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Last week, New York City Mayor Bloomberg provided an alarming yet accurate view of the need for US immigration policies to promote the arrival of new talent in the US from abroad.
Immigration Challenges
While the United States political culture includes elements of string opposition to immigration, the US is actually a large importer of talent, and our country needs to increase that importation.
During the Republican Primary season in 2011 and 2012, Republican Presidential candidates competed to see who could be most opposed to immigrants to the United States. While many Republicans now regret their anti-immigrant focus, the competition amongst candidates to prove their hatred for immigrants reflected the strength of ant-immigrant sentiment in the Republican primary electorate. Mitt Romney won the Republican Primary in part by inventing the notion that immigrants should "self-deport" based on policies he would implement as President.
The Republican regret of their anti-immigrant stance is appropriate. Immigration is key to economic growth, and many parts of the US economy will be underserved without significant immigration activity. Allowing prejudice against immigrants to interfere with our opportunities to build and strengthen our economy will leave us with lower quality lives for decades to come.
Mayor Bloomberg Defends Immigration
Mayor Bloomberg is correct when he states that “we are on the wrong side of global competition. Our economy depends on immigrants, and currently our immigration policy is what I call national suicide,”
"National suicide" would appear to be hyperbole, but the notion that the United States is currently volunteering to harm itself by pushing talented people to make their contributions elsewhere is absolutely accurate.
Bloomberg stated that many of the talented immigrants now helping the US to strengthen are here on student visas, and their talents will leave the US to help strengthen other countries (perhaps even our enemies) if we do not allow those immigrants to remain in the US.
“They are our future, and we are driving them out,” Bloomberg said. Changing immigration policy to promote the importation of talent to the US is mission-critical. “I don’t think there is anything more important Washington could do for us.”
President Obama Is Expected to Seek Improved Immigration Laws
In the early part of 2013, after the fight over the fiscal cliff has been decided, we expect President Obama to make immigration reform a top priority.
We hope to make New York City a tech-focused hub for the US, and doing so will require significant talent from outside of the US. As New Yorkers, we need President Obama to make immigration reform a priority and open up opportunities for our city and the rest of the country to enjoy stronger economic growth.
Showing posts with label Policy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Policy. Show all posts
Monday, December 10, 2012
Monday, November 5, 2012
Hurricane Sandy's Aftermath
Hurricane Sandy's wrath knocked out power and took lives, pushing all other concerns to the background. Though it was a category 1 hurricane, it caused levels of damage and flooding never seen before.
While Upper Manhattan was largely left intact by Hurricane Sandy, Harlem faced gas shortages in the aftermath of the storm. The loss of power in much of Manhattan and in large sections of New Jersey made Harlem a go-to destination for those seeking gas for cars and for generators. Gas stations in areas with power outages could not pump gas without electricity.
Vehicles endured seemingly endless lines as Harlem gas stations ran out of gas. Some unlucky drivers ran out of gas waiting in line at gas stations that did not have any gas remaining.
We need to find a better system for delivering gasoline when roads are open but electricity is unavailable. Gas generators go into action in such circumstances and add to traditional gas demand levels. Users of gas may panic and become violent. Gas unavailability should not destroy communities that mother nature spared.
In Harlem's Esplanade Gardens housing complex, 125 cars were totaled by flooding in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. Fortunately, Esplanade Gardens did not face deaths; property can be replaced. But, the loss of this large number of vehicles helps underscore the power of a category 1 hurricane to inflict costs on a community that was fortunate to escape the worst of the damage experienced elsewhere.
In the Rockaways, residents greeted the visit of Mayor Bloomberg with anger. As temperatures have dropped, and as bodies have been discovered amongst debris and garbage, there has not yet been help provided to the residents of the Rockaways who soldier on without power.
As the New York Post reported:
Staten Island has faced tragedies and destruction that rival the unimaginable turmoil of the Rockaways.
Our city will need a plan to prevent these areas from becoming regular victims of rising tides and storms as climate change begins to have the impact we've been warned about so often.
The New York Times recently discussed approaches to dealing with New York City's challenges in an era of rising water levels. Building marshes, reefs, and other protections for our city of islands seems less expensive, more actionable in the near term, and more likely to succeed than building massive flood walls or removing all of the infrastructure, businesses, and dwellings from low lying areas.
Agreeing on solutions to the flood-power-outage challenge we face now after Sandy should be a top priority.
Harlem Gas Shortages
While Upper Manhattan was largely left intact by Hurricane Sandy, Harlem faced gas shortages in the aftermath of the storm. The loss of power in much of Manhattan and in large sections of New Jersey made Harlem a go-to destination for those seeking gas for cars and for generators. Gas stations in areas with power outages could not pump gas without electricity.
Vehicles endured seemingly endless lines as Harlem gas stations ran out of gas. Some unlucky drivers ran out of gas waiting in line at gas stations that did not have any gas remaining.
We need to find a better system for delivering gasoline when roads are open but electricity is unavailable. Gas generators go into action in such circumstances and add to traditional gas demand levels. Users of gas may panic and become violent. Gas unavailability should not destroy communities that mother nature spared.
Esplanade Gardens Cars totaled
In Harlem's Esplanade Gardens housing complex, 125 cars were totaled by flooding in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. Fortunately, Esplanade Gardens did not face deaths; property can be replaced. But, the loss of this large number of vehicles helps underscore the power of a category 1 hurricane to inflict costs on a community that was fortunate to escape the worst of the damage experienced elsewhere.
Rockaways Anger
In the Rockaways, residents greeted the visit of Mayor Bloomberg with anger. As temperatures have dropped, and as bodies have been discovered amongst debris and garbage, there has not yet been help provided to the residents of the Rockaways who soldier on without power.
As the New York Post reported:
The Rockaways’ situation is among the most dire of any of the city’s seaside neighborhoods.
Hundreds of residents continued yesterday to dig out of the wreckage of their wiped-out homes — if they still had homes; 80 in the Breezy Point area were destroyed by fire.
Garbage and debris were everywhere, and the smithereens of the boardwalk were washed far inland.
Cops yesterday uncovered the body of 90-year-old George Stathis, who was found dead in his home on Beach 121st Street.
There was mud on streets where lights weren’t working, sand dunes in front of homes and piles of rubble all over.
“I knew it was going to be real bad, but I never expected this devastation,” said resident Ned Morgan, whose basement flooded up to 6 feet, destroying furniture, family pictures and electronics. “They’re looting cars all over the place,” Morgan said. “This is New York City. They have to help us.”
Staten Island has faced tragedies and destruction that rival the unimaginable turmoil of the Rockaways.
Our city will need a plan to prevent these areas from becoming regular victims of rising tides and storms as climate change begins to have the impact we've been warned about so often.
Proposals for Adjusting to Climate Change
The New York Times recently discussed approaches to dealing with New York City's challenges in an era of rising water levels. Building marshes, reefs, and other protections for our city of islands seems less expensive, more actionable in the near term, and more likely to succeed than building massive flood walls or removing all of the infrastructure, businesses, and dwellings from low lying areas.
Agreeing on solutions to the flood-power-outage challenge we face now after Sandy should be a top priority.
Monday, June 11, 2012
June 17 March to End Stop and Frisk in NYC
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently made a disturbing revelation about the New York City Police Department's policy of stopping pedestrians and forcibly searching their bodies for weapons. He revealed that police do not actually expect to find any weapons.
Stop and Frisk Is Racist, Abusive, and Ineffective
In the wake of new data showing that New York City's stop-and-frisk encounters turned up one gun every 3,000 stops (or 0.03 percent of the time), Bloomberg compared the policy to a highway sobriety checkpoint. He argued that the program acts as a deterrent to crime, so it cannot be judged by its rate of success.
But for the majority of people who walk away without a charge, the experience serves only to undercut trust in the police who are sworn to protect them. The experience is an invasion of privacy, a humiliation and a stinging reminder of how police resources are being diverted away from solving homicides, rapes and other violent crimes to support an ineffective and racially biased practice.
Comparing police officers to officers at a checkpoint is both dangerous and misleading. Sobriety checkpoints are legal only because they are entirely random: Police must stop every car or every second, third or fourth car, and so on. This prevents any danger of profiling drivers based on stereotypes of race, gender and ethnicity.
