Hikind Secures $1 Million In Hatzoloh Funding
Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Borough Park) announced yesterday that he allocated $1 million in State funding to New York’s Hatzoloh—the largest volunteer ambulance service in the United States.
The State grant will be used to bring desperately needed upgrades to the Hatzoloh communications system, which is vital to dispatching ambulances and saving lives. Currently, the volunteer organization’s primary operating territory encompasses all five Boroughs of New York, Nassau County, Sullivan County, and parts of Ulster County, while paramedic services are also licensed in Rockland and Orange Counties.
Hatzoloh’s current radio system consists of 23 radio towers but dispatching depends on point-to-point communications. This system does not allow Hatzoloh to activate more than one tower at a time. Use of single towers is not always effective in dense areas and the organization has heard complaints of “my radio did not receive the call.” The funding will eliminate communication “dead spots” and allows for swifter ambulance and volunteer dispatching.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been prouder to help any single organization than I am today helping Hatzoloh. I have always had the greatest respect for our wonderful Hatzoloh volunteers, as I think everyone in our community does. Who doesn’t have Hatzoloh’s number next to their phone? Who doesn’t know someone who was rescued from a sudden injury or illness by these selfless volunteers? Hatzoloh saves countless lives every single day, 24/7, and I am thrilled and relieved that this money will allow them to do even swifter work and help more people,” said Hikind.
BP Adams To Call Emergency Meeting In Wake of Manhattan Attack
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L.Adams will convene an emergency meeting at with local Uzbek-American leaders in the wake of today’s terror attack in Lower Manhattan today.
On Tuesday, 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov, an Uzbek national, killed eight people and injured 11 others using a rented pickup truck. Saipov deliberately drove down a bike path in lower Manhattan and mowed down several people before crashing into a school bus, during a terror attack, currently considered the deadliest in the city since Sept. 11, 2001.
There are tens of thousands of Uzbek immigrants who live in Brooklyn and the greater New York City metropolitan area. Adams, a 22-year veteran of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), and others will denounce this incident and emphasize the need for citywide unity, while discussing pressing issues of community safety and threats of radicalization.
The event is slated for 1 p.m., today, Nov. 1, at Brooklyn Borough Hall, at 209 Joralemon Street, in Downtown Brooklyn.
BK Lawmakers Applaud City’s Enforcement Of Salary History Ban
City Council member Laurie Cumbo (D-Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Crown Heights), alongside Assembly members Jo Anne Simon (D-Downtown Brooklyn, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill) and Latrice Walker (D-Brownsville) are applauding the city’s enforcement of a law prohibiting all employers from inquiring about job seekers’ salary history during the hiring process, including on job applications and in interviews.
On Tuesday, Mayor Bill de Blasio was joined by elected officials and advocates in celebrating the salary history ban law going into effect. The new measure allows applicants who have been systemically underpaid, particularly women and people of color, to negotiate a salary based on their qualifications and earning potential rather than being measured by their previous salary.
“Women represent half of our city’s population and workforce; and yet we have been shortchanged by the very economic system that would not flourish without our contributions. Debt, poverty, and homelessness are the realities faced by women living paycheck to paycheck – unable to meet the inflated cost of living in this city. Women can no longer afford to be nickeled and dimed; it is time to level the paying field,” said Cumbo.
“Banning questions regarding a person’s salary history is a tremendous step toward achieving equal pay. Women and people of color have long been plagued by their salary histories in negotiating for fair compensation. Now New Yorkers seeking employment can negotiate fair wages without the suppressing impact of their potential employers knowing prior salary history,” said Simon.
“New York City’s salary history ban is the first step to fastening the enormous wage gap that is very much transparent between race and gender. In 2016 alone, women earned $6 billion less in wages then men and I applaud this collaborative effort to fight to close that gap. Today marks the beginning of job seekers receiving a salary based on their qualifications solely,” said Walker.
Bichotte To Co-Host Haitian Diaspora Gathering
Assembly member Rodneyse Bichotte (D-Flatbush, Ditmas Park) will co-hosts this year’s National Alliance For the Advancement of Haitian Professionals (NAAHP) Conference, one of the largest gathering of the Haitian diaspora.
The event will highlight ways that leaders and professionals in the Haitian diaspora are advancing growth and development in Haiti. Additionally, this year’s theme is: “Diaspora Economics: Identifying Economic Opportunities for Haitians in the Diaspora and at Home in Education, Business, Entrepreneurship, and Workforce Development.”
The event line-up includes nine Members of Congress as part of the Honorary Congressional Host Committee, five global ambassadors, senior-level policy makers and government officials from both the U.S. and Haiti, Haitian American entrepreneurs, higher education administrators, students and Haitian American political operatives.
“It is so exciting to be a host committee member for the National Alliance for the Advancement of Haitian Professionals here in my hometown of New York City. This is the largest meeting of Haitian professionals in the country, which connects attendees on all levels of their career from students to seasoned professionals in their field. I look forward to taking part in this year’s conference especially in the areas of government, and economic development,” said Bichotte.
The event is slated for Thursday Nov. 2 through Saturday, Nov. 4, at New York University Law School
Donovan Denounces Manhattan Terror Attack
Congressman Dan Donovan (R-South Brooklyn, Staten Island) denounced yesterday’s deadly terror attack in Lower Manhattan.
On Tuesday, 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov, an Uzbek national, killed eight people and injured 11 others using a rented pickup truck. Saipov deliberately drove down a bike path in lower Manhattan and mowed down several people before crashing into a school bus, during a terror attack, currently considered the deadliest in the city since Sept. 11, 2001.
“Investigations into the vehicle attack in Manhattan are ongoing, and the FBI is treating this tragic incident as an act of terror. The NYPD responded with the efficiency and effectiveness that is standard for the greatest police force in the world. I wish the injured a speedy recovery, and pray for comfort for the families of those who passed. New York City will always be stronger than the terrorists who wish us harm,” said Donovan.
“I continue to monitor the situation and am in close contact with the NYPD, Department of Homeland Security, and FBI. As more details come to light, I plan to work in my subcommittee and with my colleagues on the Homeland Security Committee to advance policies that can help prevent these types of attacks in the future,” added Donovan.
