In April 2024, Rodriguez issued agency-wide message marking Arab American Heritage Month that did handle the human toll of the conflict in Gaza. It urged all DOT staff to “pause and reflect on the pain being felt by so many in the Arab American community, who have had family and friends impacted by the war in Gaza.”
The interior tensions at DOT come because the conflict between Israel and Hamas stays a hot-button problem in New York, with pro-Palestinian protests enjoying out on metropolis streets practically each week and the problem being hotly debated throughout this yr’s mayoral marketing campaign.
“This selective recognition not only undermines the agency’s stated commitment to equity and diversity, but also sends a troubling message about which communities are deemed worthy of visibility and respect,” stated one Muslim DOT supply.
On this picture taken from a video launched by the Israeli Protection Forces on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023, an Israeli tank drives via Gaza Metropolis.
He stated the division made a put up about Arab American Heritage Month on an inside messaging board; that communication made no reference to the conflict in Gaza.
Kayla Mamelak, Mayor Adams’ spokeswoman, stated his workplace wasn’t concerned in crafting the DOT’s messaging.
With Evan Simko-Bednarski
Initially Printed: Could 29, 2025 at 2:20 PM EDT
