Boro Park City Councilman David Greenfield, today, stood with 20 council colleagues, Public Advocate Letitia James and students from private Jewish, Muslim and Christian schools in support of his proposed bill to bill guaranteeing non-public schools a NYPD school safety agent at the school’s request.
Also participating at the rally was the United Jewish Appeal-Federation of New York, Agudath Israel of America, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, Islamic Schools Association, Archdiocese of New York, Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, Sephardic Community Foundation, Catholic Community Relations Council, and Jewish Community Relations Council.
The bill would cost $50 million for protection of 230,000 kids whose private schooling saves the city $5 billion annually, according to Greenfield, and already has the support of 46 of the 51 council members.
“We’re here for a very simple reason: we want to make sure that every single student of New York City that goes to school, whether they go to public school or religious school, is safe. And this is a very simple initiative,” said Greenfield.
“The reality is in the last year in New York City hate crimes against religious people are up 20 percent. That’s a scary statistic. School violence across the country is up. We want to make sure every child, regardless of where they go to school, is protected,” the lawmaker added.
Greenfield’s legislation would require the NYPD to assign a school safety agent to any school, public or private, that requests one. Although school safety agents are unarmed, they are trained by and work for the NYPD in full uniform and are equipped with police radios that give them a direct link to the NYPD.
“All parents who send their children to school whether private or public have an expectation that their children will be safe. Public safety is a city responsibility. This legislation helps to ensure that every effort is made for children to be safe while in their classroom,” said Canarsie City Councilman Alan Maisel.
“The Orthodox Union applauds Council Member David Greenfield for his leadership on this crucial issue. We owe it to all our children to ensure that they are safe at school, regardless of the school they attend. This bill is simply a matter of fairness and we call upon the entire City Council to pass Intro 65 as quickly as possible. The OU will continue to work with our allies in the Council to see this legislation approved,” said Jake Adler, Director of Policy at the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America Advocacy Center.
“There are thousands of children attending Islamic Schools in New York City and they deserve to be in a safe school environment. ISA supports Intro65 because safety of our children is of utmost importance regardless of them attending public or private schools,” Rafeek Mohamed, President of the Islamic Schools Association of New York
“All of New York City’s school children deserve protection. School safety agents are in public schools; they must be placed in nonpublic schools as well. Intro 65 has overwhelming support in the City Council and to ensure the safety of all of New York City’s school children, we urge its immediate passage,” said Joseph Rosenberg, Director of Catholic Community Relations Council.
“It’s our responsibility to keep all school children safe, whether they attend a public school or a private school, they all deserve the chance to learn in a safe environment. We live in uncertain times, with school violence on the rise nationwide, this measure will give parents and students peace of mind that they are safe at school,” said Bay Ridge City Councilman Vincent Gentile.
To learn more information about the bill and help pass it, visitwww.schoolsafety.nyc.
