South Asian Community Celebrates Rakhi Day with NYPD’s Immigrant Outreach Unit

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More than a hundred invited guests from the South Asian community watched with pride and admiration as thirty five New York Police Department’s (NYPD) Community Affairs Bureau (CAB) officers and community members tied Rakhi to each other to celebrate Raksha Bandhan Day recently at the Community Center of the Ganesh Temple in Flushing, NY. The NYPD event was in partnership with the Ganesh Temple.

Introducing the event, Patel explained that Rakhi was a symbolic thread which any person can tie to another person, be it mother to son, friend to friend or sister to brother. Rakhi is said to ensure protection provided by the recipient of the Rakhi and there are stories in the history of India of upholding of this obligation regardless of class and religion, Patel said.

“You remember how Krishna protected Draupadi’s dignity in honor of the Rakhi she had tied on Krishna’s hand,” Patel said to News India Times in an exclusive interview. He said the CAB officers enjoyed tying Rakhis to each other and also being tied Rakhis from the community members.

The Immigrant Outreach Unit works with community organizations and non-profits to organize such events in an effort to promote relationship with the South Asian community within NYC’s five boroughs, to enhance communication and awareness and to bring cultural understanding and sensitivity within the bureau’s members. The Rakhi Day celebration was one such event.

“It was Sgt Md Latif’s idea to have a public event with the community in our ongoing efforts to establish closer links with the South Asian community. I took that idea further when I remembered that Rakhi day was coming up soon, and was a general event for the community,” said Patel. He said the Rakhi Day event was very well received by the South Asian community. Community representatives said they felt happy and honored to be part of the event.

As part of Community Affairs Bureau, Immigrant Outreach Unit’s aim is to strengthen community relationships and trust through partnership with community leaders, civic organizations, block associations and concerned citizens. Unit members work with the community and introduce them to NYPD programs and services offered by City agencies in order to reduce fear and crime.

“I get several calls a day about a crime against a member of the South Asian community. But no formal complaints would be filed by the victim in most cases,” said Sgt Md Latif to News India Times. He said one of the reasons for failure to report a crime is language, and another is fear of the police. “Our Unit’s aim is to deal with both these issues as well as many more and keep the community safe and assured,” Latif said.

The Unit stays closely linked with various groups through meetings and events, fostering tolerance and understanding among diverse communities. The Unit does this through educating the community about NYPD policies and practices with awareness videos and crime prevention tips. Towards this goal, each of NYPD Precinct houses two community affairs officers, said Patel.

The mission of the Immigrant Outreach Unit as stated on the NYPD website is to engage, inform and empower the immigrant communities who reside in New York City. The Unit coordinates with other city agencies all community affairs efforts to address specific concerns of the immigrant community.

A very important element of the Immigrant Outreach Division is that its members come from diverse backgrounds and speak diverse languages, nurturing understanding and improving communication. NYPD officers are trained to obtain interpretation services while dealing with immigrants with limited English language proficiency. There is also a Language Line for telephonic interpretation.

He said an officer can pull up a translation of anything a community member was saying immediately. Patel added to that saying officers also can respond in the language the person was speaking. Immigrant community members can file a complaint in their own language, and can have a live interpreter available, added Sgt. Md Latif.

Establishing relationships with the community brings better knowledge and awareness and increases NYPD’s ability to reduce crime, said Sgt Md Latif.