Backlash Mitigation

NYDIS works in partnership with faith-based organizations and faith communities to ensure that the effects of a disaster are not compounded by responses that reflect discrimination or prejudice by private or public action. NYDIS and its members are concerned that previous domestic disasters have been used to justify state and federal legislation and policies that enact restrictions on civil liberties and due process as well as immigrant eligibility for benefits.

NYDIS and its members advocate for legislation, policies, and programs that seek to prevent backlash and discrimination against minorities, regardless of immigration status or religion, specifically after a disaster. In particular, NYDIS calls upon the government to institutionalize disaster preparation, response, and recovery plans that reflect an effort to address and mitigate disaster-related bias or discrimination.

As people and communities of faith, NYDIS and its members oppose the violation of human rights, including civil rights. Addressing or mitigating social injustices will continue to be incorporated into all of NYDIS’s recovery, advocacy, and preparedness programs.