As New York City enters Phase 2, Flushing businesses are reopening and revitalizing. A local eatery,
Joe’s Steam Rice Roll is one of the first hawker stands to reopen.
Photo courtesy of The Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce
TIMESLEDGER |2 QNS.COM | JUNE 26-JULY 2, 2020
Councilmen Carlos Menchaca and Eric Ulrich introduced resolutions
on June 18 that call on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to remove
Mayor Bill de Blasio from office. Offi ce of Mayor Bill de Blasio
BY ROSE ADAMS
Local lawmakers introduced
two resolutions into the
City Council on Thursday calling
on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to
remove Mayor Bill de Blasio
from office.
One resolution, introduced
by the progressive Sunset
Park councilman Carlos
Menchaca, argues that the
mayor’s unwillingness to cut
the NYPD’s budget prevents
meaningful police reform.
“New Yorkers have realized
that the mayor represents
the single greatest obstacle
to peace and justice in New
York City, and to passing a
fair and just people’s budget,”
Menchaca wrote in a Medium
post on June 18. “I am calling
on this body to express a loss
of confidence in the mayor
and for the governor to remove
him from office.”
The other resolution, introduced
by Queens councilman
Eric Ulrich, a Republican, argues
that the mayor has failed
“to maintain public order and
safety during this period of
persistent social unrest.”
Should Cuomo heed the
calls, Public Advocate Jumaane
Williams would become
the interim mayor for
the remainder of de Blasio’s
term.
The resolutions come as
critics have lambasted de Blasio
for his tepid response to
the George Floyd protests and
his hesitancy to condemn incidents
of police brutality at
the marches — even when reporters
raised questions about
first-hand accounts.
“I believe that you believe
what you’re saying,” de Blasio
told Gothamist reporter
Jake Offenhartz after Offenhartz
asked him about police
violence at a June 4 protest in
the Bronx. “We had observers
from City Hall who saw a very
different reality.”
De Blasio’s defense of the
police’s tactics infuriated
many longtime supporters and
staffers, who initially backed
him because of his campaign
platform advocating for police
reform.
“I felt grateful to work for
an administration that shared
my values,” said former de
Blasio staffer Catherine Almonte
at a June 8 protest led
by de Blasio’s current and former
aides. “I believed that you
de Blasio were going to make
meaningful change from the
inside … that’s what’s made
this week so painful.”
Following pressure for the
city to cut the NYPD’s budget,
de Blasio has vowed to make
some cuts — but resists slashing
the budget by $1 billion as
reformers have proposed.
“I do not believe it is a good
idea to reduce the budget of
the agency that is here to keep
us safe,” he said during a briefing
on June 5. “The bigger
problem is we may not have a
choice. We may be defunding
all city agencies if things don’t
go right.”
De Blasio has since rolled
out a series of police reforms
that would establish a database
of cases involving police
abuses and speed up the disciplinary
procedure against
cops, among other changes —
but Menchaca does not believe
they go far enough.
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
It’s officially summer and
as New York City enters Phase
2 of its reopening on Monday,
downtown Flushing is celebrating
by inviting the public to
view a virtual film screening
and forum on a successful local
eatery called Joe’s Steam Rice
Roll on Friday, June 26.
The film is produced by
Daniel Nalladurai and Helena
Kincaird-Nalladurai of Sixty
First Productions, a Queensbased
media company. The
screening will take place via
YouTube Live from 5 to 7 p.m.
The event, which is free and
open to the public, is organized
by the Greater Flushing Chamber
of Commerce, Sixty First
Productions, and Queens food
writer Joe DiStefano, in partnership
with the Museum of
Food & Drink (MOFAD) and the
Museum of Chinese in America
(MOCA).
The film is part of “First
Stop on the 7,” a documentary
series that explores what it
means to be an immigrant entrepreneur
in New York City
today. The film highlights the
personal stories of business
owners and the hurdles they’ve
overcome to find success. This
episode features Joe Rong,
owner of Joe’s Steam Rice Roll,
a humble food stall, in Flushing,
selling authentic Cantonese
rice rolls that has received
critical acclaim from The New
York Times and has branched
out to the East Village and
Manhattan’s Chinatown since
opening in 2017.
“Joe’s Steam Rice Roll is one
of my favorite places to eat in
downtown Flushing, but more
important to me than his delicious
cheong fun is Joe Rong’s
indomitable spirit,” DiStefano
said. “That spirit fueled the
vision for a business squarely
focused on this classic Cantonese
comfort food, and I believe
motivated him to be one of the
first hawker stands to reopen
in Flushing’s Chinatown.”
The virtual screening is
part of the #FlushingRising
campaign to encourage New
Yorkers to return and support
the business community, according
to John Choe, executive
director of the Greater Flushing
Chamber of Commerce.
“We are here to say Flushing
is very much alive and here
to stay,” Choe said. “Daniel and
Helena’s film series, First Stop
on the 7, is an ode to the amazing
entrepreneurs who have
struggled to overcome the odds
and transformed what it means
to be an American. If you can
make it in Flushing, you can
make it anywhere!”
Taehoon Kim, president of
the chamber, said they’re excited
to kick off the reopening of
the business community with
the global premiere of Joe’s
Steam Rice Roll, which he says
is “one of the amazing eateries
that makes Flushing a foodie
destination.”
“Our business community
was devastated by the pandemic
and we welcome all New
Yorkers to come back and help
Flushing get back on our feet,”
Kim said.
The screening will be followed
by a panel discussion
moderated by Cathy Erway, author
of the cookbook “The Food
of Taiwan” and the memoir
“The Art of Eating In.”
Panelists will include filmmakers
Daniel Nalladurai and
Helena Kincaid-Nalladurai;
John Choe; Joe DiStefano; Peter
J. Kim, executive director
of MOFAD; Eric Sze, Chef of
Taiwanese restaurant 886; and
Andrew Rebatta, associate curator
of MOCA.
Reach reporter Carlotta Mohamed
by e-mail at cmohamed@
schnepsmedia.com or by phone
at (718) 260–4526.
Lawmakers introduce
resolutions calling for
de Blasio’s removal
Downtown Flushing kicks off
reopening of local business
with fi lm screening, forum
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