Excerpt:
A former Homeland Security Department civil rights lawyer, speaking at a Justice Department civil rights conference today, implored the federal government to investigate the New York Police Department for its secret surveillance of Muslim communities.
Sahar Aziz, a Texas Wesleyan University law professor, said the NYPD monitoring of mosques, Islamic bookstores and Muslim student groups needed to be looked into because the NYPD serves as a model for departments nationwide. She said reports by The Associated Press about the NYPD's intelligence unit have troubled Muslims around the country.
"What's on their mind?" she said to an audience that included the Justice Department's top civil rights officials. "That's on their mind."