials.

For those of you who might want to contribute to a cause dear to the heart of the late Adrienne Shelly, I suggest visiting the website for the Adrienne Shelly Foundation, which was established by Andrew Ostroy in order to preserve his wife’s legacy as a brilliant independent actress and filmmaker, and to give opportunities to young women who want to follow in her footsteps. Despite the injustice and staggering incoherence of this ruling, the light of Adrienne Shelly’s life continues to shine brilliantly, all the more so because of the devotion her surviving family members have shown in the years since her death.