By Nelson A. King
While expressing shock and sadness,
Haitian American legislators
in New York on Wednesday strongly
denounced the assassination of President
Jovenel Moïse, who was killed in
an attack on his private residence on
the suburbs of Port-au-Prince, the
Haitian capital.
Interim Prime Minister Claude
Joseph said in a statement on Wednesday
that Moïse’s wife, Martine Moïse,
was also shot in the attack that
involved a group of assailants.
“I am saddened about the horrific
events that occurred in Haiti, which
follow an unstable period for the country,
which failed to hold free and fair
elections,” Haitian-American New
York State Assemblymember, Rodneyse
Bichotte Hermelyn, who chairs
the Brooklyn Democratic Party, told
Caribbean Life.
“I pray for the Moïse family as
they mourn their loss,” added Bichotte
Hermelyn, the daughter of Haitian
immigrants, who represents the 42nd
Assembly District in Brooklyn. “I also
pray for the security and peace of
Haiti.
“Haiti has always been resilient,”
continued Bichotte Hermelyn. “We
fought and gained our independence
in 1804, and our people continue to
break barriers and reach new heights
across the globe. My hope is that Haiti
will overcome this turbulent time,
hold a democratic election and recover
as a country.”
New York City Councilman Dr.
Mathieu Eugene, the first Haitian to
be elected to the City Council, also
noted that “Haiti has been through
many crises for many years — from
government to government.
“This situation is going to engender
another crisis, and nobody can know
what’s going to happen right now,
because Haitian is a very divided country,”
warned Eugene, who represents
the largely Caribbean 40th Council
District in Brooklyn and recent candidate
for Brooklyn Borough President,
in a Caribbean Life interview.
“It’s uncertain to know what will
happen next,” he added. “But, in cases
like that, if we go back to history, the
people are going to suffer, and that will
have an impact on the quality of life of
the people who have already been suffering
in many ways.
“I hope the Haitian people can get
together to resolve the crisis caused by
this situation,” Eugene continued.
Caribbean Life, JULY 9-15, 2021 3
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, joined by elected offi cials and advocates, makes an announcement and signs executive
orders making gun violence a public health emergency in New York State at John Jay College of Criminal
Justice in New York City. Kevin P. Coughlin / Offi ce of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
Gov. Cuomo signs Myrie’s gun
industry liability bill into law
By Nelson A. King
Sen. Zellnor Y. Myrie (D-Brooklyn)
on Tuesday joined Gov. Andrew Cuomo,
Assembly Member Patricia Fahy (D-Albany),
gun violence survivors, families
of victims and advocates for the signing
of a new law that would allow civil suits
to proceed against gun manufacturers
and dealers who irresponsibly fuel the
criminal firearm market.
A federal law makes it virtually impossible
to hold bad actors in the gun industry
accountable, but allows states to pass
laws enabling such suits to proceed.
“Our federal laws have granted
extraordinary protections to the gun
industry, while leaving New Yorkers,
especially Black and Brown communities,
vulnerable to its deadly products,”
said Myrie, representative for the 20th
Senate District in Central Brooklyn.
“Today, we’re working to level the
playing field and give our people a
chance to hold this industry responsible
for its reckless business practices,”
added Myrie, whose grandmother hailed
from Jamaica. “I thank Gov. Cuomo,
Assemblymember Patricia Fahy and
advocates from across the state and
nation for helping make New York a
national leader in gun industry liability
and public safety.”
“We thank Sen. Myrie and our other
lawmakers for ensuring that firearm
manufacturers and sellers bear their
share of responsibility to help reduce
the misuse of guns through senseless
violent acts,” said US Virgin Islands-born
Pastor Gil Monrose, president, 67th Precinct
Clergy Council in Brooklyn, popularly
known as The GodSquad.
“We are very pleased today to witness
firsthand Governor Cuomo signing the
gun industry accountability bill into
law,” he added. “We believe that this is
an important step in the right direction
because public safety is a shared responsibility,
and stronger legislation can definitely
help ensure that more of us play a
role in making our communities safer.”
“This is a historic day for New York.
With this bill signing, New York has
become the first state in the nation to
tackle the negative ramifications of the
federal Protection of Lawful Commerce
in Arms Act to ensure that New Yorkers
who have been affected by irresponsible
gun industry conduct can hold
the industry accountable,” said Brady
President Kris Brown. “The bills signed
by Gov. Cuomo today will make the
state safer and Brady is grateful for Gov.
Cuomo’s attention to and leadership on
keeping New Yorkers safe from gun violence
and to Sen. Myrie for ensuring that
these historic and common-sense bills
become law.”
Camara Jackson, founder and executive
director of Elite Learners, Inc., said
Black and Brown communities are facing
“a public health crisis caused by
the reckless disregard displayed by gun
manufacturers.
“Gun manufacturers must be held
accountable for the dangers their
products present,” Jackson said. “Gov.
Cuomo, we appreciate your support of
this bill. We truly believe this will be a
major step towards combating gun violence
in our communities.”
David Pucino, Senior Staff Attorney
for Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun
Violence, said: “This bill will provide
New Yorkers with an avenue to seek
justice, reopening the courtroom doors
for victims who have suffered as a direct
result of the gun industry’s irresponsible
practices and reintroducing accountability
to an industry that has acted with
impunity for too long.
“Giffords thanks Sen. Myrie and
Assemblymember Fahy for their leadership
on this issue and applauds New
York for the passage of this first-of-itskind
legislation,” he said.
Rebecca Fischer, executive director
of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence,
said gun violence is “devastating communities
across New York State — from
Brooklyn to Albany and up through Buffalo
— and yet irresponsible gun dealers
are rarely held accountable for these
tragedies.
“Federal law has been shielding the
gun industry from liability and enabling
gun companies to profit off the death of
Black and Brown New Yorkers,” she said.
“Today, we are proud to stand with Sen.
Myrie as the governor signs this lifesaving
legislation into law to finally give
survivors and victims of gun violence a
much-needed avenue for justice.
“We applaud the New York State legislature
and the governor for their leadership
as New York leads the nation once
again in the fight to end gun violence
and save lives,” Fischer continued.
Myrie said that “for far too long, gun
companies in Florida, Georgia or Virginia
have acted irresponsibly, and people
in places like Brownsville, Arbor Hill
and Buffalo’s East Side have faced the
consequences.
Haitian pols
saddened
over Haiti’s
PM killing