With stop and frisk, there is no such mechanism in place. More than half of the stops in 2011 were justified in police ledgers as a response to "furtive movements." This ambiguity leaves little room for accountability at any level and significant room to illegally profile.
A recent New York Civil Liberties Union report showed that 87 percent of those stopped by the NYPD were African American or Latino, even though those groups were less likely than whites to be found with a weapon. Ninety percent of African Americans and Latinos stopped were innocent of any legal infraction.
There is no reason that people of color need more deterrence than any other racial group in the city. It would seem that the NYPD is trying to instill more fear in one section of the population over another -- a demographic that has less political clout and less means to defend itself from bullying.
Stop-and-frisk policing is, in fact, counterproductive. A healthy police force should be modeled on the image of a police officer walking the beat and interacting with neighbors. But in many New York City neighborhoods, residents live in fear of officers. Between those who get stopped, those who know someone who got stopped and those who read about racial disparities in the newspaper, the program erodes trust in police officers and destroys the valuable relationships between officers and the communities they serve.
Other large cities are effectively cutting crime without resorting to stop and frisk. The violent-crime rate fell 29 percent in New York City from 2001 to 2010, but it also fell 59 percent in Los Angeles over the same time period, 56 percent in New Orleans and 49 percent in Dallas. In these cities, community policing and data-driven methods have proved effective in rooting out crime.
March in NYC to Protest Stop and Frisk
This Father's Day, the NAACP and other civil rights activists, civil liberty advocates and community members will march silently down the streets of New York City to protest stop-and-frisk policing. The tradition of silent marches for civil rights dates back to 1917, when W.E.B. Du Bois and the 8-year-old NAACP marched through New York City to protest lynchings, segregation and race riots in the South.
Silence is a powerful force that, like other forms of nonviolent protest, holds a mirror to the brutality of one's opponents. On June 17 we will hold up a mirror to New York City's stop-and-frisk policy. For more information about the event, visit silentmarchnyc.org.
The NYPD is stopping New Yorkers at higher levels than at any time in the city's history. As the number of stops continues to grow, it will seem more and more as if the NYPD has set up a checkpoint on every corner. That would be an unwelcome development for the nation's most diverse city.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Declining Black and Latino Populations at CUNY
The Community Service Society has issued a report demonstrating how City University of New York (CUNY) has experienced declining percentages of Black and Latino freshman after seeking higher SAT scores and reducing overall acceptances. But, before we speak about CUNY, we remember our fallen soldiers today, Memorial Day, which began in New York.
The Community Service Society presents ideas from former CUNY administrator John Garvey that are geared toward improving the size of the pool of high scoring Black and Latino students.
Fewer Black and Latino Freshman
From 2008 to 2010, Black and Latino enrollment at the most selective CUNY schools declined dramatically despite the short time frame.By 2010, black students comprised 10 percent of entering freshmen at the top five CUNY colleges – Baruch, Hunter, Brooklyn, City, and Queens colleges – down from 17 percent in 2001 and 14 percent in 2008. Latino students made up 19 percent of entering freshmen at top schools in 2010, down from 22 percent in 2008. These changes coincided with a significant increase in the number of black and Latino high school students taking the SAT.
• The slow decline in the share of black students at the senior colleges that began in 2001 accelerated significantly after 2008. Whereas black students had declined as a share of CUNY senior colleges since 2001, the broader growth in total enrollment had meant that they still increased in terms of numbers. But in the two years after 2008, blacks lost as much of a share in senior colleges as they did in the seven years prior, including steep drops in their numbers and share at the best schools. By 2010, just one in ten freshman entering top-tier senior colleges at CUNY was black.
• Latino students, who had made significant gains in admission to the top senior colleges since 2001, lost all of those gains in just two years. From 2001 to 2008, Latinos had increased their presence at all levels of CUNY schools. Yet in the two years after2008, they lost most of their gains at senior colleges, with dramatic declines in top-tier schools. From 2001 to 2008, the number of Latino freshman at top-tier schools increased by 40 percent. By 2010, that entire increase was erased.
• Black and Latino students made up 60 percent of new freshmen at CUNY in 2010. But they made up only 47 percent of senior college enrollment, and just 28 percent of enrollment at top-tier schools. These changes are occurring when the number of black and Latino students in New York City public high schools who are taking the SAT exam—the traditional signal of intent to attend a four-year college—is higher than ever.
Potential Solutions
The Community Service Society presents ideas from former CUNY administrator John Garvey that are geared toward improving the size of the pool of high scoring Black and Latino students.
• Better aligned standards and assessments, particularly reform of the Regents examinations to align them with college placement tests and what we know students need to be successful in college.
• Enhanced college advisement, to ensure that all students and their families have the best possible information about college readiness and the transition to college, from as early an age as possible.
• Higher quality teaching and learning within the New York City public high schools to promote better student achievement. This would include accelerated learning opportunities that incorporate college-level work within the high school experience.
• Development of a stronger college readiness system that includes data analysis and ongoing discussion among a wide range of stakeholders of how to improve college transitions.
Praise
The Community Service Society should be applauded for delivering a thoughtful report focused on solutions. As we exit a deep a frightening recession, we face lingering scares from trends that emerged in the recession. Seeing that college-bound students from Black and Latino backgrounds are increasingly absent from the freshman class at out city's most prestigious public colleges creates a fear of long term impacts from the calamity of 2008. The Community Service Society alerts us to the problem and gives us hope for improvement by recommending steps we can take to reverse these terrible trends.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Obama and NAACP Follow NY's Lead
Last week, the NAACP's 64-person Board voted in favor of marriage equality with only two Board members opposed. The previous week featured President Obama proclaiming his support for marriage equality. New York State has been a leader in the movement toward marriage equality, and the support of the NAACP and President Obama is welcomed.
In June 2011, New York State changed its laws to specifically support marriage equality and allow same-sex couples to have all of the protections provided by marriage.
As we stated at that time:
We congratulate Governor Cuomo on leading a disciplined and street smart battle for marriage equality. We congratulate the New York Civil Liberties Union and all of the parts of the successful coalition.
We have noticed that our city's Archbishop was disheartened by the success of the marriage equality coalition, and we re-emphasize that there is no excuse for our city's religious leaders to promote discrimination. The religious community opposed equal rights for non-white residents of our country, opposed women's suffrage, and continues to view its support for discrimination against homosexuals as an important part of its identity.
Until the religious leadership in our city moves away from its focus on finding ways to support and promote discrimination, that leadership will continue to lose these defining battles of our time. If those leaders will begin to oppose discrimination, they will be embraced, and they will improve lives here on earth.
Earlier this month, President Obama endorsed marriage equality, thereby solidifying his place in history as a great President who promoted the progress of freedom and equality. Last week, the NAACP followed the lead of President Obama, who had followed the lead of New York State. Now, the consensus is building for marriage equality. Though 29 states have passed laws banning marriage equality (with four more considering bans in November), the trend is clearly now moving toward equality.
Marriage equality will eventually be the law in every state. For now, New York is one of the states leading the way and welcoming supporters, such as the NAACP and the President of the United States.
New York State Leads on Marriage Equality
In June 2011, New York State changed its laws to specifically support marriage equality and allow same-sex couples to have all of the protections provided by marriage.
As we stated at that time:
We congratulate Governor Cuomo on leading a disciplined and street smart battle for marriage equality. We congratulate the New York Civil Liberties Union and all of the parts of the successful coalition.
We have noticed that our city's Archbishop was disheartened by the success of the marriage equality coalition, and we re-emphasize that there is no excuse for our city's religious leaders to promote discrimination. The religious community opposed equal rights for non-white residents of our country, opposed women's suffrage, and continues to view its support for discrimination against homosexuals as an important part of its identity.
Until the religious leadership in our city moves away from its focus on finding ways to support and promote discrimination, that leadership will continue to lose these defining battles of our time. If those leaders will begin to oppose discrimination, they will be embraced, and they will improve lives here on earth.
