26 JUNE 18, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Western Queens lawmakers say they
regret ‘loot-out’ emergency statement
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
AACEVEDO@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
A week ago, State Senator Jessica Ramos,
Assemblywoman Catalina
Cruz, and Councilman Francisco
Moya released an emergency statement
in response to what they believed was
a tip about an alleged “loot-out” in the
community. Aft er the tip proved to be
false, the three electeds are expressing
their regret over their handling of the
situation.
The statement, made in English and
Spanish, warned of the possibility of
looting and emphasized that the majority
of businesses in their district — which
includes Corona, Jackson Heights
and Elmhurst — are small businesses
owned by minority and immigrant
communities.
While they stated the alleged “loot-out”
was scheduled for 5 p.m. on Friday, June
5, the statement did not give any specifi c
location.
The statement sparked fear among
many community members and
prompted many businesses to board up
their storefronts or close even earlier on
Friday (the city’s 8 p.m. curfew was still
in place at the time).
Some shops put up signs describing
themselves as minority-owned businesses
and included messages of solidarity
with the Black Lives Matter movement
and the fi ght against police brutality.
Both Cruz and Ramos shared the photo
of the alleged “loot-out” tip, blurring
out the location — which we now know
was set for Junction Boulevard — so as
to not encourage others who’d want to
engage in it. The photo appeared to be
a Snapchat post similar to another one
posted last week before an attempt to loot
the Queens Center Mall.
That Friday aft ernoon, Ramos took
to her social media accounts to let community
members know that she was on
Junction Boulevard to help monitor the
situation and provide updates.
While no looting took place on June 5,
the lawmakers’ approach was criticized
by some members of the community.
Some people were concerned about the
increase in police presence, and worried
that ICE agents, who have been working
with the NYPD during the recent
protests, would target undocumented
community members.
Jackson Fabrics on 84-30 37th Ave. in Jackson Heights closed their store
and added a sign that read “Don’t destroy our home! Minority built.”
Photo courtesy of Nat Mora
Others were upset that the lawmakers
worked with the police in the fi rst place,
given that the protests are largely calling
for less policing and more community
outreach.
Afzal Hossain, who previously boarded
up his Jackson Heights cafe, Espresso
77, aft er someone attempted to break in,
said he was there that aft ernoon just in
case anything happened aft er seeing the
posts on social media and hearing from
friends.
“I was just there protecting our business
and to let anyone know I’m part
of you guys,” Hossain said. “I like the
protests, I think it’s beautiful, but the
looting is scary.”
Hossain sympathized with the elected
offi cials decision, and thanked them for
the warning so they could prepare in
case something happened.
In an op-ed on the Queens Eagle this
week, Cruz explained a small business
owner told her about the post, which
prompted her offi ce to call the local precinct
in order to confi rm its credibility.
Cruz wrote that reaching out to the police
precinct wasn’t meant to be “alarmist”
nor did she intend to bring an increased
police presence to the neighborhood.
Cruz wrote that she contacted other
organizations within the community
to alert small businesses and street
vendors, and toured the areas of Corona
and Jackson Heights herself on Friday to
make sure everyone was safe.
“Ultimately, we should have responded
diff erently,” Cruz wrote in the op-ed.
“We were concerned about the impact
of more police presence in response to
this threat to both our undocumented
neighbors and to everyone’s right to
protest. In hindsight, this wasn’t communicated
properly and for that I regret
any confusion, fear, and pain this may
have caused folks.”
Ramos and Moya weren’t happy with
the way everything took place, either.
On June 9, Ramos posted a press release
on Twitter stating her offi ce was
alerted about the alleged threat and was
asked to sign on to a statement in conjunction
with her fellow lawmakers.
“Our primary concern was with the
safety of our small business owners
and our undocumented population,
who have already been through so
much prior to and during the COVID-19
pandemic and the crisis it has created,”
Ramos stated. “Unlike large, corporate
stores, these small businesses owners
don’t have the fi nancial means or suffi
cient insurance to suff er yet another
blow to their livelihoods.”
“I apologize wholeheartedly for causing
any confusion or unrest in an already
diffi cult time,” Ramos said. “It was never
my intention to invite more police into
our neighborhood.”
Moya told QNS his offi ce was also
alerted within minutes of the scheduled
emergency statement.
“I didn’t have all the details of the rumors
but I was reassured by one of my
colleagues that the rumors were legitimate,”
Moya said. “Ultimately, I signed on
for two reasons: First, a duty to inform
my constituents of a potential threat, and
second, in solidarity with my colleagues
representing our area. I had hoped that
by discouraging destruction to mostly
minority- and immigrant-owned businesses,
that we could prevent police from
fl ooding the area.”
“I regret signing on to this statement,
the results that came from it — both the
panic among residents and the police
response — and for taking my colleague
at face value,” the councilman concluded.
“It won’t happen again.”
All three lawmakers voted to repeal
50-A to ensure more police accountability,
and support a number of other police
reform policies.
link
/WWW.QNS.COM
link
