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| On a New York Tour, Hijabs and a Selfie Stick | On a New York Tour, Hijabs and a Selfie Stick |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The five families blended seamlessly into New York City’s spring tourist parade on Tuesday, the women in hijabs of red, black and blue, the teenage boys in baseball caps. They spoke in Arabic and carried a selfie stick. | The five families blended seamlessly into New York City’s spring tourist parade on Tuesday, the women in hijabs of red, black and blue, the teenage boys in baseball caps. They spoke in Arabic and carried a selfie stick. |
| In Times Square, the families, 25 Syrian refugees in all, encountered Ecuadoreans in Elmo costumes and Nigerians hawking double-decker bus tours. In Central Park, two cousins bounded up the ancient rocks, no longer displaced persons, but 9-year-old conquerors of a famous playground. In Battery Park, a family from France watched as the group took turns posing with the Statue of Liberty in the background. | In Times Square, the families, 25 Syrian refugees in all, encountered Ecuadoreans in Elmo costumes and Nigerians hawking double-decker bus tours. In Central Park, two cousins bounded up the ancient rocks, no longer displaced persons, but 9-year-old conquerors of a famous playground. In Battery Park, a family from France watched as the group took turns posing with the Statue of Liberty in the background. |
| “Freedom is good,” Rihab Taki, a 33-year-old mother of four, said through a translator. Her family had spent three years in Jordan before arriving in August. Ms. Taki said she struggled with depression while adapting to her new home in Northern New Jersey. “You see life in a different way when you are in this place,” she said. | “Freedom is good,” Rihab Taki, a 33-year-old mother of four, said through a translator. Her family had spent three years in Jordan before arriving in August. Ms. Taki said she struggled with depression while adapting to her new home in Northern New Jersey. “You see life in a different way when you are in this place,” she said. |
| Most New York sightseeing tours are about history. This one was about savoring the present. | Most New York sightseeing tours are about history. This one was about savoring the present. |
| Real New York Tours, a family-run outfit in its 10th year, is offering a week of free walking tours for 150 Syrian refugees who were recently resettled in New Jersey. The attendees were chosen by the state chapter of ICNA Relief, a Muslim-American social services charity. | Real New York Tours, a family-run outfit in its 10th year, is offering a week of free walking tours for 150 Syrian refugees who were recently resettled in New Jersey. The attendees were chosen by the state chapter of ICNA Relief, a Muslim-American social services charity. |
| Luke Miller, 48, the founder of the tour company, said he and his wife, Amber Cameron, first had the idea to provide free tours in the days after President Trump issued his first executive order suspending the resettlement of Syrian refugees and banning travelers from a group of Muslim-majority countries. “We wanted to do something to counteract this,” he recalled. “So we said, ‘Let’s do what we’re good at.’” | Luke Miller, 48, the founder of the tour company, said he and his wife, Amber Cameron, first had the idea to provide free tours in the days after President Trump issued his first executive order suspending the resettlement of Syrian refugees and banning travelers from a group of Muslim-majority countries. “We wanted to do something to counteract this,” he recalled. “So we said, ‘Let’s do what we’re good at.’” |
| Their operations manager, Kristy Powers, saw on Facebook that Emily Khan, an English teacher at Léman Manhattan Preparatory School, was volunteering to tutor through ICNA Relief. She put Ms. Powers in touch with the organization. | Their operations manager, Kristy Powers, saw on Facebook that Emily Khan, an English teacher at Léman Manhattan Preparatory School, was volunteering to tutor through ICNA Relief. She put Ms. Powers in touch with the organization. |
| Ms. Powers started a GoFundMe campaign to help defray costs and benefit the organization, raising $3,935 as of Thursday morning. The campaign also drew some negative comments, including one that said the money should not go to immigrants “who shouldn’t be here in the first place,” Mr. Miller said. | |
| Including the families’ train tickets to New York, MetroCards, food and tips for street performers, the tours cost the company over $4,000, Mr. Miller said. | Including the families’ train tickets to New York, MetroCards, food and tips for street performers, the tours cost the company over $4,000, Mr. Miller said. |
| All five of the families on the tour on Tuesday had fled the war in Syria. They spent nearly three years going through security and health screenings before being resettled by a government-contracted agency, the International Rescue Committee. | All five of the families on the tour on Tuesday had fled the war in Syria. They spent nearly three years going through security and health screenings before being resettled by a government-contracted agency, the International Rescue Committee. |
| “We lost everything,” said Hiba Beidak, 34, whose husband ran a pharmacy in the Syrian city of Aleppo. He had thyroid surgery before the war and needs medical care now, as does their 10-year-old daughter, who is unable to walk. Ms. Beidak brought her 6-year-old daughter on the tour. | “We lost everything,” said Hiba Beidak, 34, whose husband ran a pharmacy in the Syrian city of Aleppo. He had thyroid surgery before the war and needs medical care now, as does their 10-year-old daughter, who is unable to walk. Ms. Beidak brought her 6-year-old daughter on the tour. |
| Ms. Taki’s older sister, Ghosoom Taki, 38, left the city of Homs for Jordan in 2011. She arrived in the United States in July with her five children, ages 3 to 16, and her husband, Tamer Khawog. They live in Elizabeth, N.J. | Ms. Taki’s older sister, Ghosoom Taki, 38, left the city of Homs for Jordan in 2011. She arrived in the United States in July with her five children, ages 3 to 16, and her husband, Tamer Khawog. They live in Elizabeth, N.J. |
