Support for NYPD surveillance of Muslims

Members of an Islamic coalition stood in front of NYPD headquarters with signs Monday to support the department's aggressive counterterrorism efforts, saying the agency is doing what is necessary to protect the city -- and Muslims.

Among about three dozen members and supporters of the American Islamic Leadership Coalition at the rally was the narrator of a controversial documentary about the dangers of radical Islam that the New York City Police Department showed at a training area and has since disavowed.

"We are not here to criticize the NYPD, but rather thank them for monitoring extremists -- a job that Muslims should be doing," said the narrator, Dr. Zudhi Jasser.

Jasser and others, like Manda Zand Ervin, said that the danger is clearly coming from within the Muslim community, and that it's up to other Muslims to help law enforcement stop the threat. They galvanized their efforts and formed the coalition in 2010 after controversial congressional hearings last summer examining the threat of radical Islam in the United States.

The NYPD has been criticized by many other Muslim groups and politicians after The Associated Press reported officers have secretly monitored Muslims across the Northeast since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly has said he is doing everything within the law to protect the city from another attack, and while he understands police actions may not make everyone happy, he believes the NYPD has a good relationship with the Muslim community overall.

Other rallies by opponents of the NYPD's monitoring have drawn hundreds of people.

Rep. Peter King (R-Seaford) said at the rally that the department deserves a medal for its work. He lambasted coverage by the AP and The New York Times as biased and said the news outlets were "disgracing themselves."

"The Third Jihad," a documentary produced by the conservative Clarion Fund, accuses some moderate Muslims of being more radical than they appear on the surface and uses vivid footage of bombings and terror attacks to illustrate the danger of radical Islam.

Speakers interviewed in the film warn viewers repeatedly that Western civilization is under attack.

The film was played in the lobby of an NYPD training area after a sergeant brought it in, but was stopped after a trainee complained. Nearly 1,500 police officers went through the training and may have seen it. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said it was "terrible judgment" to show it.

The department initially said footage of Kelly appeared to be lifted, but Kelly later said he was interviewed. He appears in it for about 30 seconds. He said after he saw the film, which he called "inflammatory and a little much," that he regretted doing the interview. He has apologized to Muslims for it.