Carroll Hosts Rally For Young Voter Act
Assembly member Robert Carroll (D-Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Kensington) will host a rally in support of his Young Voter Act in front of the Board of Elections (BOE) today.
The Young Voter Act would lower the voting age to 17 for state and local elections. Additionally, the bill requires a robust civics curriculum in the classroom and makes sure that all high school students have the opportunity to register to vote at school when they turn 17.
The rally is being held the day before General Election Day in New York State to highlight New York’s characteristically abysmal voter turn out.
Carroll introduced the Young Voter Act last March alongside dozens of the city’s high school students who lobbied legislators on the bill’s behalf. Currently there are 22 Assembly co-sponsors on the bill.
The event is slated for 4 p.m., today, Nov. 6, at the Board of Elections, at 32 Broadway, in Lower Manhattan.
BP Adams Leads Prayer Vigil For NYC Terror Victims
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams led a prayer vigil for victims of last week‘s terror attack last night.
Alongside dozens of clergy members and hundreds of attendees at a gospel concert inside the historic Kings Theatre, Adams addressed the deadly incident and the importance of unity in the wake of the tragedy.
On Tuesday, eight people were mowed down on Manhattan’s West Side by 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov. Saipov deliberately hit people on a busy bike path with a rental truck in front of Stuyvesant High School last week striking a Belgian Mother of two, five Argentinians, a New Jersey Native and one resident of the West Village.
Police shot the Uzbekistan native and took him into custody, according to initial reports. The attack is being considered an act of terrorism with Saipov pledging allegiance to the Islamic State during the incident.
Ortiz Mourns The Loss of DNA Info & Gothamist
Assembly member Felix Ortiz (D-Red Hook, Sunset Park) addressed the loss of local publications DNA Info and Gothamist over the weekend.
On Thursday, both publications were shut down by Billionaire owner, Joe Ricketts, after editorial staff voted to join the Writers Guild of America East. Ricketts announced the closure in an online letter in which he cited financial troubles as the reason behind the decision, “But DNAinfo is, at the end of the day, a business, and businesses need to be economically successful if they are to endure. And while we made important progress toward building DNAinfo into a successful business, in the end, that progress hasn’t been sufficient to support the tremendous effort and expense needed to produce the type of journalism on which the company was founded.
There are 116 employees overall between DNA and Gothamist including a host of sister cites in Chicago, LA and San Francisco. Ricketts is the billionaire founder of TD Ameritrade and launched DNAinfo in New York City in 2009, “at a time when few people were investing in media companies,” he said in his official statement.
“Our communities lost two great voices yesterday when it was announced that “DNA Info” and the “Gothamist” would cease publication. “DNA Info” provided our communities with information not found in the citywide papers or broadcast media. Readers in Red Hook, Park Slope Sunset Park, Bay Ridge and other communities found out the latest news about their neighborhoods online. “DNA Info” and “Gothamist.”
Losing these news outlets is a shame we can blame on the publisher who decided to close the papers after news writers voted to unionize and join the Writers Guild of America. This nation relies on strong unions to protect workers and their families. Yesterday’s action represents an awful disregard for workers.”
Treyger, Deutsch Call For Pedestrian Safety Upgrades at Coney Island Boardwalk
City Council members Mark Treyger (D-Coney Island, Bensonhurst, Gravesend) and Chaim Deutsch (D-Sheepshead Bay, Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach, Homecrest) have renewed their call for the implementation of pedestrian safety upgrades for the Coney Island Riegelmann Boardwalk after the deadly terrorist attack in lower Manhattan.
In letters addressed to Mayor Bill de Blasio, NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill, and NYC Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver, Treyger and Deutsch asked the City to install retractable fortified bollards at appropriate entry points to the Boardwalk, restricting access to City or authorized vehicles only. The Boardwalk is a popular destination for tourists and local residents with more than 14 million people visiting each year.
Eight people lost their lives, and more than a dozen were injured on October 31st when a man driving a rental truck deliberately drove along a Tribeca pedestrian/bicycle path in order to harm and kill innocent people. On May 18, 20 were injured and one person died when a man drove a truck into the pedestrian plaza in Times Square. Recent incidents in Paris and London resulted in the deaths of dozens, and injuries to hundreds. There have been, according to Treyger and Deutsch, at least 20 incidents where vehicles have been used as weapons in or around crowded pedestrian areas around the world throughout 2017.