NAACP and President Obama Offer Support
Earlier this month, President Obama endorsed marriage equality, thereby solidifying his place in history as a great President who promoted the progress of freedom and equality. Last week, the NAACP followed the lead of President Obama, who had followed the lead of New York State. Now, the consensus is building for marriage equality. Though 29 states have passed laws banning marriage equality (with four more considering bans in November), the trend is clearly now moving toward equality.
Marriage equality will eventually be the law in every state. For now, New York is one of the states leading the way and welcoming supporters, such as the NAACP and the President of the United States.
Monday, April 2, 2012
New York State Budget Passed On-Time
Though some may complain that the New York State budget process is controlled by three people, the process produced an on-schedule and responsible budget for the second year in a row.
The budget was passed a day early, and that hasn't happened since 1983.
The euphoria over the passage was met by some dissent.
Cuomo will propose two more budgets before he faces a vote on his re-election. Some worry that those budgets will be geared toward winning votes rather than responsibly preparing our state to thrive over the long term. Interestingly, Cuomo is expected to be a Presidential candidate in 2016. We can guess that Cuomo may begin to campaign for President with his 2013 and 2014 budget proposals. Those same budgets may draw more opposition from Republicans because of Cuomo's electoral goals.
Whether because of the re-election fight looming or because of a planned campaign for President of the United States, Cuomo may find that his two-year streak of on-time, respectable budgets becomes increasingly more difficult to extend.
First Early Passage Since 1983
The budget was passed a day early, and that hasn't happened since 1983.
The euphoria over the passage was met by some dissent.
“It is a not a good bill and it is not a bill I can vote for,” said Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan), during the debate over the Aid to Localities portion of the budget. Krueger argued the bill did not go far enough to aid struggling communities.But, the budget and the process that brought it to early passage have many positive elements and is deservedly winning praise from both parties.
Senate Democrats have also tried -- and failed -- tried to attach several hostile amendments to the spending bills. Among the banished amendments were measures to create a statewide health insurance exchange, approved the state version of the Dream Act, and boost school aid for struggling school districts.
Why Are Both Parties Happy
What held together were Cuomo's top priorities including a massive New York Works job-creating program and just about every item in his budget proposal presented two months ago. The Legislature, however, amended nearly all and rejected some.
Silver got an increase in the welfare grant once rejected by Cuomo, reinstatement of early intervention procedures in pre-kindergarten for kids in need, an increase in community college aid, and the right of Medicaid patients to get prescriptions their physicians deem best even if they are more expensive brand-name drugs.
Skelos can claim a long-sought doubling of the DNA database for law enforcement, eliminating the Metropolitan Transportation Authority payroll tax for thousands of small businesses and schools, and keeping open the regional Department of Transportation offices slated to close.
The state's EPIC health care program was expanded to a fill the "donut hole" in Medicare, averting a spike in co-pays for seniors. Silver and Deputy Majority Leader Thomas Libous secured $100 million for upstate road repair to keep pace with downstate on transportation, a critical issue to salve upstate-downstate tensions in the Legislature.
The Future
Cuomo will propose two more budgets before he faces a vote on his re-election. Some worry that those budgets will be geared toward winning votes rather than responsibly preparing our state to thrive over the long term. Interestingly, Cuomo is expected to be a Presidential candidate in 2016. We can guess that Cuomo may begin to campaign for President with his 2013 and 2014 budget proposals. Those same budgets may draw more opposition from Republicans because of Cuomo's electoral goals.
Whether because of the re-election fight looming or because of a planned campaign for President of the United States, Cuomo may find that his two-year streak of on-time, respectable budgets becomes increasingly more difficult to extend.
Monday, February 6, 2012
NYPD Gone Wild
As we celebrate the NY Giants Super Bowl victory, we are troubled to see that the New York City Police Department appears to have stepped up its efforts to terrorize and intimidate communities of color in our city.
Last week, the NYPD was caught on video viciously kicking and beating a young Black man in the Bronx.
To add insult and injuries to the initial injuries, the NYPD attacked one of the men who begged them to stop the beating.
In an outcome far worse than the savage beating of the young man mentioned and the witness discussed above, the NYPD shot and killed an unarmed young Black man in the bathroom of his home in the Bronx.
The grandmother was held against her will at the local police station for seven hours after her unarmed grandson was killed by the police in his home.
Bronx Beating
Last week, the NYPD was caught on video viciously kicking and beating a young Black man in the Bronx.
Three of the cops are then clearly shown repeatedly pounding Reed — kicking, punching and beating him their batons. Another officer, slightly obscured by the others, appears to hold him down.The NYPD has offered no explanation for the brutal attack on the young man. In fact, last week, the young man was being held on assault charges.
To add insult and injuries to the initial injuries, the NYPD attacked one of the men who begged them to stop the beating.
When they surrounded me and looked at me with gloves on, I knew what was going to happen. I just had time to pull my glasses off. And by the time I did that, it was 'boom' [with a punch]. I did [put up my hands] like that to shield my face immediately. I tried to protect my face," said James. "I'm shielding my face and this is exposed. He uses his right leg and stomps me here.The attack on the original victim was compounded by an attack on a witness. It is both frightening and infuriating. These attacks cannot be permitted to continue.
Shooting of Unarmed Man in the Bronx
In an outcome far worse than the savage beating of the young man mentioned and the witness discussed above, the NYPD shot and killed an unarmed young Black man in the bathroom of his home in the Bronx.
They're outside for some time in the front. They go to the back, and for several minutes this young man is apparently inside the house. And for several minutes there, outside the house, I don't know what they're doing there in terms of communicating with their command, or if they are talking about what's going on. What's clear, though, is that there was enough time for them to reflect on what is happening and this tragedy should not have happened.The dead man's six-year-old brother and grandmother were in the home at the time of his killing, and, once again, a witness became a victim.
The grandmother was held against her will at the local police station for seven hours after her unarmed grandson was killed by the police in his home.
[The victim's grandmother] was taken to the 47th Precinct station house on Laconia Avenue and held for seven hours, said Carlton Berkley, a friend of the family’s who said he had retired from the police force as a detective in the 30th Precinct, in Upper Manhattan. Mr. Berkley added that [the victim's grandmother] was forced to give a statement about what happened.
“She gave it against her will,” Mr. Berkley said. “She didn’t want to speak to the police.”
A pattern emerges. A young Black man is killed or abused by the NYPD, and the witnesses to the killing or abuse are abused by NYPD.
If we don't end this pattern immediately, the NYPD will escalate its attacks on our communities, and the deaths and injuries from their attacks will mount.
Monday, January 30, 2012
NYPD's Ray Kelly Must Resign
We have called on NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly and Mayor Bloomberg to resign because of their race-based approach to policing and because of their support or racism as the guiding principle of their leadership. Last week, we learned that Ray Kelly's lies violate the NYPD's Code of Conduct and should result in his termination.
Bloomberg Defends Kelly for Lying
Mayor Bloomberg has defended NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly for participating in the making of an anti-Muslim video that was shown to NYPD recruits on a continuous loop as they completed paperwork. He has also defended Ray Kelly for lying in 2011 and stating that the NYPD was not involved in the making of the video.
Bloomberg's defense was not a surprise, given that he previously defended the NYPD after we learned that the NYPD was spying on Muslim groups.
This latest incident highlights how important it is for the health of our city that Mayor Bloomberg resign.
Lying Violates the NYPD Code of Conduct
When Ray Kelly chose to lie about his involvement in the making of the anti-Muslim video, he created a pathway for his termination.
The Gothamist tells the story so well, that we will let their explanation speak for itself.
Bloomberg Defends Kelly for Lying
Mayor Bloomberg has defended NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly for participating in the making of an anti-Muslim video that was shown to NYPD recruits on a continuous loop as they completed paperwork. He has also defended Ray Kelly for lying in 2011 and stating that the NYPD was not involved in the making of the video.
Bloomberg's defense was not a surprise, given that he previously defended the NYPD after we learned that the NYPD was spying on Muslim groups.
News of the NYPD's screening of the anti-Muslim film comes five months after an Associated Press investigation revealed police were spying on Muslim communities as part of the department's anti-terrorism efforts. Bloomberg defended the tactics, saying police were doing their job preventing terrorism.But, the lies written in official NYPD correspondence by Ray Kelly are a violation of the NYPD Code of Conduct and should result in Kelly's termination, even if Bloomberg endorses lying as a strategy for obtaining the flexibility to violate the rights of our city's residents.
