Law enforcement turned a blind eye

This morning when I was walking from Metro North to the subway, a man walking in front of me suddenly turned around and said, "Go back to your country" and then started cursing at the 3 police who were standing by the temporary check point. The man then walked up the staircase and I told the police, "He just told me to go back to my country." One of the police just nodded and didn't say anything. The scariest thing about the whole incident is not what the man did, but that law enforcement turned a blind eye. Just by not doing anything, they are actually encouraging this behavior, letting some people think they have the right to harass anyone.