Must Read: A Bold Progressive Vision for the New York City Council (Really!)

nycprogressives — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:00:07 +0000

Check out Progressive Caucus Co-Chair Brad Lander’s recent article in The Nation as a part of their recent special issue on New York City. He lays out our big plans to grow the Progressive Caucus and advance public policies that will help make New York a more equal, inclusive, democratic city in the years to come.

Progressive Caucus Applauds Paid Sick Leave Agreement

nycprogressives — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 16:43:22 +0000

The New York City Council Progressive Caucus applauds today’s agreement on legislation to provide Paid Sick Leave to over one million additional New Yorkers. The Paid Sick Leave bill has been a top priority of the Progressive Caucus since our founding three years ago and we were proud to be a part of the broad progressive coalition that led the fight.

We want to congratulate the entire Paid Sick Days coalition, including the Working Families Party, A Better Balance, Make the Road, SEIU, the Central Labor Council, New York Communities for Change and of course the bill’s lead sponsor, Council Member Gale Brewer. The coalition — through innumerable rallies, petitions, neighborhood meetings and studies — demonstrated the kinds of grassroots organizing that is needed to bring about a more inclusive New York City.

It is no secret that Paid Sick Leave was a contentious issue. The revised legislation is a strong bill that will make it easier for small businesses to implement the law and there will continue to be studies and safeguards to ensure that the legislation is working. We thank Speaker Quinn for moving this legislation forward.

We still have a long way to go to improve job quality and working conditions for low-wage workers in New York City. We proposed a number of ideas in our new policy platform, 13 Bold Ideas for 2013 (13boldideas.org). Paid Sick Leave is just one of many important steps in the fight for fairer working conditions, and we will keep working and organizing.

To stay involved in our work, sign up here, follow @NYCProgressives on Twitter, and like our Facebook page.

Massive Mobilization Against Gun Violence

nycprogressives — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 18:11:44 +0000

When: Thursday, March 21 at 4:30 PM

Where: Harlem State Office Building, 163 West 125th Street off Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. (7^th Ave.), New York City

New York Voices Against Gun Violence, a broad, newly-formed coalition of advocates, victims, youth organizations, healthcare workers, unions, elected officials, faith leaders and artists, announced today that they will hold a massive mobilization to promote the NY SAFE Act as a model for legislation at the federal level and in other states. Thousands of people will gather in New York City, and others will speak out across the state, to focus attention on the human toll of the gun violence that is plaguing our nation on a daily basis. The coalition includesMoms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, Harlem Mothers S.A.V.E., New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, Doctors for America – NY State Chapter, 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, Million Moms March and many other groups.

The coalition strongly supports the NY SAFE Act’s common sense protections, such as mental health and criminal background checks, tougher restrictions on assault weapons, limits on high-capacity ammunition and measures to keep guns out of schools. The NY SAFE Act, which was signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo last month, is designed to prevent the kinds of mass shootings plaguing our nation such as the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in which 20 children and seven adults were killed.

The Act will also help reduce the gun violence that has devastated families and communities in New York’s urban centers. There is new urgency to defend the NY SAFE Act as big weapons companies and the gun lobby have tried to build opposition and challenges to the law.

As the debate about gun violence continues throughout our nation, advocates say this massive effort will demonstrate the strong grassroots support for more common sense laws that protect children, families and communities.

More Transparency for Money in Politics

nycprogressives — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 17:21:12 +0000

The Progressive Caucus of the New York City Council stands in support of New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s proposed campaign disclosure requirements for nonprofit organizations that spend money to influence elections in our state. As we approach the third anniversary of the infamous Citizens United Supreme Court decision this Sunday, we are reminded of the urgency of measures like this one, which will bring much-needed transparency to the “dark money” that is increasingly influencing the outcome of our elections.

The Attorney General’s proposal would require all tax exempt organizations in New York State (except 501(c)(3) organizations which are already prohibited from engaging in partisan activity) to disclose what percentage of their expenditures are used for the purposes of local, state and federal electioneering. Those nonprofits that spend more than $10,000 on state and local elections will be required to file an itemized schedule of campaign expenditures and contributions. The regulations are primarily aimed at 501(c)(4) organizations, which according to the Attorney General’s office, exceeded traditional political action committee spending in the last two election cycles.

These regulations, coupled with a renewed push for a statewide campaign finance program, which Governor Cuomo has pledged to champion this year, will help make New York State a leader in efforts to stem the tide of big corporate dollars in our elections, even as the national movement for a constitutional amendment that would overturn Citizens United continues to grow.

If the 2012 election taught us anything, it’s that even the most outrageous spending from SuperPACs cannot completely silence the voice of the people. Still, we must do all we can at the local, state and national level to shine daylight on “dark money,” and we thank Attorney General Schneiderman for his courageous stance on this issue.

Fast Food Forward: Sign the Petition

nycprogressives — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 16:36:01 +0000

In America, people who work hard should be able to afford basic necessities like groceries, rent, childcare and transportation.

While fast food corporations reap the benefits of record profits, workers are barely getting by—many are forced to be on public assistance despite having a job.