This latest incident highlights how important it is for the health of our city that Mayor Bloomberg resign.
Lying Violates the NYPD Code of Conduct
When Ray Kelly chose to lie about his involvement in the making of the anti-Muslim video, he created a pathway for his termination.
The Gothamist tells the story so well, that we will let their explanation speak for itself.
Last year, NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly sent multiple letters to the city's Muslim leaders insisting the department "did not participate in" the production of an Islamophobic propaganda film that was screened on a continuous loop for over 1,200 NYPD officers. Then along came The Brennan Center for Justice and their meddlesome Freedom of Information Law requests, Kelly was forced to admit that he did knowingly participate in the film, titled The Third Jihad. And now, as some call for Kelly's resignation, The New York World takes a look at the NYPD guidelines and finds that Popeye probably broke some big rules. Surely he will hold himself accountable!
The NYPD has an internal policy prohibiting false statements, according to a copy of the policy provided by the NYCLU to The New York World. "It would seem that both Kelly and Browne violated this false statement policy - Kelly by 'lying in an official Department document' when he signed letters last year claiming no involvement in Third Jihad’s production, and Browne when he possibly 'created false description of events' by first claiming Kelly’s interview had not taken place, and then stating that it was he who had recommended Kelly do the interview," writes Pei Shan Hoe.
But this opens up a whole can of worms, because if the Kelly and Browne can't bend the truth a little to keep NYC safe, how are they supposed tofill quotasmeet productivity goals? “It would certainly not be a stretch to say that, if Browne lied, that would call for dismissal under the policy," says NYCLU spokesman Chris Dunn. "Given that he was personally involved in arranging for the interview, one would certainly think that he knew what he told the Times was not accurate, but that is as far as one can go at this point."
And Noel Leader, the co-founder of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, tells Capital New York that Kelly's participation in the film violates the NYPD's Patrol Guide rules barring officers from associating with hateful materials or hateful organizations. "Since I've known officers to be terminated in the past for violating this procedure, he violated it, he should be terminated," says Leader.
So far no officials have called for Kelly to resign, but Councilmember Jumaane Williams has said that Browne should be fired, and other Councilmembers have joined him in calling for an investigation. Mayor Bloomberg stood by Kelly today, telling reporters he has "100 percent confidence" in Kelly and declaring, "Commissioner Kelly should not step down." And despite their frequent criticism of Kelly, the angry wags on the NYPD Rant message board are also standing behind the Commissioner. True to form, they're blaming the Times for reporting the story, with one writing: "OMG will the Times ever stop. If the Ragheads ever take over that Red Rag will last about ten minutes. Kill them all and let allah sort it out!"
Monday, December 19, 2011
Obesity Declines in NYC Schools
For a change, there is good news regarding health and nutrition trends amongst our city's youth. Obesity has declined in our schools.
In our country, obesity is rising far too fast. The last 20 years have resulted in a massive increase in obesity levels in the United States. In 1990, no state in the US had more than 15% of its population counted amongst the obese. Today, no state in the US has less than 20% of its population weighing enough to be considered obese.
Obesity plays a major role in harming health in our country and results in lost wages as well as reduced quality of life. Obesity shortens lives and destroys opportunities.
All of these problems are much worse for obese children.
According to the Centers for Disease Control:
In NYC, Mayor Bloomberg has led the way on empowering consumers to make smart choices about their food by requiring chains of restaurants to list the calorie counts for their foods on their menus. Many of the most popular foods contain many more calories than most people assume. The listing of calorie counts allowed New Yorkers to take control of their nutritional lives, even when they were eating in a restaurant. There was a positive impact from the Mayor's calorie initiative.
Also, under Bloomberg, our city's schools improve nutrition, increased physical activity time, and swapped whole milk with 1 percent and skim milk in 2005. School nurses also were trained to identify kids with weight problems and to educate the community. These changes may have already started reversing the obesity trend.
Reversed Trend
For the first time, New York City public schools have seen a statistical decline in the rate of obesity amongst students.
A study of New York City public school students in kindergarten through eighth grade found obesity rates fell from 21.9 to 20.7 percent between the 2006-2007 and 2010-2011 school years.
The decline in NYC was the largest decline in childhood obesity in a large US city. NYC officials estimated that the decline experienced in our state translates into 6,500 fewer obese children in our schools.
No one is sure whether the changes implemented in 2005 have allowed our schools to reverse the trend toward higher obesity rates, but the achievement is worth studying in order to find answers. With obesity rates skyrocketing in schools and amongst adults, any decline should become a cause not just for celebration but also for scrutiny and replication.
White children in New York City experienced a 12.5 percent drop in obesity during the 2006 to 2011 period, Asian/Pacific Islander children (a 7.6 percent drop) and Hispanic (3.4 percent) children experienced less improvement. African American children in our city's schools did experience less obesity, but their improvement was least of all of the ethnic groups and was less than one-sixth as much improvement as was achieved by white children. African American children enjoyed only a 1.9 percent drop.
In addition, lower income areas experienced the least decline in obesity rates.
Therefore, while the areas that most needed to improve obesity rates experienced the least declines, all ethnic groups and all income levels benefited from a reduction in obesity. One of the most stubborn and terrifying public health trends of the last 20 years seems to be reversing in front of our eyes in NYC. We are all responsible for helping to continue the new trend toward better health and better lives from children in our city.
Childhood Obesity
In our country, obesity is rising far too fast. The last 20 years have resulted in a massive increase in obesity levels in the United States. In 1990, no state in the US had more than 15% of its population counted amongst the obese. Today, no state in the US has less than 20% of its population weighing enough to be considered obese.
Obesity plays a major role in harming health in our country and results in lost wages as well as reduced quality of life. Obesity shortens lives and destroys opportunities.
All of these problems are much worse for obese children.
According to the Centers for Disease Control:
- Childhood obesity has more than tripled in the past 30 years.
- The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 20% in 2008. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to 18% over the same period.
- In 2008, more than one third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese.
- Obese youth are more likely to have risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure. In a population-based sample of 5- to 17-year-olds, 70% of obese youth had at least one risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
- Obese adolescents are more likely to have prediabetes, a condition in which blood glucose levels indicate a high risk for development of diabetes.
- Children and adolescents who are obese are at greater risk for bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems such as stigmatization and poor self-esteem.
- Children and adolescents who are obese are likely to be obese as adults and are therefore more at risk for adult health problems such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, several types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.
- Overweight and obesity are associated with increased risk for many types of cancer, including cancer of the breast, colon, endometrium, esophagus, kidney, pancreas, gall bladder, thyroid, ovary, cervix, and prostate, as well as multiple myeloma and Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Bloomberg's Calorie Count and Other Efforts
In NYC, Mayor Bloomberg has led the way on empowering consumers to make smart choices about their food by requiring chains of restaurants to list the calorie counts for their foods on their menus. Many of the most popular foods contain many more calories than most people assume. The listing of calorie counts allowed New Yorkers to take control of their nutritional lives, even when they were eating in a restaurant. There was a positive impact from the Mayor's calorie initiative.
Also, under Bloomberg, our city's schools improve nutrition, increased physical activity time, and swapped whole milk with 1 percent and skim milk in 2005. School nurses also were trained to identify kids with weight problems and to educate the community. These changes may have already started reversing the obesity trend.
Reversed Trend
For the first time, New York City public schools have seen a statistical decline in the rate of obesity amongst students.
A study of New York City public school students in kindergarten through eighth grade found obesity rates fell from 21.9 to 20.7 percent between the 2006-2007 and 2010-2011 school years.
The decline in NYC was the largest decline in childhood obesity in a large US city. NYC officials estimated that the decline experienced in our state translates into 6,500 fewer obese children in our schools.
No one is sure whether the changes implemented in 2005 have allowed our schools to reverse the trend toward higher obesity rates, but the achievement is worth studying in order to find answers. With obesity rates skyrocketing in schools and amongst adults, any decline should become a cause not just for celebration but also for scrutiny and replication.
