Muslim Students at University of Pa. Meet To Discuss Surveillance By NYPD
By Steve Tawa
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Amid revelations that the New York City police department routinely monitored the activities of Muslim students at various locations around the country (see related story), a group of Muslim students at the University of Pennsylvania were preparing to discuss the issue tonight.
The Muslim Students Association at Penn says its members "are disturbed and disappointed" that the NYPD has viewed groups like theirs as, in their words, "a potential threat on the basis of religious affiliation."
They say the MSA, like other student group, strives merely to enrich the college experience.
The university also put out a statement on its web site saying the NYPD took the action back in 2006, without the knowledge of any Penn officials. Police say they were looking for possible infiltration by terrorist recruiters.
The Associated Press reported that police monitored student web sites, including blogs and forums run by Muslim students at Penn, Rutgers, Yale, Columbia, Syracuse, and several SUNY campuses including Buffalo and Stony Brook.
Penn says "it's a sad and troubling statement of our times." The Muslim students' group hopes that Penn will continue to "protect all students from undue harassment and profiling."
Tonight's meeting was scheduled for 6pm at the Graduate Student Center on the Penn campus.
