photo: right, Councilmember Helen Rosenthal listens to concerns of woman at hearing. Credit: Michelle Ayr

By: Michelle Ayr

On Thursday, members of the New York City Council Committee on Women appealed to the New York State Legislature to pass, and Governor Andrew Cuomo to sign, the Reproductive Health Act.

The Reproductive Health Act (RHA) would give women the right to choose to terminate a pregnancy after 24 weeks. The RHA would also increase access to terminations by allowing nurse practitioners and physician assistants to perform them, rather than only doctors. It would also annul the penal laws against self-termination, and would override the 12-week limit on termination.

Helen Rosenthal, Chair of The New York City Council’s Committee on Women,  said, “Reproductive rights are fundamental to an individual’s control over their own life, and are therefore crucial to achieving gender equality.” Rosenthal expressed a “very real concern” that New Yorkers will lose the fight for gender equality, if women do not have the right to decide on terminations.

“Last year, nineteen states adopted 63 different restrictions on abortion rights and access,” said Public Advocate Letitia James. “Fifty eight percent of women in the United States currently live in states that are either hostile or extremely hostile towards their abortion rights.”

In 1973’s Roe v. Wade decision, the Supreme Court effectively gave women the right to abort. The Court found that a state law in Texas, which did not allow abortions unless they were to protect the life of the mother, violated Constitutional rights.

The Supreme Court later affirmed the Roe v. Wade privilege and stood by its contentions that states do not have the authority to forbid termination before the third trimester.

Present New York state abortion law defines abortion as illegal if not done before the 24th week of the pregnancy. In cases where a woman dies due to the termination, a class B crime has been committed by the doctor, according to state law.

In the current Trump era there are special concerns.

This July, federal Judge Brett Kavanaugh was chosen by President Donald Trump to fill an opening on the Supreme Court. Because Kavanaugh does not believe that the Roe v. Wade is “settled law,” according to the New York Times, there is a good chance he will be ready to limit women’s rights to terminate.

James became very emotional during the conference saying. “This act empowers young girls and women to choose methods, including abortions,” she said. “These decisions should be made by a woman, her doctor, and whatever God she chooses to pray to or even if she chooses not to pray to any God. It’s basically a personal decision, not a decision left to this illegitimate President or to this illegitimate Supreme Court nominee.”

Rebecca Donn, Director of Quality Management at Planned Parenthood of New York City said, “In the face of attacks on reproductive health across the country, New York must stand up as a leader and ensure that all people are able to make the best health care decisions for themselves and their families here in New York and for those who may have to come here to seek care.”

The State Advocacy Advisor at the Center for Reproductive Rights, Ashley Gray, said,  “Removing abortion from the criminal code is a crucial step in recognizing that abortion is healthcare, not a crime.”

Heidi Sieck, CEO and Co-Founder of #VOTEPROCHOICE, said, “Women’s lives are at risk. Families are being traumatized. We’ve waited years and years and years for this to be passed — there is so much at stake to wait for another moment.”

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Photo: Councilmember Mark Gjonaj, who spoke at hearing

By Hannah Grossman

On Thursday the City Council approved a resolution that would review the treatment of youth who were convicted or incarcerated before the so-called Raise the Age legislation, which raised the age of criminality to 18 from 16 to 18.

Raise the Age was passed in 2017. In a unanimous vote, the city legislators declared that certain teenagers convicted and treated as criminals before Raise the Age would be treated as juveniles.

Because of the changes, some teenagers at the city’s Rikers Island jail will have to be transferred to an ACS (Administration for Children’s Services) detention center. In order to accommodate the influx of juveniles from Rikers Island, a number of city Corrections officers would have to be transferred to ACS facilities, such as Horizon and Crossroads, both of which are rehabilitative programs for juvenile offenders.

There was criticism at Thursday’s session that the city was scrambling at the last minute, trying to meet certain mandated deadlines, and that the security of Corrections officers and the young offenders was being jeopardized.

Officers who would be hired to be with the youngsters are from the city Department of Corrections and are trained to use deadly force. They would wear the same uniforms as they would wear at Riker’s Island, and they could carry chemical agents and batons. It was unclear what protocols the officers would follow regarding the use of chemical agents.