Raising pay for fast food workers will benefit workers and strengthen the overall economy. That’s why the Progressive Caucus is standing with workers and asking that you sign the petition in support of higher wages.

Recovering as One City

nycprogressives — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:33:18 +0000

Sign our petition for a progressive recovery that works for everyone:

Hurricane Sandy revealed a “tale of two cities” in New York. Too often, disaster recoveries make inequality worse by putting corporate interests over public ones. Instead, Mayor Bloomberg should invest in New York’s communities, so the recovery creates a more sustainable, more equal, and more democratic New York City.The past few weeks have been deeply trying ones for New Yorkers, with scores of lives and thousands of homes lost. The storm exposed not only our vulnerability as a city, but widespread inequality as well. Wall Street reopened one day after the storm, but many in public housing waited three weeks for heat, and many others remain without adequate shelter.

But we’ve also seen extraordinary acts of generosity and courage, as people have come together to provide food, blankets, money, helping hands, comfort, and hope on an incredible scale.

As we turn from relief to recovery, we face a stark choice. Will we simply rebuild what was there before – a city riven by inequality and poverty, vulnerable to climate change, with government decisions too often driven by corporate interests rather than the public interest?

Or will we build on the remarkable spirit of organized compassion we’ve seen – to try to create a city where everyone is protected, and no one is homeless? Will we rebuild two cities, or one?

Mayor Bloomberg should make this a recovery that genuinely works for everyone. Let’s rebuild by creating forward-thinking infrastructure and good jobs, while including residents in the decisions about the future of their communities.

After Hurricane Katrina, rebuilding policies focused on corporate tax breaks rather than public housing. Here in New York, the 9/11 recovery ensured a resurgent Wall Street, but created a Lower Manhattan that was even less affordable for most New Yorkers.

We must invest significant public resources to rebuild our city and create the sustainable infrastructure we need. While we do that, we must also insure genuine economic opportunities, affordable housing, a healthier and safer city for everyone.

Let’s reject a trickle-down recovery. Mayor Bloomberg should invest in New Yorkers and their neighborhoods, so New York City’s recovery creates a more sustainable, equal, and democratic New York.

• A more sustainable recovery will invest in infrastructure we needed long before Sandy – like neighborhoods and environmental systems that are sustainable in the long term and help protect New York from extreme weather. We need to focus on preventing climate change by expanding our mass transit system, promoting energy efficiency and green buildings, and accelerating regional alternative energy projects like solar, tidal power and wind farms.

• A more equal recovery will create good jobs for those impacted by the storm. Let’s make sure that publicly-funded rebuilding jobs go to low-income communities, and pay workers enough to lift them out of poverty. And let’s not just rehouse people made homeless by the hurricane – but also the 46,000 people who were in NYC homeless shelters before Sandy.

• A more democratic recovery will empower regular New Yorkers – especially those in hard-hit communities – to help envision the city we rebuild, so that rebuilding creates stronger neighborhoods and doesn’t concentrate risks in low-income communities. We should strengthen the community organizations that were first on the ground in Hurricane Sandy’s hardest-hit neighborhoods, giving them a central role in rebuilding their neighborhoods and setting them up to be even stronger in the next crisis.

Hurricane Sandy can be an opportunity, to rebuild a more sustainable, more equal, more democratic New York City.

A New Watchdog for the NYPD

nycprogressives — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 18:38:28 +0000

Progressive Caucus Members Brad Lander and Jumaane Williams had a joint op-ed on the need for an independent inspector general for the NYPD in the Daily News this past Sunday.

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A new watchdog for the NYPD

Commissioner Ray Kelly and Mayor Bloomberg should understand: More oversight will help, not hurt, policing

BY JUMAANE WILLIAMS AND BRAD LANDER

BRYAN SMITH/FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Even Ray Kelly should have his department looked at by an independent inspector general.

We represent two very different neighborhoods — East Flatbush and Park Slope — but all our constituents want our families to be safe. And we all want to be treated with respect — in our homes, shops, houses of worship and when we walk down the street.

That requires a strong partnership with our police officers, who risk their own safety to protect ours on a daily basis. Unfortunately, Mayor Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly have pursued well-intentioned but misguided policies that are breaking down the bonds of trust needed to protect our safety and our liberties.

Stop, question and frisk has always been a key tool for law enforcement. But over the last decade, the Bloomberg administration has expanded it far beyond reason, pushing officers to make stops without the “reasonable suspicion” required by the Constitution.

Between 2002 and 2011, the number of stops — more than half of which produced frisks last year — skyrocketed by over 600% (from 97,296 to 685,724), overwhelmingly targeting African-Americans and Latinos. Yet the number of shootings has remained constant. This is not surprising, since guns are only found in 0.1% of stops.

Two recent videos, one of a young man of color on the street in Harlem, one of a Jewish man at a youth shelter in Crown Heights, show a deep disregard for courtesy, professionalism and respect.

