A Light in Brooklyn

The domestic "war on terror" plays out mostly in ethnic enclaves, such as in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, home to a large Arab-American population. Within days of the 2001 attacks, a sense of crisis had spread through the community. The firebombing of a local mosque had been narrowly averted. Women in hijab were being attacked. Vandals had driven by a local Muslim school and lobbed pork chops at the kids in the yard.

"We found ourselves in the middle of the chaos," said Ahmad Jaber, a Palestinian-American obstetrician and lodestone of the community. "People were hiding and scared, and we needed to protect them, to show courage and to act as role models."

But the only social-service organization for Arab-Americans in Bay Ridge, the Arab-American Association of New York, was just getting off the ground when the terrorist attacks happened. Dr. Jaber is one of its founders. "We were pushed to be more active before we were fully prepared," he acknowledged. Faced with the crisis, the association's board met weekly to plan strategy, and others pooled resources and talents. An attorney offered legal help, and mental health professionals offered free counseling. When someone donated a couch, a group of people heaved it up the building's creaky staircase and plopped it on the floor, and the doors of the organization were flung wide open. By December, clients were pouring in. The founders had been aware of the growing need for social services but were shocked to discover how deeply the attacks and their aftermath had scarred the psyche of the community.

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