The Raise the Age legislation of 2017 gave an Oct. 1 deadline for transferring of young inmates from Riker’s Island. Some argued on Thursday that the deadline would have to be pushed back, given the proximity of the date. However, the office of Mayor de Blasio said it will be prepared to make the transfers by that date.

Advocates for the young offenders and the mayor’s office were opposed to changing the deadline. “This is an aggressive timeline, but we will be ready. We will do the hard work that we are responsible for,” Dana Kaplan, deputy director of the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice, said.

“I would just hate the worst-case scenario, that a life is lost,” Councilmember Mark Gjonaj, a member of the Committee for Juvenile Justice, said.

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photo: Councilmember Diana Ayala, who is Puerto Rican

By Marcus Ayala and Ryan Thaxton

A year after Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico is still feeling the effects and many are blaming the United States government and specifically President Trump. At a press conference, New York City Councilmembers called out Trump and demanded a federal investigation into the disaster.

Led by Corey Johnson, the councilmembers signed a letter criticizing the President for dismissing the official death toll of Hurricane Maria. He believes Trump has underestimated the impact of the storm and he agrees with the officially reported death toll of 3,000. “All those lives lost and nothing but disrespect and neglect from our president,” Johnson said.

Politico has reported that the number of deaths related to the hurricane is 4,645, while Harvard and other institutions have declared the number to be in the thousands. The death toll exceeds the 1,833 of Hurricane Katrina and is on par with 9/11. Trump continues to cite the several dozen deaths, a number that was reported in the days just after Maria struck the island.

The letter being sent to the Trump administration argues that Trump gave mainland states that were hit by hurricanes much more sympathy. Trump’s comments about Texas and Florida and the impact those states suffered were “much fuller and more effective than what we saw in Puerto Rico,” the letter says.

Johnson said, “We are calling on congress to pass a bill introduced by Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand that would establish an independent, bipartisan commission to investigate the government’s failure in Puerto Rico and we are sending a letter to President Trump himself demanding he do the right thing and back the formation of the commission. We need to understand why our government mounted such a horrible response to the worst storm that likely ever hit Puerto Rico.”

Four Councilmembers of Puerto Rican descent expressed deep disappointment with Trump and his treatment of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Those councilmembers were Diana Ayala, Carlina Rivera, Ydanis Rodriguez and Rafael Salamanca.

Ayala said, “The federal government has failed this community and must be held accountable of their actions.” Rivera said her family was directly affected by the hurricane. “We cannot trust the federal government,” Ayala said.

Salamanca declared, “Our fight is not over, Puerto Rico we stand with you.” Rodriguez said, “They treated Puerto Ricans worse than third class citizens.”

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Photo of Frank Seddio taken by Marcus Ayala

By Dakota O’Brien and Marcus Ayala

On Thursday, New Yorkers went to the polls to cast their votes in the state’s primaries. Frank Seddio, the ‘boss’ of the Brooklyn Democratic machine, spent his day at the Thomas Jefferson political club, awaiting the results.

Officially, Seddio, a native of the Canarsie neighborhood where his club is located, is a District leader and the Chairman of the Kings County Democratic party. But in the lingo that’s been used in Brooklyn for generations, he’s known as the borough’s boss. He was elected county chairman by 36 of the 40 Democratic leaders of Brooklyn – an almost unanimous vote.

This year’s New York primary was unique in that it drew a line between so-called progressive Democrats and the ones Seddio calls the “common sense” Democrats. He puts himself in the latter category. “I believe in the evolution of party, not the revolution,” Seddio said in an interview with Brooklyn News Service at the Thomas Jefferson club in Canarsie.

Based on outcomes of Thursday’s voting, it might be said that for many Brooklynites, and other New York City Democrats, a revolution is welcome. New York witnessed a kind of political revolution on Thursday, with many incumbents losing to left-of-center challengers. It was a revolution that began in June, when Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated incumbent Joe Crowley in the Democratic primary for the 14^th Congressional district, in Queens.