And it’s not just stop, question and frisk. Women and kids who live in public housing get tickets for trespassing in their own homes. Innocent Muslim-Americans have learned that they are having information collected about them by undercover NYPD officers, even in other states, with no suspicion of wrongdoing. Pedestrians are killed or seriously injured by drunken drivers but cannot get a real investigation. Officers themselves complain of enforcement quotas and pressure to downgrade crime stats.

All these problems grow — and community perception of the department becomes worse — when there is a lack of meaningful oversight of NYPD policies.

That is why we introduced the Community Safety Act, supported by a bipartisan majority of our colleagues. The legislation has been carefully crafted to improve policing while ensuring safer streets, drawing on the best ideas from police departments around the country.

Despite what Bloomberg and others assert, it would not interfere with good police work — just provide accountability and oversight to ensure that the NYPD acts lawfully, treating all New Yorkers with dignity and respect.

To start, the act would ban bias-based profiling, using the same standard as the Department of Justice, in a policy adopted in 2003 by the Bush administration, and building on a law signed by Bloomberg in 2004. It would also require officers to identify themselves and explain why they had stopped someone.

Contrary to incorrect assertions, including in a recent Daily News editorial, the act would not require police to get consent to frisk someone they suspect of being armed and dangerous. But it would end the practice of NYPD officers deceiving New Yorkers by using “empty your pockets” as a way of gaining someone’s consent when there is no threat and no other legal basis for the search.

The act would also create an inspector general for the NYPD, an oversight body that exists for every other major New York City and federal agency.

We are well aware of how this proposal has been portrayed: as an attempt to handcuff our cops and prevent them from doing their jobs. That’s a total misrepresentation.

Everyone knows: Too often, power corrupts and bureaucracy lets problems fester. In a whole host of agencies, inspectors general play a crucial role in rooting out corruption, letting in sunlight and fixing problems — from Medicaid fraud to bid-rigging.

At the FBI and CIA, and in cities around the country, inspectors general have helped law enforcement agencies improve unwise policies. Other times, IG investigations have shown that an agency under fire was actually in the right.

Every government agency needs independent oversight. And they all have it — including the City Council, which is covered by an inspector general at the city’s Department of Investigation.

The only agency immune to such third-party scrutiny is the one that interacts with New Yorkers in countless sensitive situations every day: the NYPD.

And for those who suggest that this would usher in a political circus, nonsense. The NYPD’s inspector general would be hired and fired by the mayor, not by the City Council. So there should be no concern about cheap fingerpointing.

Our bill is designed to produce more respectful policing. It’s also intended to strengthen the eroding bonds of trust between cops and the community.

Isn’t that what we should all want?

Williams and Lander are members of the New York City Council.

Progressive Caucus Calls for Swift Passage of Community Safety Act

nycprogressives — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 17:14:31 +0000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 10, 2012
CONTACT: Mary Tek, Coordinator
212-341-9509 / nyccprogresscaucus@gmail.com

Progressive Caucus Calls for Swift Passage of Community Safety Act

NEW YORK, NY — The Progressive Caucus fully supports the Community Safety Act, a package of bills prime sponsored by Council Member Jumaane Williams and co-sponsored by the Progressive Caucus and a majority of the City Council. We are excited to hear feedback from the public during this morning’s City Council hearing on the proposed legislation.

The Community Safety Act would address the pressing need for more police accountability in New York City. In recent months, New Yorkers have come together to speak out against the aggressive use of stop, question and frisk, which disproportionately impacts low-income communities of color. The outcry against this tactic, coupled with the recent unwarranted surveillance of Muslim communities, makes it clear that the time for NYPD reform is now.

The Community Safety Act would provide legislative solutions by requiring law enforcement officers to identify themselves, provide notice and obtain consent before searching individuals; prohibiting bias-based profiling; and establishing an independent inspector general focused on the NYPD, a major step towards long-term accountability.

We thank Speaker Christine Quinn for the opportunity to hold hearings on this vital issue, and call for the swift passage of the Community Safety Act.

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Upcoming Hearings on the Community Safety Act

nycprogressives — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 17:54:30 +0000

We’re excited about the upcoming City Council hearings on the NYPD’s use of stop, question and frisk. Progressive Caucus Member Jumaane Williams is sponsoring a package of bills, with the support of the Progressive Caucus and many members of the City Council, that would address the need for more police accountability in NYC.

The Community Safety Act includes four bills:

Int 0799-2012: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring law enforcement officers to provide notice and obtain proof of consent to search individuals.
Int 0800-2012: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to prohibiting bias-based profiling by law enforcement officers.
Int 0801-2012: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York in relation to requiring law enforcement officers to identify themselves to the public.
Int 0881-2012: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter, in relation to establishing an office of the inspector general for the New York city police department.

Join us for next week’s hearing at City Hall (10/10, 10am) or at Brooklyn College the evening of October 23rd.

Rally for NYPD Accountability & Community Safety

nycprogressives — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 17:03:24 +0000

Join Communities United for Police Reform on September 27 at 11:30am at City Hall for a rally to highlight discriminatory policing and to call for swift passage of the Community Safety Act!