African American Children Left Behind
White children in New York City experienced a 12.5 percent drop in obesity during the 2006 to 2011 period, Asian/Pacific Islander children (a 7.6 percent drop) and Hispanic (3.4 percent) children experienced less improvement. African American children in our city's schools did experience less obesity, but their improvement was least of all of the ethnic groups and was less than one-sixth as much improvement as was achieved by white children. African American children enjoyed only a 1.9 percent drop.
In addition, lower income areas experienced the least decline in obesity rates.
Therefore, while the areas that most needed to improve obesity rates experienced the least declines, all ethnic groups and all income levels benefited from a reduction in obesity. One of the most stubborn and terrifying public health trends of the last 20 years seems to be reversing in front of our eyes in NYC. We are all responsible for helping to continue the new trend toward better health and better lives from children in our city.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Cuomo Achieves Bipartisan Tax Deal
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo successfully pushed through a measure to prevent the expiration of the so-called "millionaire's tax" as he seeks to reduce future budget deficits.
Millionaire's Tax?
In 2009, prior to Governor Cuomo's election to his current post, the New York State Legislature adopted higher taxes on “high earners” ($200,000+) in the form of a temporary surcharge that applied only to high earnings.The net effect of the surcharge was an increase of more than 30% in the highest effective rate for personal income taxes. The tax was due to expire at the end of 2011.
The surcharge was called a "millionaire's tax" despite the fact that more than three-quarters of those paying the tax were earning less than $1 million per year.
Many have argued that the "millionaire's tax" reduces economic growth, penalizes small businesses, and does not create enough tax revenue to make up for the economic burden it imposes.
Others have argued that in an era of huge budget deficits, we need to require the highest earners to pay higher taxes in order to avoid raising taxes on those with modest incomes.
With a $3.5 billion deficit looming for next fiscal year, Cuomo sought (and obtained) an extension of the tax surcharge.
The extension was accompanied by other tax changes, and those changes raise questions about whether we should view the recently adopted tax changes as a tax increase or a tax reduction for high earners as well as for every level of earner in NYC.
The tax deal that Cuomo engineered in New York State by achieving virtually unanimous support from the Republicans and Democrats in the State Legislature, Cuomo establishes himself as one of our country's few bi-partisan leaders and links his name to one of very few bi-partisan success stories.
Cuomo contrasted his Albany achievement with the gridlock and failure in Washington DC in his video explaining the tax deal. He now starts to look like a potential top-tier candidate for the Democratic nomination in 2016. If he can win a second landslide in 2014 and maintain his streak of bipartisan successes, Andrew Cuomo will emerge as an obvious contender for the top of the national ticket in 2016.
Cuomo has not proven that he can win the enthusiasm of African Americans, but he has proven that he can lead a large state, earn the support of Republicans and Democrats, and speak directly to the voting public with great effect.
Millionaire's Tax?
In 2009, prior to Governor Cuomo's election to his current post, the New York State Legislature adopted higher taxes on “high earners” ($200,000+) in the form of a temporary surcharge that applied only to high earnings.The net effect of the surcharge was an increase of more than 30% in the highest effective rate for personal income taxes. The tax was due to expire at the end of 2011.
The surcharge was called a "millionaire's tax" despite the fact that more than three-quarters of those paying the tax were earning less than $1 million per year.
Many have argued that the "millionaire's tax" reduces economic growth, penalizes small businesses, and does not create enough tax revenue to make up for the economic burden it imposes.
Others have argued that in an era of huge budget deficits, we need to require the highest earners to pay higher taxes in order to avoid raising taxes on those with modest incomes.
With a $3.5 billion deficit looming for next fiscal year, Cuomo sought (and obtained) an extension of the tax surcharge.
Tax Increase or Tax Reduction
The extension was accompanied by other tax changes, and those changes raise questions about whether we should view the recently adopted tax changes as a tax increase or a tax reduction for high earners as well as for every level of earner in NYC.
Opponents of the tax surcharge see it as a tax increase. The tax surcharge would have expired at the end of 2011, and therefore, its extension is an increase in tax rates for high earners versus what those high earners would have paid without an extension.
Supporters of the surcharge see it as a tax reduction. Because of the changes in the tax rules that accompany the extension of the surcharge, every level of earner who pays New York State personal income tax will experience a reduction in tax liability in 2012 versus what was in place in 2011.
Cuomo 2016
Cuomo contrasted his Albany achievement with the gridlock and failure in Washington DC in his video explaining the tax deal. He now starts to look like a potential top-tier candidate for the Democratic nomination in 2016. If he can win a second landslide in 2014 and maintain his streak of bipartisan successes, Andrew Cuomo will emerge as an obvious contender for the top of the national ticket in 2016.
Cuomo has not proven that he can win the enthusiasm of African Americans, but he has proven that he can lead a large state, earn the support of Republicans and Democrats, and speak directly to the voting public with great effect.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Quinn Seeks Distance from Bloomberg on Homeless Rules
New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn seems to be having a change of heart related to her undying loyalty to Mayor Bloomberg.
Homeless Shelters
New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has supported Mayor Bloomberg through thick and thin. She led the fight to give him(and herself) an additional term in office - in direct opposition to the will of the people of New York City as expressed in two referenda. She has remained quiet as Mayor Bloomberg has defied federal courts and worked tirelessly to avoid racially integrating the Fire Department of New York. She has provided her tacit approval of his race-based policing approach (more on that is discussed below).
But, after Mayor Bloomberg decided to require single adults to prove that they have no alternative place to live before they can enter a homeless shelter, he was opposed by Speaker Christine Quinn. She led the New York City Council to oppose his change in homeless policy. The City Council sued the Mayor for the first time in Speaker Quinn's tenure.
It is a good sign. Although she should not have waited until the Mayor implemented as absurd a policy as requiring homeless people to prove that they are homeless, Christine Quinn should be commended for opposing the Mayor in this case. One wonders how a homeless person proves he or she is homeless. Is it a letter from every friend and family member? Is it an eviction notice. Perhaps the best evidence of a lack of other options is the presence at a homeless shelter. Perhaps the Mayor will ask patients in emergency rooms to prove that they don't have friends who could save their lives outside of the hospital.
Stop and Frisk Record Pace
After all of the controversy surrounding Mayor Bloomberg's racist stop-and-frisk approach, this year, his Administration will set a new record for the number of stops. In fact, more than four million stops have occurred under the racist Bloomberg approach since 2004. Nearly all of the stops are stops of people of color, and very close to all of those stopped are completed innocent and are never given a summons or arrested.
Despite a lawsuit against the department claiming the stop-and-frisks discriminate against minorities (in 2008, 80 percent of those stopped were black or latino) and a call from city officials, including Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, for the federal government to investigate the program, NYPD spokesman Paul Browne defended the practice this week as a success in curbing crime.
Based on Mayor Bloomberg's record at the FDNY and his approach to policing, he should resign immediately. There is no place for his type of policy approach (skin color defines all outcomes and determines rights and opportunities) in 2011. In fact, our country rose up and outlawed his style of governing in 1964 . . . nearly 50 years ago.
Monday, November 14, 2011
NYC Education Tragedy
Tragically, New York City is failing to educate its youth and prepare them for college. Amazingly, the New York City Mayor is now criticizing New York State for its suggestion that our city's education efforts be geared toward preparing students for college.
Mayor Bloomberg has had control of our city's schools for a decade, and the results have been very disappointing.
Last week, we learned that New York State's Department of Education has listed 640 of our city's 1,700 schools as "in need of improvement". Many of those schools have received a score of A or B from our city. The disconnect is scary. While the Mayor claims success in education, more than one-third of the schools under his control fail to meet the minimum standards of our state and of our country. Indeed, these 640 school risk forced closure by the state if they do not improve.
The New York Daily News focused on the state's view of our city's lack of success in education.
City Schools Failing
Mayor Bloomberg has had control of our city's schools for a decade, and the results have been very disappointing.
Last week, we learned that New York State's Department of Education has listed 640 of our city's 1,700 schools as "in need of improvement". Many of those schools have received a score of A or B from our city. The disconnect is scary. While the Mayor claims success in education, more than one-third of the schools under his control fail to meet the minimum standards of our state and of our country. Indeed, these 640 school risk forced closure by the state if they do not improve.