Seddio believes the common sense prevailed in Thursday’s voting for the highest office in the state. Cynthia Nixon, former actress and part of the Democratic progressive movement, challenged New York’s incumbent Governor, Andrew Cuomo. The Thomas Jefferson Democratic club, located on Conklin Street in Canarsie for over fifty years, lent its support to Cuomo, and Cuomo won.

The Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club, led more than two generations ago by the infamous political boss Meade Esposito, has had a long-standing tradition of creating “active Democrats,” that is to say, Democrats who vote. In some respects, the Thomas Jefferson club is like the progressives in the way it operates. Their shared style of acquiring voters is making calls, knocking on doors, and visiting schools in their districts.

Seddio is steadfast in his adherence to tradition. He opposes the faction that he calls the “Democratic Socialists.” And he is tolerant of the group of Democratic state senators who were part of the Independent Democratic Conference, or IDC. Those Democratic legislators several years ago aligned themselves with Republicans in Albany, in an effort to get favors for their districts. But after the election of Donald Trump to the presidency, those IDC members were strongly targeted by the party’s progressives. In a stunning development on Thursday, IDC senators across the city lost their elections to progressive challengers. But, rather than attack IDC, Seddio asserted that the group of compromisers had “a right to exist.”

“The Democrats are a party that tolerates all views,” he said, speaking comfortably and openly at his office.

In addition to being part of the tolerant portion of his party, Seddio proudly calls himself a man of the people. He was a New York City police officer for 23 years, and has worn many others hats, working for and within his close and wide communities.

Seddio helped start the West Indian Day parade in 1969. The parade is held every year along Eastern Parkway on Labor Day, and Seddio has been the organization’s attorney for two decades. He has also been president of the East 90’s Community Association, a member of the New York State Assembly, a District Manager and Chairman of Community Board 18, and much more.

While Seddio is not the president of the Thomas Jefferson Club (that role belongs to Henry Bolus), he is still a central part of it. His uncle introduced him to the club 54 years ago, and his interest in politics never waned.

Seddio’s first involvement in a big election was the 1977 governor’s race between Ed Koch and Mario Cuomo, and he supported Cuomo (father of the current governor). Eleven years later, Seddio helped Michael Dukakis, former governor of Massachusetts, in Dukakis’ campaign to be president of the United States.

“I was able to meet and interact with Democrats as far as Hawaii and Maine,” Seddio recalled tenderly.

Frank Seddio considers experience to be a key quality for a serious political candidate. “I believe the most important values for a candidate are integrity, good character, and a history of political activism, as well as experience in the position they’re seeking,” he said.

Along with its support for Andrew Cuomo, the Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club endorsed Kathy Hochul for Lieutenant Governor and Letitia “Tish” James for Attorney General. Seddio said his club’s chosen candidates had resumes revealing skills and career backgrounds that he and his club members hold dear.

“Anyone can run for office, but people should look for credentials,” he said.

Seddio believes that the radical tendencies he sees among some Democrats will hurt the party as it tries to assert itself forcefully in New York State and Washington, D.C. “The extreme view point of the Democratic socialists has the split the Democratic party, and it will not be beneficial for the next election,” Seddio said. “That is why Hillary Clinton lost.

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Photo: A voter at a booth at Brooklyn College’s Roosevelt Hall. Credit: Michelle Ayr

By Michelle Ayr

If you were wondering why the New York primary was held on a Thursday this year, you are not alone.

New York State Law makes the first Tuesday after the second Monday of September the official date of primary elections. So many voters were surprised when it was announced that the election this year would be on a Thursday.

Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill earlier this year, on Feb. 23, advancing the primary date by two days, to Thursday, Sept. 13, after state lawmakers pushed for the change.

This year, Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, during which religious Jews are limited in permitted activities, fell on Tuesday, Sept. 11.

Zach Schaffer, the chair of Brooklyn Young Democrats Jewish Caucus, told Fox News, “Holding an election on Rosh Hashanah will unfairly impede on the ability of Jewish New Yorkers to participate in the election process.” Schaffer added, “We encourage our state legislators and Governor Cuomo to ensure that no New Yorkers have to choose between religious observance and civic participation.”

Because Tuesday also fell on September 11, it was believed that casting a vote on the 17th anniversary of the terror attack might disturb some New Yorkers. It was not the first time that happened.

