OntheWilderSide

Your support and comments on the website during this long difficult week have shown a strong commitment to Long Island’s immigrant community. We have stood and will continue to stand together to morn this incredible tragedy. We are mourning for both the loss of life and awareness of the hatred that has permeated

our communities.

It is also time for us to take action. Below this email are two sample letters, one is a direct appeal to the Suffolk County Executive and Legislators; and one is directed to other Long Island or New York State Elected Officials urging them to contact the Suffolk County Executive and call for a change of course in Suffolk County. Please use these letters, add your own thoughts, and send them! Circulate them far and wide.The eyes of New Yorkers and the nation are now on Long Island. We must show them that Long Island is a home to kind-hearted, hardworking and socially responsible individuals.

The time for action is now. Keep checking-in with www.longislandwins.com for the latest updates.

In solidarity,

The Long Island Wins Team

This is not the first time Long Island immigrants have been the victims of a hate crime. When will immigrants be able to walk the streets of Suffolk County without fear of attack?In contrast to County Executive Steve Levy’s recent statements, I believe that hate does not occur in a vacuum or spontaneously, it is learned from others. Hate of this sort is fed by discriminatory policies, attitudes of our local leaders, and general intolerance of difference. There is an undeniable link between the way politicians advocate for the treatment of immigrants and the way they are in turn treated in their communities. Regardless of the color of one’s skin or the country of one’s birth, all people deserve equal treatment.Long Islanders have continued to express their outrage on what feels like deaf ears. You, as an elected official, are both empowered and obligated to actively work against the spread of hatred towards immigrants. Education is necessary to increase tolerance but education alone is not enough. We as politicians, parents, teachers, business owners and Long Islanders, must set the example. We must lead by our example.I call on you to 1) Stop using harsh and irresponsible rhetoric demonizing immigrants on Long Island; 2) To support a moratorium on divisive legislation that seeks to penalize and marginalize immigrants, and 3) To promote practical legislation and policies that ensure opportunity for all Long Islanders, foster better understanding of diverse communities, and build trust and cooperation between local government and the communities they serve.Please contact County Executive Steve Levy and your fellow elected officials to let them know that significant change is needed in Suffolk County.  Without drastic changes to the political ideology of Suffolk County we leave ourselves vulnerable to another hate crime in the future. The responsibility falls on all of us to take action now.

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