Coalition to Protect Chinatown and the
Lower East Side holds MLK day rally
BY DEAN MOSES
Members of the Lower Manhattan
community held a rally to
announce their day in court to
continue the fi ght against the construction
of the Two Bridges Luxury Towers Monday
afternoon.
Jan. 18 marked the third annual demonstration
the Coalition to Protect Chinatown
and the Lower East Side has gathered on
Martin Luther King Day to protest the
Luxury development from being erected
in their neighborhood. This coalition has
been at war with what they call “Racist
rezoning” for years now, and by the large
gathering on 275 Cherry Street at 12 p.m.
on Monday they are not willing to back
down anytime soon.
The group brandished signs taking
Mayor Bill de Blasio to task for backing
affl uent high-rise projects in low-income
neighborhoods, even going so far as to compare
him to President Donald Trump for
pandering to wealthy constituents. Many
at the protest say the Mayor is “Shameful”
for approving such an extravagant project
Council Member Ben Kallos joined the rally. FILE PHOTO
while they are suffering amidst the COVID
19 pandemic. This prompted chants
of “No towers, no compromise” to echo
throughout the streets.
“We know that de Blasio is not on our
side so we have to force him to make the
just decision. We can and we will, we have
the community on our side, we are the
community! We are students, workers,
small business owners, and New Yorkers—
each and every one of us are the lifeblood of
this city, not these empty, vampiric luxury
developments,” said Jihye Song.
Supported by Council Member Ben Kallos,
speakers spoke of their long struggle
combating the development and the many
rallies and legal battles they have undergone
in an attempt to prevent the construction
from getting underway. The organization
also called upon Council Speaker Corey
Johnson to stand by a 10-year plan he
released that criticizes zoning actions.
In a letter to Johnson, the group states:
“Our working class community of color has
fought tirelessly from mass displacement,
air pollution, pervasive loss of sunlight and
the destruction of neighborhood character
that these towers would cause.” The letter
goes on to say: “We urge you to follow
through on your words and stand up to
Mayor de Blasio’s displacement agenda.”
After contacting Johnson for his response,
his offi ce told amNewYork Metro
that “The Council has moved to appeal to
the court of appeals and we are awaiting
their decision.”
In March 2019 the Lower East Side
Organized Neighbors (LESON) sued to
reverse the city’s approval to build the
towers, which they won about a year later.
However, the case was appealed and the
case is set to be heard on to Jan. 27th in
the Appellate Court.
With fare hike stopped, transit advocates in Manhattan
rallies for restoration of 24-hour subway service
BY GABRIELE
HOLTERMANN
Now that the MTA has put
its fare increase plans on
ice for the time-being,
transit advocates are calling for
the restoration of 24-hour subway
service, and a statewide tax
increase to generate funding for
the cash-strapped transit system.
At a Jan. 19 rally outside
the MTA’s Financial District
headquarters, members of the
Riders Alliance pushed for these
changes and others to help the
city recover from the COVID-19
pandemic, and encourage greater
ridership.
Stephanie Burgos-Veras of Riders
Alliance felt it was important
to keep the pressure on the MTA
and Governor Cuomo.
“We are extremely happy that
they are listening to us and understand
that this is not the time
to raise the fares. But we also
understand that they are postponing;
they are not canceling,”
Burgos-Veras said. “What we are
here to say is, they need to cancel
the fare hikes because the effects
that people are facing right now
will not get better in two or three
months. It will take 2 or 3 years
for things to get better.”
Advocates demanded that
Governor Andrew Cuomo come
up with progressive solutions
to fi nance the nation’s largest
public transit system instead of a
fare hike that would burden on
working-class subway riders who
are already faced with fi nancial
hardships due to the COVID-19
pandemic.
Manhattan Assemblymember
Harvey Epstein advocated
increasing taxes on the wealthy,
especially on the 119 billionaires,
which went up from 115 during
the pandemic, who call New York
State home.
“The reality is, we see people
struggling every day,” Epstein
said. “We see tenant after tenant
not being able to pay their
rent. But we see billionaires
doing just fi ne. But the federal
government has decided to cut
their taxes.”
Additionally, the coalition
of activist organizations demanded
that overnight subway
service be restored after it had
been shut down between 1 to
5 a.m. nightly for disinfection
in May 2020, leaving essential
workers and working-class New
Yorkers who work overnight
scrambling for transportation
alternatives.
Karen Hamilton, a transit advocate
with Riders Alliance from
Jamaica, Queens, urged Cuomo
to reinstate overnight service and
was glad that the rally wasn’t a
5 a.m. event. She explained, “I
would have had to leave around
1 am, walk 12 minutes from my
house in southeast Queens to take
a bus to Flushing. Transfer to the
Long Island Railroad, and then
take two busses.”
She emphasized that the commute
she highlighted was the
reality for many essential workers.
“It is ironic that the people
who ensure New York City residents
have healthcare, food, and
other important services, travel
upwards to three hours to reach
work during overnight hours,”
Hamilton added.
MTA Chief Communications
Offi cer Abbey Collins provided
the following statement:“As
the advocates know, the fare
increase has been postponed for
the time being and the overnight
shutdown remains in place as we
battle the deadliest pandemic in
a century. We’re laser-focused on
our customers’ and colleagues’
health and safety, which is why
we have undertaken an aggressive
disinfecting program that is
supported by more than 75% of
our customers. We’re focused on
results and we’ll leave the theatrics
to the advocates.”
PHOTO BY GABRIELE HOLTERMANN
Rebecca Bailin from Invest in Our New York speak at a rally
outside MTA Headquarters.
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