“But this attack has amplified the need for more precautions, including barriers, especially at our city’s densely populated and well-known tourist attractions. As we’ve sadly seen—both in our own city and on an international level—vehicles are increasingly being used in high pedestrian traffic areas as weapons to attack the public. Securing the entries to these areas with retractable fortified bollards is an important measure of protection, that still enables access for authorized vehicles,” said Treyger.
“This week’s attack has demonstrated that we must be ultra-vigilant, and take necessary precautions to protect New Yorkers. Retractable safety bollards would provide security on the boardwalk from the threat of vehicle attacks. Tragically, this is a method of attack that is growing increasingly common, and we have a duty to ensure that we are making every effort to protect residents and visitors to our city,” said Deutsch.
CM Williams Addresses Gun Control In Wake Of Texas Shooting
City Council member Jumaane Williams (Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood) addressed the fatal mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Texas yesterday.
On Sunday, according to initial reports, a gunman clad in all black, with a ballistic vest strapped to his chest and a military-style rifle in his hands, opened fire on parishioners at a Sunday service at a small Baptist church in rural Texas, killing 27 people and injuring another 24. The suspected gunman has been identified as Devin Patrick Kelley, 26, from New Braunfels, Texas. Kelley had served in the Air Force at a base in New Mexico before attacking the First Baptist Church, and then later taking his own life, according to officials.
“Tonight we are here again, as we morbidly knew we would be and frighteningly know we will be again all too soon. My heart, my prayers of peace and comfort, genuinely go out to the friends and family members of those shot and killed….in church, a place so many of us spent the day worshipping,” said Williams.
“Last week, Donald Trump and his willing Republican accomplices responded to the horrific terrorist attack in New York City by immediately attacking an immigration program and those who support it, reconsidering policy and pouncing on political rivals, while at the same time stating this is not the time to be political. I wonder if this, the 377th mass shooting of a year that has already seen over 13,000 people killed with guns and nearly 27,000 injured, will see them use the same logic as it applies to common sense gun control,” continued Williams.
“Until the NRA’s diabolical stranglehold on this Congress is released, all of those prayers that are not backed by any action are hollow and meaningless,” added Williams. “One day, maybe, we can do more than send well wishes to those who are killed as so many choose to do nothing. Today, that day seems to remain tragically distant.”
Greenfield Introduces Road Rage Legislation
City Council member David G. Greenfield (D-Borough Park, Bensonhurst, Midwood) introduced a bill last week which would designate road rage its own crime for the first time in the city’s history.
Intro. 1752 would make it a Class B misdemeanor to engage in threatening or violent behavior toward the operator or occupants of a vehicle. These misdemeanors would be punishable by up to three months in prison or a $500 fine. According to the legislation, designating road rage its own misdemeanor would reduce its occurrence and lead to safer streets for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians.
Currently, the only state in the country with a law against “road rage” is California, and in New York City a driver would need to have committed another moving violation, such as speeding, to receive a ticket from a police officer. According to a report released last week from the Auto Insurance Center, New Yorkers have experienced more road rage than residents of any other American city.
“I was driving near 55th Street in Brooklyn back in September, stopped at an intersection, and these two drivers in front of me were shouting the vilest things at each other. I’ve lived in New York City my whole life, and I haven’t heard anything like this before. Road rage only happens because it’s being tolerated, and that means we in the City Council aren’t doing our job, because threats and violence should never be tolerated in our city,” said Greenfield.
“When I saw those two drivers physically threatening each other and their families, their cars weren’t moving, so what they were doing wasn’t a crime. All they were doing was road-rage, which is perfectly legal. That’s the problem. My law would solve it,” added Greenfield.
Gentile Applauds Efforts of NYPD In Lower Manhattan Terror Attack
City Council member Vincent Gentile (D-Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach) applauded the efforts of the New York Police Department (NYPD) and all other emergency personnel who helped during the Lower Manhattan terror attack last week.
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.
“The vicious and violent act on Tuesday in Manhattan is a horrible reminder that we must be ever-vigilant in our efforts to combat terrorism wherever it may be. I fully commend the NYPD as well as all of the emergency service workers for their timely and heroic response to such horror. I will continue to work closely with New York’s Finest to ensure that our great city is kept safe. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of those affected by the attack,” said Gentile.