The New York Daily News focused on the state's view of our city's lack of success in education.
Our state's Board of Regents Chancellor, Merryl Tisch said the state’s new list of troubled schools offers more proof of the city school system’s dismal performance.Mayor Bloomberg reacted to the negative assessment of the state's education leadership by stating that the state's standards are too high.
“This is just further evidence – as if we needed any – that we must move forward to reform our schools and change what is happening in our classrooms,” said Tisch, adding: “If student performance doesn’t improve, schools must be held accountable.”
“Some kids will never get to the level for college but will have great careers,” the Mayor said. “There are lots of skills that you can have that make you productive.”
Monday, October 31, 2011
NYPD Misconduct Takes Center Stage
Recently, our city's police force has been in the news for its misconduct. The conduct has been both disappointing and shocking.
On October 17, the FBI arrested Michael Daragjati, an eight-year NYPD veteran, for false arrest of a Black New Yorker. The officer did not realize his conversations were being taped and used a racial slur in describing his own conduct. ". . . fried another nigger," he said, which suggests he makes a habit of false arrests of Black residents of our city.
The victim of the arrest was in jail for 36 hours after a stop-and-frisk. Because the stop-and-frisk did not result in the recover of a weapon or drugs, the officer arrested the Black resident for "resisting arrest." The practice of arresting Black New Yorkers for resisting arrest should stop. An arrest must be justified by some other conduct before the charge of resisting (real or imagined) should be considered.
Officer Daragjati admitted on the taped conversations that he often beat our fellow citizens without justification and that he would be terminated if his conduct were exposed.
Amazingly, this officer had been successfully sued twice previously for falsely arresting Black residents, but he has been sent back out into our city to abuse more of our Black population. Our tax dollars have been used to pay some of his previous victims, yet he has received the support of the NYPD to add to his list of victims.
The mistreatment of the Black people in our city should be viewed by the NYPD and by our Mayor as a problem rather than a goal.
Last week, 16 NYPD officers were arraigned in the Bronx for illegally "fixing" tickets for their friends and families, and another 300+ officers will be disciplined for their participation in the scandal.
In a disappointing twist, hundreds of NYPD personnel came to the Bronx courthouse at the time of the arraignment to protest the action being taken against the NYPD officers who illegally "fixed" the tickets. The protesting officers argued that the NYPD should be able to "fix" tickets as a matter of professional courtesy.
The scandal involving more than 300 officers is troubling, but the concept of an even larger number of officers protesting the indictment of those who got caught is far more troubling. The endorsement of criminality by the NYPD's officers is inconsistent with their law enforcement role.
Also troubling is the lack of prosecutions outside of the Bronx for this criminal behavior, even though the NYPD has admitted that the NYPD ticket "fixing" crimes were widespread in all five boroughs. If the District Attorneys in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island are willing to ignore criminal behavior by the NYPD in the face of well-publicized prosecutions in the Bronx, those District Attorneys send a message that officers should feel comfortable behaving as if they are part of an organized crime operation. That criminal mentality create the stop-and-frisk abuses discussed above and puts New York City residents at risk.
The Mayor, the Police Commissioner, and all five District Attorneys must make it clear to the NYPD and its officers that they should not endorse criminal behavior.
A Brooklyn woman announced last week that she was suing NYC because of NYPD conduct. She claims to have been held captive for five days by the NYPD in Brooklyn after being shot in the leg by a stray bullet.
Based on her claims, the NYPD held her as a ploy to get her to lie and state that a friend of hers had shot her. Because she refused to lie, she was punished by being held captive.
Only after five days of abuse was she released. Her friend had passed a lie detector test and subjected himself to gun residue tests. In a sense, he was guilty until proven innocent, and his friend's refusal to implicate him in a crime cost her five days of her life.
The behavior of the NYPD should not imitate criminality. False arrests, ticket fixing, and false imprisonment are evidence that the NYPD must change.
The record levels of stop-and-frisks must end, and the NYPD must get out of the crime business and back into the crime prevention business.
False Arrest
On October 17, the FBI arrested Michael Daragjati, an eight-year NYPD veteran, for false arrest of a Black New Yorker. The officer did not realize his conversations were being taped and used a racial slur in describing his own conduct. ". . . fried another nigger," he said, which suggests he makes a habit of false arrests of Black residents of our city.
The victim of the arrest was in jail for 36 hours after a stop-and-frisk. Because the stop-and-frisk did not result in the recover of a weapon or drugs, the officer arrested the Black resident for "resisting arrest." The practice of arresting Black New Yorkers for resisting arrest should stop. An arrest must be justified by some other conduct before the charge of resisting (real or imagined) should be considered.
Officer Daragjati admitted on the taped conversations that he often beat our fellow citizens without justification and that he would be terminated if his conduct were exposed.
Amazingly, this officer had been successfully sued twice previously for falsely arresting Black residents, but he has been sent back out into our city to abuse more of our Black population. Our tax dollars have been used to pay some of his previous victims, yet he has received the support of the NYPD to add to his list of victims.
The mistreatment of the Black people in our city should be viewed by the NYPD and by our Mayor as a problem rather than a goal.
Ticket Fixing Scandal
Last week, 16 NYPD officers were arraigned in the Bronx for illegally "fixing" tickets for their friends and families, and another 300+ officers will be disciplined for their participation in the scandal.
In a disappointing twist, hundreds of NYPD personnel came to the Bronx courthouse at the time of the arraignment to protest the action being taken against the NYPD officers who illegally "fixed" the tickets. The protesting officers argued that the NYPD should be able to "fix" tickets as a matter of professional courtesy.
The scandal involving more than 300 officers is troubling, but the concept of an even larger number of officers protesting the indictment of those who got caught is far more troubling. The endorsement of criminality by the NYPD's officers is inconsistent with their law enforcement role.
Also troubling is the lack of prosecutions outside of the Bronx for this criminal behavior, even though the NYPD has admitted that the NYPD ticket "fixing" crimes were widespread in all five boroughs. If the District Attorneys in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island are willing to ignore criminal behavior by the NYPD in the face of well-publicized prosecutions in the Bronx, those District Attorneys send a message that officers should feel comfortable behaving as if they are part of an organized crime operation. That criminal mentality create the stop-and-frisk abuses discussed above and puts New York City residents at risk.
The Mayor, the Police Commissioner, and all five District Attorneys must make it clear to the NYPD and its officers that they should not endorse criminal behavior.
Held Captive
A Brooklyn woman announced last week that she was suing NYC because of NYPD conduct. She claims to have been held captive for five days by the NYPD in Brooklyn after being shot in the leg by a stray bullet.
Based on her claims, the NYPD held her as a ploy to get her to lie and state that a friend of hers had shot her. Because she refused to lie, she was punished by being held captive.
Only after five days of abuse was she released. Her friend had passed a lie detector test and subjected himself to gun residue tests. In a sense, he was guilty until proven innocent, and his friend's refusal to implicate him in a crime cost her five days of her life.
The behavior of the NYPD should not imitate criminality. False arrests, ticket fixing, and false imprisonment are evidence that the NYPD must change.
The record levels of stop-and-frisks must end, and the NYPD must get out of the crime business and back into the crime prevention business.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Occupation Continues in Manhattan
Occupy Wall Street and its progeny around the world have the potential to improve our country and our planet, but these movements also have an element of class warfare and demagoguery that could do great harm.
Occupy Wall Street
For a month, protesters have been assembled in Lower Manhattan and called themselves "Occupy Wall Street" - OWS. The OWS movement started out looking too weak to last this long. It turns one month old today and shows no signs of slowing down. OWS participants are protesting against economic inequality and corporate greed. They have adopted the phrase "We are the 99%" as one of their key slogans; it alludes to their view that the top 1% wealthiest Americans are controlling the politics and economics of our country, failing to pay their fair share of taxes, and abusing the other 99% of us. The movement has shown staying power and seems to be strengthening.
