Mina Malik, a former lecturer for Harvard Law School and Deputy Attorney General for Public Safety in Washington D.C. was endorsed by the American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee last week.
“We are thrilled to support Mina Malik in her campaign for Queens District Attorney,” said Adnan Bukhari, the political director of APPAC. “Mina is a tireless seeker for justice and the only candidate in this race with a proven progressive record of delivering results for underserved and marginalized communities in the courtroom.”
APPAC supports Malik’s vision to combat Islamophobia, protect from citizens from police and prosecutorial misconduct, and reforming the criminal justice system, especially for people of color.
Malik herself is the daughter of Asian and Hispanic parents who were union workers and of Filipino, Spanish and Pakistani descent.
As Special Counsel to the late Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson, Malik contributed to the creation of a Conviction Review Unit, a marijuana decriminalization policy and assisted with the day-to-day operation of 1,200 employees. She also served under the Special Victims section at the Queens District Attorney’s Office for 15 years investigating, litigating and prosecuting child homicides and adult sex crimes.
“I am honored to have the support of the American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee in this race,” said Malik on April 10. “They have done such impactful work in the Pakistani community in such a short time. I look forward to working with APPAC and other community-based organizations to create a more diverse, fair, and transparent District Attorney’s office.”
APPAC is a non-profit that works to better U.S. and Pakistani relations while working for interfaith harmony from Pakistani-Americans and opposing religious discrimination, according to appacusa.org. The organization was founded in 2017.
Earlier last week, Malik hosted a roundtable with faith leaders from Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Hindu and other backgrounds in St. Albans.
“Faith leaders are trusted advisers in our communities, especially with regards to sensitive issues such as immigration,” said Malik. “Our faith leaders are concerned about public safety, fair treatment for the poor, and hate crimes. It’s critically important to engage them about public safety in a meaningful way. As district attorney, I look forward to making diversity and inclusion a priority in the District Attorney’s office and ensuring there is cultural competence in our work.”
Malik has collected 11,000 signatures for the Queens District Attorney’s ballot and has been endorsed by 15 experts and criminal justice reform lawyers, including Washington D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine, Civil Rights attorney Benjamin Crump, and Angela Davis, the former director of the D.C. Public Defender Service.
“From her work as an investigator at the DC Public Defender Service to her leadership of reform efforts in the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, Mina is uniquely qualified to transform the culture of the Queens District Attorney’s Office and make the system fairer for everyone,” said Davis.
Bukhari shares the same sentiment.
“Mina Malik is the District Attorney Queens deserves,” said Bukhari.