In 2007, the primary was set back one week to September 18, after former Governor Eliot Spitzer signed legislation mandating that change. The concern was that it had fallen on Sept. 11 and some believed it would interfere with commemorations of the Trade Center attack. The election date was adjusted also in 2012, for the same reason.

This year, as in 2012, there was another election peculiarity that confused many New Yorkers. Then, as is the case this year, there were two state primary days – one in June and another in September. That was puzzling to some New Yorkers, critics have said. Critics say New York should be doing more to make the state’s election process simpler.

The competition between state primaries and World Trade Center commemorations goes back in time – all the way back to that horrific day, Sept. 11, 2001. There was a primary scheduled for that very day. It was postponed, of course, because of unspeakable blood shedding, pain and confusion.

While some believe that, out of respect, there should be no voting on Sept. 11, there are some New Yorkers who say: What could be more patriotic than casting a vote on Sept. 11?

“We need to be a voice for those that don’t have one anymore,” expressed Yvonne Greaves, referring to those who were killed in 2001. The 23-year-old was with her friend, Christopher D’Alessio, who said he “would be proud to vote on September 11.” D’Alessio added, “We would be showing that people are coming together to after such a tragic event, and that shouldn’t offend people. If anything, I’d think it’s honorable.”

Some voters had a different opinion.

A student at Brooklyn College, who was on her way out of the Roosevelt Hall polling place at Brooklyn College, agreed.  “I don’t see it as patriotic to vote on that anniversary,” said Sasha Zimmermann, “because it was a hard time for a lot of families that lost their loved ones, and they deserve to have that day.”

Another voter, Aisha Thomas, concurred with the idea that the day already has a lot surrounding it. “I don’t agree with those to say to vote on September 11. It’s a day to mourn. We need to let that be a day for the Twin Tower anniversary,” said the 59-year-old.

Years ago, Sheldon Silver, the since disgraced New York State Assembly Speaker, told AuburnPub, “Moving the primary election (from Sept. 11) is appropriate and it recognizes the importance of pausing to pay tribute to the victims of the terrible events that day.”

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Photo: The graffiti sprayed on the offices of incumbent State Senator Martin Dilan. Credit: Hannah Grossman.

By Hannah Grossman

It was a sign of discontent with an incumbent. But it was more than that. It was a sign of a political transformation taking place around New York City.

On Election Day eve, State Senator Martin Dilan’s Brooklyn office was spray painted in an apparent vandalizing incident.

Martin Dilan currently represents a district that includes Bushwick, Bedford-Stuyvesant, East New York, Ocean Hill, and Brownsville. He was running against a Democratic Socialist candidate, Julia Salazar. Salazar, an exceptionally controversial newcomer, soared to victory against Dilan, in what one political consultant called a new “wave” that swept a number of New York City incumbent senators out of office.

It was a wave election,” said Bob Liff, a consultant with the longtime political adviser George Arzt. “He (Dilan) got more votes than he ever got in a primary, but he lost the election. It was a wave.”

Liff added, “(Senator Jesse) Hamilton went down. (Senator Jose) Peralta went down. It looks like (Senator Jeffrey) Klein lost. It’s a wave.”

Regarding the graffiti spray on the metal covering over Dilan’s office, the message was clear: Spray painted in black letters were the words, “Homeless kids want Dilan out.” Tucked into his office window, which is located at 3215 Fulton Street, was a campaign card from the Salazar campaign. As part of her campaign, Salazar promised to end homelessness by fighting evictions and stopping gentrification.

Dilan and his staff were not immediately aware about the vandalizing because their office was closed for Election Day. “It sure wasn’t there yesterday,” said a volunteer canvassing on Richmond Street.

“Our campaign had nothing to do with this,” Salazar’s campaign manager, Michael Kinnucan, said. Kinnucan said that he first found out about the vandalizing on Twitter, and he said he had been conversing with Salazar about the incident. “Julia deplores that this happened. We do not want the support of anyone who would do this thing,” he said.

Following this campaign, Salazar said in a statement, “I have no idea who is responsible for this disturbing incident.”