| “At first, I was very depressed, and I was placed in a hotel in an industrial area,” Ghosoom Taki said. “I thought, ‘Is this America?’ Four days later, when my sister came, we were in the same hotel; I felt there was hope, things are going to get better.” | “At first, I was very depressed, and I was placed in a hotel in an industrial area,” Ghosoom Taki said. “I thought, ‘Is this America?’ Four days later, when my sister came, we were in the same hotel; I felt there was hope, things are going to get better.” |
| Her two daughters, Hebah, 13, and Hayat, 12, speak English. Hayat wants to be a doctor. | Her two daughters, Hebah, 13, and Hayat, 12, speak English. Hayat wants to be a doctor. |
| Rihab Taki’s family lives three miles away in Roselle, N.J. Her teenage sons do not speak English. Laila Elfane, the refugee coordinator for ICNA Relief, said their apartment had bedbugs for months. The International Rescue Committee said it was addressing the problem and working to find a new home for the family. | |
| The tour, on a sun-splashed day, was a revelation for the sisters, their first time in the city. | The tour, on a sun-splashed day, was a revelation for the sisters, their first time in the city. |
| “I feel like all the negativity is melting away,” Rihab Taki said. | “I feel like all the negativity is melting away,” Rihab Taki said. |
| “I am discovering another side of America, not like Elizabeth,” her sister said. | “I am discovering another side of America, not like Elizabeth,” her sister said. |
| The day started at 10 a.m. in front of Pennsylvania Station in Manhattan. After introductions, with translation from Ms. Elfane, they walked up Seventh Avenue into Times Square’s electric frenzy. | |
| Soon, the families were on a subway to Central Park. Tynan Hooker-Haring, 31, a musician and stagehand, gave up his seat so they could sit together. | Soon, the families were on a subway to Central Park. Tynan Hooker-Haring, 31, a musician and stagehand, gave up his seat so they could sit together. |
| “It’s awesome to see new neighbors being more confident, more conspicuous members of our community and not being afraid to embrace their new home,” Mr. Hooker-Haring said, adding, “the same way we should not be afraid to embrace our new neighbors.” | “It’s awesome to see new neighbors being more confident, more conspicuous members of our community and not being afraid to embrace their new home,” Mr. Hooker-Haring said, adding, “the same way we should not be afraid to embrace our new neighbors.” |
| During the ride, Mr. Miller, who used to entertain children at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, mesmerized Ibrahim and Hamzah, the sisters’ 9-year-old sons, with magic tricks. | During the ride, Mr. Miller, who used to entertain children at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, mesmerized Ibrahim and Hamzah, the sisters’ 9-year-old sons, with magic tricks. |
| At the Central Park Zoo, the group watched the sea lions. After climbing the rocks, the children lined up at the Central Park carousel. Their $3 tickets bore a familiar name: Trump. (In 2010, Mr. Trump restored the carousel, and his company signed a lease through 2020 to operate it.) | At the Central Park Zoo, the group watched the sea lions. After climbing the rocks, the children lined up at the Central Park carousel. Their $3 tickets bore a familiar name: Trump. (In 2010, Mr. Trump restored the carousel, and his company signed a lease through 2020 to operate it.) |
| “We see some poetic justice in it,” Shawn Lynch, a Real New York Tours guide, said. | “We see some poetic justice in it,” Shawn Lynch, a Real New York Tours guide, said. |
| The children enjoyed the wooden horses but were more excited to see the real carriage horses, just like those on the streets during holidays in Homs. | The children enjoyed the wooden horses but were more excited to see the real carriage horses, just like those on the streets during holidays in Homs. |
| Rihab Taki said she felt at home. “In the spring time, we would go to the parks,” she said. “There are rivers, and kids are running everywhere.” In Jordan, she added, none of the parks had grass. | Rihab Taki said she felt at home. “In the spring time, we would go to the parks,” she said. “There are rivers, and kids are running everywhere.” In Jordan, she added, none of the parks had grass. |
| As refugees there, her older children were not allowed to go to school, so a cousin who was a doctor tutored them. On Tuesday, her husband, Alaa Alsaaj, spoke to the cousin in Jordan via FaceTime, the carousel in the background. “Thank you,” Mr. Alsaaj said in Arabic. “I will never forget what you did for our children.” | As refugees there, her older children were not allowed to go to school, so a cousin who was a doctor tutored them. On Tuesday, her husband, Alaa Alsaaj, spoke to the cousin in Jordan via FaceTime, the carousel in the background. “Thank you,” Mr. Alsaaj said in Arabic. “I will never forget what you did for our children.” |
| Another man called his mother in Jordan, while children used FaceTime to talk to relatives in New Jersey unable to make the tour. When not snapping pictures, the teenage boys texted their friends. Picnicking in Battery Park for lunch, the group devoured pizza. | Another man called his mother in Jordan, while children used FaceTime to talk to relatives in New Jersey unable to make the tour. When not snapping pictures, the teenage boys texted their friends. Picnicking in Battery Park for lunch, the group devoured pizza. |
| Not long into the five-hour tour, Mr. Miller abandoned his usual script, realizing that his quirky humor and pictures of old New York did not quite translate. He also cut some stops for time. | Not long into the five-hour tour, Mr. Miller abandoned his usual script, realizing that his quirky humor and pictures of old New York did not quite translate. He also cut some stops for time. |
| “That’s New York — you have to go with the flow,” he said. “Their energy was wonderful and bright. There’s no borders with kids. The walls come down, a smile is a smile, and the simple joy of climbing a rock is the same for any kid.” | “That’s New York — you have to go with the flow,” he said. “Their energy was wonderful and bright. There’s no borders with kids. The walls come down, a smile is a smile, and the simple joy of climbing a rock is the same for any kid.” |
| The adults were just as emboldened. “I learned I should never stay home,” Rihab Taki said. “I should go out and explore.” | The adults were just as emboldened. “I learned I should never stay home,” Rihab Taki said. “I should go out and explore.” |