A Brooklyn State Senate candidate held a rally at a place very familiar to him, the subway station uses every day.
Zellnor Myrie, a Democrat candidate who is challenging incumbent State Sen. Jesse Hamilton (D-Central Brooklyn) in the upcoming Sept. 13 primary, gave a speech and spoke with supporters at the Lincoln road entrance of the Prospect Park subway station.
The rally was one of eight that the organization, Rise and Resist, held simultaneously across the five boroughs in districts where members of the former Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) are up for re-election. Formed in response to the 2016 election, Rise and Resist is a direct action group committed to opposing, disrupting, and defeating any government act that threatens democracy, equality, and civil liberties.
The IDC was a group of state senators that separated from the mainstream Democrats in the senate, but recently rejoined them, after several years of forming a ruling coalition with the majority Senate Republicans in the senate.
“As long as the former members of the IDC are raising money for their own, separate housekeeping account, as they did earlier this month, we have to assume they are hoping to unite again someday soon in a way that will restore their lulus, nice office and reliable real estate industry donors to them. They have betrayed their voters in the past, and we must assume they will do it again. The only way to have a safe Democratic majority om the senate is to replace the traitors with people we can trust,” said Claire Ullman, a member of Rise and Resist.
Myrie was born and raised in the district. He said he is running as a true Democrat, unlike Hamilton, who ran as a Democrat, and then joined the IDC.
Myrie said that even thoght the IDC dissolved earlier this month, Hamilton and the other former IDC members can no longer be trusted.
“The unification deal was the Democratic primary discouragement act,” he said, “We have seen this movie before.”
Myrie laid out the groups that have been affected by the lack of progress in Washington. He said immigrants, people in the criminal justice system and children in public schools are the groups that are being forgotten about because of “musical chairs” in Albany.
Housing was another issue Myrie focused on in the speech, and he said that as more time goes by, the situation is getting worse for the residents of the district.
“We have tenants right in this community who are being harassed, who are being effected and who are losing their homes,” he said, “We cannot wait for Albany to finish playing its games.”
In addition to laying out his platform, Myrie discussed the differences between his and Hamilton’s campaign. He said he relies on individual donors, while claiming his opponent has received money from “big real estate.”
Myrie said he feels good about the turnout and support he’s been shown, and that people are excited about a candidate who doesn’t care about the “games” of Albany.
“I think that we are excited that have so much community support,” he said “I spend my days talking to a lot of people, and our message has been received pretty well.”