The Occupy Wall Street movement has close to $300,000, as well as storage space loaded with donated supplies in lower Manhattan. It stared down city officials to hang on to its makeshift headquarters, showed its muscle Saturday with a big Times Square demonstration and found legions of activists demonstrating in solidarity across the country and around the world.
The legions have been demonstrating in 70 major cities around the world, and the number seems to grow every day. It all started in Lower Manhattan.
While the movement has compared itself to the Arab Spring, the movement lacks the revolutionary momentum of the Arab Spring. While the Arab Spring set its sights on ending generations of dictatorships, OWS has a generic and contradictory message that has not yet jelled into a massage that calls for anything specific to change in our society. Arab Spring sought to topple governments, replace leaders, and usher in democracy. OWS needs to find a voice that speaks to what it wants to achieve and move beyond the simplicity of opposing greed.
Why Occupy?
The OWS movement has been criticized for, among other things, 1) lacking specific demands, and 2) reflecting many obvious contradictions.
These criticisms are legitimate. While some have dismissed the need for a coherent set of goals for the OWS movement, no movement can improve our country or our world unless it is demanding that improvements be made. Simply opposing inequality and greed is insufficient. The movement must have steps it is demanding be taken to reduce inequality.
Also, the vagueness of the anti-inequality stance of OWS leaves it vulnerable to appearing to be anti-capitalism, anti-wealth creation, and anti-economic-success. OWS seems contradictory when its participants and leaders use Twitter, Facebook, and Apple products to organize their activities and promote their agenda, because these companies thrive today because they previously received the support of "greedy" venture capitalists who provided them the cash necessary to have the dramatic effects they've had on our planet. These companies have changed lives and spurred economic opportunities with the help of the wealthiest in our society who supported these companies in an effort to become even wealthier.
The country believes that wealth inequality is too great in our country, even though the country underestimates the level of inequality. If people understood the level of inequality, the focus on finding solutions to it would likely increase. Perhaps that is the genius of OWS, it will simply educate people that the inequality they already dislike is far more pronounced than they believed. One might argue that contagious diseases get more focus from policy makers because voters fear being infected, while genetic diseases, even if more deadly and more common, do not capture the same level of focus. If OWS can make wealth inequality, which has thus far been treated as a genetic disease, the recipient of the focus we give to contagious diseases, OWS will have made a very big difference in our society. Swine Flu was defeated by our country within one year. Imagine if the Swine Flu was the cause of wealth inequality.
RLJ Rule
Robert L. Johnson, the founder of BET, has proposed a step the American companies can take to reduce wealth inequality in our society between white and Black households.
We have focused in the past on the racial wealth gap - the median white household has twenty times the wealth of the median Black household. 20 to 1. That is a shocking statistic, and it represents a major barrier to improvements in the quality of life of Black Americans.
Robert L. Johnson's approach is called the "RLJ Rule."
(a) encourages companies to voluntarily implement a plan to interview a minimum of two qualified African American candidates for every job opening at the vice president level and above; and (b) encourages companies to interview at least two qualified African American firms for vendor supplier/services contracts before awarding a new company contract to a vendor.
Johnson makes clear the purpose of this voluntary rule is not to suggest quotas or that companies hire any individual or minority firm that is not qualified. Johnson notes that the RLJ Rule, if implemented properly, will further enhance a company's already established commitment to diversity and inclusion.
OWS needs to find its "RLJ Rule" proposal. What should our country do differently to improve opportunities and reduce inequality.
As the world watches Lower Manhattan, I hope that OWS will be more than an attack on wealth and economic achievement. It must be a force for improving lives and expanding economic opportunity.
Monday, October 10, 2011
FDNY Racism Confirmed By Federal Judge Part II
Last week, Mayor Bloomberg's dedication to racial discrimination was highlighted by a Federal Judge. This is only days after the same Judge focused on the intensity of the racial discrimination within our city's fire department.
In last week's blog, we wrote that the Judge in the FDNY racial discrimination case stated:
The Mayor's behavior remains difficult to understand or accept. After many years of fighting such decisions, Mayor Bloomberg vowed to fight on in his efforts to retain his right to an all-white fire department in the nation's largest city. If he has evidence that our city's residents believe that only white fire fighters can protect our city, he should both provide that evidence and work to help our city's residents learn to evaluate talent and competence without a bias against non-white professionals. If he has evidence that having Black firefighters in our city will result in less safety, he should provide that evidence. Thus far, he has doggedly and unceasingly fought to avoid bringing racial integration to the FDNY without offering any evidence that an all-white fire department is a superior approach than the adoption of racial integration. If he is motivated simply by a psychological need to avoid racial integration, he needs to understand that there are Federal laws that will ultimately prevent him from implementing his racist approach indefinitely. Eventually, he will be forced to follow the law and allow non-white fire fighters at the FDNY.
There is anecdotal evidence that his obsession with racial discrimination is also very observant. When he learned that Black Community leaders were helping Black candidates apply for entry into the FDNY, Mayor Bloomberg changed the application procedure in order to undermine that assistance. He even made paper applications difficult to obtain.
Last week, the Federal Judge issued a ruling that specifically focused on the Bloomberg Administration's pro-racism approach to the FDNY. In deciding that a court-appointed monitor of hiring practices at the FDNY was necessary, the Judge stated:
Though the city's use of discriminatory hiring practices has persisted through numerous changes in city leadership, the evidence adduced in this case gives the court little hope that Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg or any of his senior leadership has any intention of stepping up to the task of ending discrimination in the FDNY.
The Judge called the FDNY a "stubborn bastion of white male privilege" and addressed Bloomberg's obsession with preventing racial integration at the FDNY.
Bloomberg's commitment to racial discrimination reminds us of our reaction to Bloomberg's announcement of a $30 million donation to a $127 million effort to improve the lives of young men of color in New York City. Bloomberg's $30 million was matched by billionaire George Soros.
Previous Judicial Findings
In last week's blog, we wrote that the Judge in the FDNY racial discrimination case stated:
The under-representation of black firefighters in the FDNY — a direct result and vestige of the city’s pattern and practice of discrimination against black firefighter candidates — is responsible for making blacks significantly less likely to apply to become New York City firefighters. The city’s culture of bureaucratic blame-shifting and accountability avoidance [exposes the fact that] the city does not want to be held accountable for the results of its recruitment efforts. This is unacceptable.The Judge found that our city government kept the Black population of the FDNY at 3% or below through a practice of discrimination against Black applicants and would-be applicants.
The Mayor's behavior remains difficult to understand or accept. After many years of fighting such decisions, Mayor Bloomberg vowed to fight on in his efforts to retain his right to an all-white fire department in the nation's largest city. If he has evidence that our city's residents believe that only white fire fighters can protect our city, he should both provide that evidence and work to help our city's residents learn to evaluate talent and competence without a bias against non-white professionals. If he has evidence that having Black firefighters in our city will result in less safety, he should provide that evidence. Thus far, he has doggedly and unceasingly fought to avoid bringing racial integration to the FDNY without offering any evidence that an all-white fire department is a superior approach than the adoption of racial integration. If he is motivated simply by a psychological need to avoid racial integration, he needs to understand that there are Federal laws that will ultimately prevent him from implementing his racist approach indefinitely. Eventually, he will be forced to follow the law and allow non-white fire fighters at the FDNY.
There is anecdotal evidence that his obsession with racial discrimination is also very observant. When he learned that Black Community leaders were helping Black candidates apply for entry into the FDNY, Mayor Bloomberg changed the application procedure in order to undermine that assistance. He even made paper applications difficult to obtain.
What Next?
Last week, the Federal Judge issued a ruling that specifically focused on the Bloomberg Administration's pro-racism approach to the FDNY. In deciding that a court-appointed monitor of hiring practices at the FDNY was necessary, the Judge stated:
Though the city's use of discriminatory hiring practices has persisted through numerous changes in city leadership, the evidence adduced in this case gives the court little hope that Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg or any of his senior leadership has any intention of stepping up to the task of ending discrimination in the FDNY.
The Judge called the FDNY a "stubborn bastion of white male privilege" and addressed Bloomberg's obsession with preventing racial integration at the FDNY.
