4 THE QUEENS COURIER • FEBRUARY 2, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM Photo by Dean Moses Queens reps look to stop Trump order BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@qns.com/@ AngelaMatua Two elected officials from Queens have introduced legislation designed to make it harder for President Donald Trump to enforce his executive order banning travelers from seven predominately Muslim countries would be banned from entering the United States for at least 90 days. State Senator Michael Gianaris said his legislation would prohibit the Port Authority, which administers New York’s airports, from utilizing any of its resources to enforce the order. Th ose resources include supporting personnel, the use of airport facilities under its control, which include six in New York and New Jersey, or the use of electricity and climate control in areas of the airport being used for the detentions. “President Trump’s executive order is as un-American as it gets and it falls upon each of us to take any measures at our disposal to resist by any legal means,” said Gianaris, whose parents came to the U.S. from Greece. “Th e state of New York should not spend one penny in support of this unconstitutional federal eff ort and I will fi ght to make sure we don’t.” State Senator James Sanders said he would co-sponsor Gianaris’ legislation and added that the country needs to take a “unifi ed stand” against the ban, which he thinks will be deemed unconstitutional. C o n g r e s s w o m a n Grace Meng announced that she will introduce the No Funds for Unconstitutional Executive Orders Act, which would prohibit any funds made available by Congress from being used to enforce the president’s refugee ban. A federal judge in New York on Saturday granted an emergency stay, which temporarily halted the deportation of those detained at airports due to the executive order, but the stay is temporary. “Th e decision by a federal judge to temporarily block this unconstitutional and un-American executive order was a great victory,” Meng said. “But we must make sure that it is overturned for good, and this legislation would make that happen.” Meng sent a letter to her colleagues in the House to ask for their support in implementing the act and cited the Bill of Rights, which states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,” as the reason for the act. She also cited the Supreme Court ruling in Larson v. Valente, where the court stated that “the clearest command of the Establishment Clause is that one religious denomination cannot be offi cially preferred over another.” Astoria condemns hate mongers at art exhibit ANGELA MATUA amatua@qns.com @AngelaMatua An art exhibit installed at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria by actor Shia LaBeouf’s art collective has been the scene of hate speech by white supremacists, and one councilman held a rally on Sunday to “forcefully respond against the hate.” Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer held the Jan. 29 rally at the exhibit, where hundreds of Queens residents came out to repeat the phrase “He will not divide us” into the camera, which is live-streamed all around the world. “It is an important and thought-provoking piece that has elicited many powerful and positive interactions,” he said in a statement. “It has also brought out dissenting voices, which of course the piece welcomes. Alarmingly, it has also brought out hate speech, hateful acts and hate groups recognized by the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center.” Th e exhibit, titled “He Will Not Divide Us,” was installed on Jan. 20. A camera was placed on a wall outside of the museum and the words “He Hundreds showed up to the Museum of the Moving Image to take part in an art exhibit called “He Will Not Divide Us.” will not divide us” were painted on the wall. People are encouraged to say the words into the camera, which will be on display for four years, throughout the duration of Donald Trump’s presidency. Soon aft er the camera was placed there, some people began to use it to express other viewpoints. A man repeated Nazi phrases such as “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children” and the number 88, an abbreviation for the Nazi salute Heil Hitler. LaBeouf, who was present when the man started saying the phrases into the camera, began to yell “he will not divide us” in his face. Another passerby went up to the camera and repeated, “Hitler did nothing Photo courtesy of Twitter/JimmyVanBramer wrong.” LeBeouf was briefly arrested on Jan. 26 for aft er getting into a heated argument with a 25-yearold protester, according to CNN. Th e actor was booked on misdemeanor charges aft er allegedly tugging on the protester’s scarf during the argument and scratching the individual’s neck. Sunday’s rally was held at the museum to demonstrate “Queens Values,” which include “inclusivity, diversity and love,” Van Bramer said. Residents created signs with phrases such as “not afraid” and “we are all immigrants.” Public Advocate Letitia James also attended the event. Th e event took place two days after the Trump Administration announced that people from seven predominately Muslim countries would not be able to travel into the United States, including those with green cards and visas. Th is ban sparked outrage across the country, where hundreds protested at airports including JFK Airport in Queens. Van Bramer has held other events to protest Trump’s rhetoric during his campaign, including a march to Trump Tower from Long Island City in November, when the NYPD was reporting a spike in hate crimes across the city. View the full live stream of the event on Van Bramer’s Facebook page or visit the www.hewillnotdivideus. us. Jackson Heights marches against Trump order BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@qns.com @AngelaMatua A few hours after President Donald Trump announced several executive orders pertaining to immigration policy, about 500 people marched through Jackson Heights on Jan. 25 to voice their opposition to his decisions. Make the Road New York, a national immigrant organization, organized the march through Jackson Heights on Jan. 25 to tell the president that “immigrants, Muslims and refugees are here to stay.” Public Advocate Letitia James and Assemblyman Francisco Moya were some of the people in attendance. Other attendees held up signs that read “Aqui estamos y no nos vamos,” or “We are here and we are not leaving.” Th e order announced on Jan. 25 instructs the Department of Homeland Security to take “steps to immediately plan, design and construct a physical wall along the southern border.” It also instructed the department to hire 5,000 additional Border Patrol agents and 10,000 immigration offi cers. “Th is is an act of war against the immigrant community,” said Javier H. Valdés, co-executive director of Make the Road New York. “Increasing ICE and Hundreds of people marched through Jackson Heights after the president announced several executive orders on immigration. border enforcement and aiming to defund sanctuary cities is an attack on our families. And we stand united with refugees and our Muslim brothers and sisters; an attack on any one of us is an attack on Photo via Twitter/MaketheRoadNY us all. With this executive action, Donald Trump has signaled that he wants to terrorize us and make millions of immigrants live in fear. But we are committed to not letting that happen.”
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