Airport Voice
APRIL 2021 NEWS AND VIEWS FROM NEW YORK'S AIRPORT COMMUNITY
END HATE!
Communities Unite
Fight for Fairness
BY JEFF YAPALATER AND ALEXANDRA
YAPALATER
The recent acts of violence, discrimination
and hate towards Asian Americans
and Pacific Islanders, coupled
with the continued brutality against
Blacks and incidents of mass shootings,
have rocked the nation. The questions
of why these actions continue are
raised every day and we wonder why
we can’t seem to find ways to stop this
violent behavior in a civilized society.
These crimes violate the diversity
and inclusion progress we have slowly
made over the decades, and now find
ourselves many steps behind our advances.
But the good news is that we
as local stakeholders are responding to
these injustices with local community
meetings and support of local organizations,
elected officials and the Port Authority
of NY&NJ.
Responses to stop
the hate
On a local level, the Port Authority
and the Queens District Attorney’s Office
(QDA) has responded quickly. The
Port has held meetings in which these
hate crimes are discussed, and initiatives
put in place for a zero tolerance
policy against the AAPI and Black discriminations.
The QDA held a community forum
to share the actions they have instituted
and listed numerous resources to assist
any people who have been victimized.
The forum allowed elected officials and
community leaders to share thoughts on
the matter along with a list of contacts,
phones and emails that will help mitigate
and report any crimes to the task force.
In addition, New York State has
mandated a list of reforms from statewide
law enforcement on how to better
the local command in terms of community
patrolling and response.
The Port Authority has taken a
strong position on hate crimes of any
type.
At the recent Port Authority Board
of Commissioners meeting Executive
Director Rick Cotton verbalized
Port’s strong stand. These comments
were further amplified by Chairman
O’Toole and Chief of the D&I Office, Michael
See more pages 4-5
Massiah.
WOMEN OF
ACHIEVEMENT
2021 EMPOWERING OTHERS
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