NYC Budget Justice

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How Police Unions Fight Reform

Activists insist that police departments must change. For half a century, New York City’s P.B.A. has successfully resisted such demands.
07/27/2020
New Yorker

In May, just days after a Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd, Lieutenant Bob Kroll, the bellicose leader of the city’s police union, described Floyd as a violent criminal, said that the protesters who had gathered to lament his death were terrorists, and complained that they weren’t being treated more roughly by police. Kroll, who has spoken unsentimentally about being involved in three shootings himself, said that he was fighting to get the accused officers reinstated. In the following days, the Kentucky police union rallied around officers who had fatally shot an E.M.T.

We looked at protester demands from across the nation and compared them with recent police reforms.

Protesters have made their demands clear, and cities are starting to respond. But is it enough?
07/20/2020
USA Today

In the 18 days after the death of George Floyd, 16 states introduced, amended, or passed various police-reform bills.

We looked at what protesters are asking for and what changes have actually been implemented. While a handful of new policies met demands, most local officials and law enforcement agencies failed to fulfill expectations.  

Defunding law enforcement

Lentory Johnson knows what "defund the police" means to her — and she has a perspective based on a deeply personal experience.

De Blasio Promised Another Charter Revision Commission; Electeds and Advocates are Ready with Suggestions

07/17/2020
Gotham Gazette

When Mayor Bill de Blasio said in late April that he was creating a task force to lead a “fair recovery” from the COVID-19 pandemic, nestled in his announcement was a brief statement that he also intends to call another Charter Revision Commission. But the mayor hasn’t yet convened that commission, which would be the third to be created while he has been mayor, the second by him alone, and hasn’t explained his rationale for it. 

Bruising budget complicates Corey Johnson’s mayoral prospects

07/06/2020
Politico

City Council Speaker Corey Johnson was having a blast: One month after securing an uncertain victory that catapulted him toward the apex of New York’s political pyramid, he joined the morning crew at Fox5 for an impromptu, televised dance party as the Groundhog Day weather segment wound down.

He seemed to be sending New Yorkers a message: With boundless energy and joy, he would embody qualities Mayor Bill de Blasio — somber on the lightest of occasions — does not.

A Budget that Either Clobbers or Coddles the NYPD

07/02/2020
City Limits

Earlier this week, Nicole Malliotakis, a Republican Assemblymember from Staten Island who is running to unseat Democrat Max Rose from Congress, sent a missive to supporters. 

“Yesterday, wacko mayor Bill de Blasio announced he was caving to Max Rose and the other extreme leftists’ demand and cutting $1 billion from the NYPD budget.”

On Wednesday, after that budget passed in the wee hours of the morning amid an unusual level of dissent within the Council, Scott Roberts, senior director of criminal-justice campaigns at Color Of Change, described it differently.

Activists in the U.S. claim partial victory in long battle to reform, defund police departments

Budget fights in New York and cities across the country bring gains, disappointments
07/05/2020
CBC News

For the thousands of protesters who marched through the streets of New York for more than 30 consecutive days demanding changes in policing, the headlines emerging from the city's budget debate should have signalled victory.

"New York Police Department's budget has been slashed by $1 billion," wrote CNN.

"De Blasio Agrees to Cut NYPD Funding by $1 Billion," said the Wall Street Journal.

"NY City Council approves slashing $1B from NYPD budget," said Fox News.

For immediate release: July 1, 2020

#DefundNYPD Campaign: Council Budget Vote Fails to Cut at least $1B from NYPD to Invest in Black, Latinx & other Communities of Color During Pandemic

Budget deploys fuzzy math and exempts NYPD from hiring freeze as teachers, social service and other essential workers and programs are left out to dry

New York, NY (July 1, 2020) – Today, Communities United for Police Reform (CPR), the unprecedented campaign uniting New York’s organizing and advocacy organizations to end police violence and imagine a future of safety without relying on police – and the coordinator of the coalition of 200 organizations demanding #DefundNYPD for #NYCBudgetJustice – issued the following statement following the City Council’s budget vote:

New York mayor says he will slash police budget by $1 billion, activists aren’t buying it

06/29/2020
Fortune

On the eve of a budget showdown in New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced that he will cut $1 billion in funding for the New York Police Department in an attempt to meet the demands of protesters who have occupied and marched on City Hall over the past week.

The specifics of his plan, however, are hard to come by, and police reform activists are concerned that the mayor will work with the city council to hide parts of the police budget in mandates for other social services.

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