Excerpt:
A crowd of 500 gathered at the bottom of Times Square on Sunday to protest upcoming Congressional hearings on radicalization within the Muslim community, arguing that the hearings threaten to single out one religious group unfairly.
The demonstrators, enduring occasional rain on a soggy afternoon, heard a diverse roster of speakers, including at least two rabbis, two imams, and an Episcopal priest, argue that hearings by the House Homeland Security Committee, scheduled to begin Thursday, would stigmatize Muslims.
The hearings are to be led by Representative Peter T. King of Long Island and opponents are focusing their efforts on getting Mr. King to enlarge the scope of the hearings beyond Muslims.