Instead of facing hard facts and asking hard questions about the city's abysmal track record of hiring black and Hispanic firefighters, the Bloomberg administration dug in and fought back [against efforts to end discrimination]. Today - four years of litigation and two adverse liability rulings later - the city still doesn't get it.Bloomberg, predictably, vowed to fight indefinitely for the right to avoid adding Black fire fighters to the FDNY. His lead attorney stated that Bloomberg will appeal the rulings "as soon as the law allows."
Bloomberg's commitment to racial discrimination reminds us of our reaction to Bloomberg's announcement of a $30 million donation to a $127 million effort to improve the lives of young men of color in New York City. Bloomberg's $30 million was matched by billionaire George Soros.
For now, the most powerful action Mayor Bloomberg can take to improve the lives of men of color in our city is an action that he can take without the help of George Soros or any of his fellow billionaires. He should resign.
Monday, October 3, 2011
FDNY Racism Confirmed By Federal Judge
A Federal Judge has confirmed that the Fire Department of New York lacks people of color because of a practice of excluding people of color from its ranks.
Background
As we stated a year ago:
Despite extensive and persistent efforts, the FDNY remains a racially discriminatory institution. Our city's fire department is more than 90% white, but Mayor Bloomberg has fought the addition of people of color to our fire department. After a decade of very credible complaints about the racially discriminatory hiring practices at the FDNY, Mayor Bloomberg remained committed to the racially discriminatory approach he led from City Hall. Finally, the Bush Administration's US Justice Department sued New York City in order to combat the racial discrimination that Mayor Bloomberg stubbornly promoted. The Bush Administration won the law suit, but the Bloomberg Administration refused to end its discrimination.
The courts have attempted to guide the Bloomberg administration away from racial discrimination, but they have failed. A federal judge gave Mayor Bloomberg five options for hiring a class of FDNY rookies this year and ending the pattern of racial discrimination. Mayor Bloomberg rejected all five options and decided to hire no FDNY rookies this year.
We are not surprised, but we are saddened to see Mayor Bloomberg put our lives in jeopardy in order to keep the FDNY more than 90% white. We need the additional firefighters, and we need an end to the racial discrimination at the FDNY.
When residents of New York City are facing the terror of a fire, they never demand that only white fire fighters participate in the life saving work that is needed from the FDNY. In fact, our city's residents have not demonstrated Mayor Bloomberg's commitment to racial discrimination. Perhaps the people of our city will raise their voices and demand that our city bring on board the additional fire fighters that our city had planned to hire - and demand that the new hires not be selected in a manner designed to prevent persons of color from joining the FDNY.
Latest Development
Last week, Brooklyn Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis issued an 81 page opinion stating that Black firefighters had proven their claims that minorities trying to become firefighters suffer disadvantages. The Judge's decision on remedies remains to be declared, but observers expect the Judge to require substantial oversight from outside of the NYC government. Garaufis said, "The court cannot adequately ensure the city’s compliance with applicable equal employment opportunity laws and policies...in the absence of court supervision."
Background
As we stated a year ago:
Despite extensive and persistent efforts, the FDNY remains a racially discriminatory institution. Our city's fire department is more than 90% white, but Mayor Bloomberg has fought the addition of people of color to our fire department. After a decade of very credible complaints about the racially discriminatory hiring practices at the FDNY, Mayor Bloomberg remained committed to the racially discriminatory approach he led from City Hall. Finally, the Bush Administration's US Justice Department sued New York City in order to combat the racial discrimination that Mayor Bloomberg stubbornly promoted. The Bush Administration won the law suit, but the Bloomberg Administration refused to end its discrimination.
The courts have attempted to guide the Bloomberg administration away from racial discrimination, but they have failed. A federal judge gave Mayor Bloomberg five options for hiring a class of FDNY rookies this year and ending the pattern of racial discrimination. Mayor Bloomberg rejected all five options and decided to hire no FDNY rookies this year.
We are not surprised, but we are saddened to see Mayor Bloomberg put our lives in jeopardy in order to keep the FDNY more than 90% white. We need the additional firefighters, and we need an end to the racial discrimination at the FDNY.
When residents of New York City are facing the terror of a fire, they never demand that only white fire fighters participate in the life saving work that is needed from the FDNY. In fact, our city's residents have not demonstrated Mayor Bloomberg's commitment to racial discrimination. Perhaps the people of our city will raise their voices and demand that our city bring on board the additional fire fighters that our city had planned to hire - and demand that the new hires not be selected in a manner designed to prevent persons of color from joining the FDNY.
Latest Development
Last week, Brooklyn Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis issued an 81 page opinion stating that Black firefighters had proven their claims that minorities trying to become firefighters suffer disadvantages. The Judge's decision on remedies remains to be declared, but observers expect the Judge to require substantial oversight from outside of the NYC government. Garaufis said, "The court cannot adequately ensure the city’s compliance with applicable equal employment opportunity laws and policies...in the absence of court supervision."
In a stinging indictment of NYC's approach to hiring at the FDNY, the Judge wrote:The efforts to keep the FDNY all white are indeed unacceptable and were a key priority of the current NYC Mayor during all ten years of his continuing reign.
The under-representation of black firefighters in the FDNY — a direct result and vestige of the city’s pattern and practice of discrimination against black firefighter candidates — is responsible for making blacks significantly less likely to apply to become New York City firefighters. The city’s culture of bureaucratic blame-shifting and accountability avoidance [exposes the fact that] the city does not want to be held accountable for the results of its recruitment efforts. This is unacceptable.
Monday, July 18, 2011
NY Health Under Attack in Budget Negotiations
Last week, we saw the debate over the federal budget reach a fever pitch. The Republican Party demanded budget cuts, including cuts in areas that help keep our communities healthy.
Health Funding Under Attack While Health Declines
Lost in last week’s debate in Washington about increasing the debt ceiling was the impact of potentially massive public sector cuts on average Americans, especially lower income households and middle-class families. One area that can ill-afford more spending cuts is the public health sector.
In a recent ground-breaking report, F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America’s Future 2011, from Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation announced that adult obesity rates increased in 16 states over the last year and did not decrease in any states. Furthermore, twenty years ago, no state had an obesity rate above 15 percent; today, 38 states have obesity rates over 25 percent and just one has a rate lower than 20 percent. Overall, two-thirds of all Americans are obese or overweight.
While NY State ranks 9th out of 50 states with a 24.7% obesity rate, the situation is more alarming among NYS’ African-American and Latino communities where 31% of African-Americans are obese (vs. 27% of Latinos and 24% of Whites) including 37% of African-American women and 24% of African-American men are obese.
The Report also describes the strong relationship between income, education, obesity, diabetes and hypertension which is often a predictor of heart disease. As one might expect, lower income and less educated households have higher obesity rates which result in higher rates of diabetes and hypertension. In Upper Manhattan, we face some of the worst levels of education, some of the highest levels of hypertension and diabetes, and high obesity rates to go along with our problem of "food deserts."
The health threat posed by the rising rates of obesity and other noncommunicable diseases has become so severe that the United Nations General Assembly is convening its first-ever High-level Meeting on noncommunicable disease prevention and control in NYC on September 19-20. The four main noncommunicable diseases - cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic lung diseases and diabetes - kill three in five people worldwide.
The good news is that while funding for education, afterschool programs and non-profits remains under assault, several private and public sector organizations are filling the void by providing a wide-range of free fitness programs for New Yorkers including those listed below.
LUNA Free Yoga Series
YogaLocal and LUNA are providing 500 free guest passes for yoga classes at 24 yoga studios throughout NYC including Yoga for Bliss in Riverdale, MindBodyHealth in Washington Heights and Harlem Yoga. The passes are available on a first-come first-served basis at www.lunafreeyogaseries.com
BeFitNYC
Created by the NYC Parks Dept, BeFitNYC BeFitNYC is a search engine for free and low-cost fitness activities in New York City and it lists programs, classes, facilities, and leagues in the Parks Department's properties as well as those of a number of partner groups. Visit www.befitnyc.com
City Parks Foundation
The City Parks Foundation provides free Golf, Tennis and Track & Field lessons for NYC youth under age 18 in each borough. These FREE sports programs help promote physical fitness and build self-esteem in a fun, relaxed environment. Visit http://www.cityparksfoundation.org/sports/sports.html
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