Editorial
Op-ed
Closer to justice
New York City, and much of
America, held its breath much of
Tuesday awaiting the verdict in
the trial of Derek Chauvin, the disgraced
former Minneapolis police offi cer accused
of murdering George Floyd last May.
Finally, the verdict came just after 5 p.m.
on April 20: Guilty on all counts. Chauvin
looked oddly stunned after hearing his
judgment, and feeling the cold steel handcuffs
lock around his wrists before being
led away to his jail cell.
A measure of justice had been served.
In the immediate aftermath, the country
exhaled a massive sigh of relief. Many broke
down in tears. Others celebrated the outcome
as a great step forward in the march
to equal justice in America — something
that has been going on for so very long.
Demonstrations went on as planned, but
they were peaceful in nature. There was no
unrest, no upheaval, no major confrontations
to speak of. The city met the moment.
That must have greatly disappointed a
sick underbelly of society, namely rightwingers,
who seemingly rooted for the
worst to happen leading up to the verdict.
They wanted people to be angry and lash
out because it helps propagate a narrative
of fear — which, in turn, drives up cable
TV ratings and campaign cash — which,
in turn, helps them win elections.
They had no problem twisting the words
of a California Democratic congresswoman,
Maxine Waters, into an apparent threat
of violence — though these same individuals
had no problem with their peers and
their former president ginning up a violent
attack on the U.S. Capitol in January.
The sick underbelly is looking for an
excuse to scapegoat their way back into
power — and those who protest further
injustices in America must take care not to
ever give them such satisfaction.
We might well ask, where do we go from
here as a country and as a society?
The simple answer is this: We must move
forward together as one nation.
We must fi nally fulfi ll the promises of
our Declaration of Independence and the
Constitution to acknowledge, at long last,
that all are created equal, and that they are
entitled to and deserving of “equal justice
under law.”
We’re not there yet, but we got a little
closer Tuesday.
Publisher of The Villager, Villager Express, Chelsea Now,
Downtown Express and Manhattan Express
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Protecting those
who protect our
most vulnerable
BY KYLE BRAGG AND
COREY JOHNSON
On any given day, Amber Drummond,
a security offi cer at a homeless
shelter in Queens, reminds
shelter clients to wear masks, conducts
room checks, and gets help for clients with
medical needs. She might help mediate a
dispute, or lend an ear to an elderly shelter
resident to hear her struggles.
Amber has been working at different
shelters for over two years, and enjoys being
able to create a welcoming space for clients.
But Amber, like a lot of New Yorkers, can’t
afford housing in this city. When she fi nishes
her shift at the Queens shelter, she heads to
another shelter – where she is currently living.
As New York is poised to receive much
needed funds from the federal government
to aid in economic recovery, our city must
invest in the essential workers like Amber
who have been on the front lines. As a
security offi cer in a city homeless shelter,
keeping some of the most vulnerable New
Yorkers safe, she is part of a group of essential
workers which needs special attention.
These men and women have kept our
city running and safe, and they have taken
on the brunt of the health and economic
stresses of the pandemic. Now it’s time for
our city to support them.
Hundreds of shelter security offi cers
like Amber work under incredibly diffi cult
conditions, conditions that the COVID-19
pandemic has exacerbated for them and
those they watch over.
However, offi cers who work at shelters
funded by the city and run by non-profi ts
PHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES
do not get the same wages, benefi ts, training
or protections as offi cers doing the
same work at shelters directly run by the
city. That’s wrong, and the City Council
and SEIU 32BJ are ready to work together
to right this inequity.
All security offi cers deserve wages that
will provide them and their families stability.
They deserve health care. They deserve
training that will equip them to deal with
diffi cult circumstances. They deserve peace
of mind. They deserve the Safety in Our
Shelters (SOS) Act.
This legislation, which a majority of
Council members currently support, would
require the nonprofi ts that run shelters and
receive billions of dollars in City contracts
to pay the industry standard rate to the
nearly 3,000 workers at shelters funded
by the city and run by non-profi ts. For
a security offi cer working full time, that
would translate to receiving up to $7,000
more on an annual basis above their current
substandard wages.
The legislation would also give these
workers 40 hours of training that matches
what is required for security at shelters
directly run by the City, including content
specifi c to work in the shelters. This training
will help them keep safe themselves and
the people they watch over.
It’s time to bring equity to these workers
who face the same extraordinary challenges
in an ordinary day’s work.
They’ve done their job. It’s time we stand
up for them.
Kyle Bragg is the President of 32BJ SEIU,
and Corey Johnson is the Speaker of the
City Council.
10 April 22, 2021 Schneps Media
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