Pols hold virtual criminal justice town hall
BY JASON COHEN
With the recent killings
of George Floyd and Breonna
Taylor at the hands of the police
and countless others in
the past, elected offi cials and
citizens want cops held accountable.
On Thursday, Assemblyman
Michael Blake and Assemblywomen
Catalina Cruz
and Nathalia Fernandez held a
virtual criminal justice town
hall, where they refl ected on
the past 10 days of riots, violence
and the Floyd murder.
“We have a responsibility
right now to change this
world,” Blake said emotionally.
“Stop looting, burning
and busting up our stores. You
go back 99 years in Tulsa, they
didn’t just kill black people,
they burned our businesses.”
The pols stressed the need
to repeal 50-A, which is scheduled
to be voted on next week.
On June 1, 85organizations
and elected offi cials sent
a letter to Governor Andrew
Cuomo asking him to pass
Senator Jamaal Bailey and Assemblyman
Dan O’Donnell’s
bill to fully repeal 50-A, which
would allow the public to see
the personnel records of police
offi cers, fi refi ghters and
corrections offi cers.
“The blatant police violence
experienced by New
Yorkers is unacceptable. The
continued police secrecy in
New York enables that police
violence and allows abusive
offi cers to continue to act with
impunity,” the letter stated.
“We should be able to look up
the misconduct and disciplinary
records of every offi cer
who mass-pepper sprayed,
assaulted, blatantly covered
their badge numbers and engaged
in other abuse of authority
and violence against
New Yorkers.
Instead, we are left in the
dark and abusive police offi -
cers are given special rights
and shielded because of 50-A.
The time to pass a full repeal
of 50-A is now.”
Assemblyman Blake was
quite emotional when speaking.
While Blake did not condone
the rioting and looting
and said he wanted people to
be peaceful, he felt acts of injustice
towards people of color
by law enforcement needed to
end.
“They’re sick and tired of
black people being killed,” he
said.
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The assemblyman said the
last 10 days were some of the
worst he had ever witnessed.
That is why he, Cruz and Fernandez
and many of their colleagues
want 50-A repealed.
“If you are going to hire
someone you should probably
know if they made mistakes
in terms of that career,” Blake
said. “The mayor had the audacity
to say cops showed
discretion even though they
drove cars into the crowd.”
Blake spoke about his fi rsthand
experience with racism.
He recalled that in high school
a police offi cer drove in the opposite
direction on Moshulu
Parkway and made him and
his friend get out of the car because
he heard them yelling.
In 2016 he was thrown
against a gate by a cop and
was only let go because another
offi cer recognized him.
“I want you to respect me
and my brothers,” he said.
Fernandez echoed his concerns.
In 2018 she introduced legislation
that would make an
offi cer criminally negligent
if someone died while in their
custody, but it was deemed
too harsh. Now, in the wake
of George Floyd, she has reintroduced
it and hopes it gains
more traction.
“It’s about accountability,”
Fernandez said. “Our offi cers
will act different. They’ll try
to save our lives and not end
our lives.”
Activist Marvin Mayfi
eld, who was a key advocate
in ending cash bail, was
the guest speaker. Mayfi eld
thanked the elected for inviting
him and said the city and
country are in unprecedented
times.
He called on Cuomo and
Mayor Bill de Blasio to come
together and bring peace to
New York.
However, he stressed the
issues of people of color being
targeted are nothing new, and
that the issues are more visible
now because of technology.
Mayfi eld added the police
should be defunded, not militarized.
“The times we’re in right
now are really disturbing,”
he said. “Nothing has ever
changed without the voices of
the oppressed rising up and we
will not accept the lynching of
modern day black people. We
will not submit to white supremacy.
We need legislators
who don’t cave into fear mongering
and racist agenda.”
Assemblyman Michael Blake and
Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez
held criminal justice town hall
with Queens Assemblywoman Catalina
Cruz. Photo by Silvio Pacifi co
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