Salazar has been exceptionally controversial. She has been accused of lying about being an immigrant, about graduating from Columbia University, and about her religion.

“I don’t think voters will judge her by whether she is an immigrant or not, but they will judge her for her fanciful creations. They do care if she lies,” said Liff.

“Why would she do that?” Erick Olsen, 65, said, as he sat eating Baskin Robbins Ice Cream a few blocks from Dilan’s office. The Cyprus Hills resident had just voted for Salazar and was at one point confident in his decision. “I didn’t have time to check the facts,” Olsen said.

Asked if he would have changed his vote if he knew Salazar may have lied when he casted his ballot, Olsen said he still wouldn’t have voted for Dilan. “I would have written someone in as my own form of protest,” he said. “I don’t like politicians who lie. It’s why I hate Trump.”

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Photos were supplied respectively by the offices of Zellnor Myrie and Sen. Jesse Hamilton

By Dvorah Nelson

With primary voting occurring all over the city on Thursday, a palpable energy could be felt in the neighborhood of Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Fliers hung on home fronts and on store fronts. People stood on street corners with pamphlets asking passersby to vote. Most important of all – there was a constant flux of voters in and out of the over fifteen polling places in the neighborhood’s state senate district. More than at any other time in recent local history, voters went strongly against an incumbent and in unison stated that they want one of their own to be their elected official.

“Tonight we made history,” said the spokesperson for challenger Zellnor Myrie, who defeated incumbent Senator Jesse Hamilton. Hamilton was once a member of the so-called Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) that in recent years caucused with Republican senators in Albany, angering progressives who began surging in influence in the current Donald Trump era.

“Together we defeated the IDC. We defeated regressive politics, and we set the stage for a progressive majority to take control (of the country) in November,” the spokesperson added.

One Democratic political adviser in Brooklyn called Thursday’s developments a city-wide “wave” of opposition against the Democratic status quo.

Senator Hamilton represents Senate District 20, which includes parts of Park Slope, Gowanus and East Flatbush. Hamilton’s office sits above a medical clinic, in a building that faces Medgar Evers College on the busy Bedford Avenue. Just down the road, his opponent, the newcomer Zellnor Myrie, has his office.

With many New Yorkers calling for the uprooting of incumbents and all those who have cooperated with Republicans, Myrie may have a chance to follow the path of those like Alexandria Cortez-Ocasio, who is trying to get a new coterie of progressive newcomers to take on roles in New York, and U.S., government.

While many voters on Thursday were reluctant to openly discuss who their favorite candidates were, the polling places were busy. There was barely any space for parking and there was a steady stream of confident, excited voters at many Crown Heights locations.

Some residents, like Andrea Godbout, were particularly excited about Myrie. “He’s standing for a more progressive stance than Jesse Hamilton is,” she said on her way to her voting place.

The need to take action against members of the now-defunct IDC was a strong part of Myrie’s campaign, as was the case with half a dozen other challengers of ex-IDC senators in the city. A spokesperson for Myrie early Thursday seemed confidant, as he noted the energy in the community. “The message of anti-IDC candidates that’s going to fight for progressive values will reflect what we see” when Myrie is declared the victory on Thursday night, the spokesman confidently said.

Still some voters  stood behind Hamilton. Mica Soffer, publisher of an online Hasidic Newspaper called Hamilton “a longtime friend to the Crown Heights community, who stood up against anti-Semitism and hate crimes.” She praised Hamilton’s support of Israel, his opposition to the Iran Deal and his assistance to Crown Heights residents.

A staunch contrast could be seen Thursday in the respective offices of Hamilton and Myrie. While Hamilton’s offices remained empty, the door shut, the well decorated walls and plush chairs dimly lit by a single light, Myrie’s office was bustling: Volunteers sat at tables in Myrie’s office, folding chairs against the walls, making phone calls and coming in and out collecting pamphlets to hand out on the streets outside. It was a palpable excitement that contrasted with  the cold and quiet emptiness at Hamilton’s office.

Despite various attempts, Senator Hamilton could not be reached for comment.

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Photo taken by Dakota O’Brien

By Dakota O’brien

The Met Breur, located on Madison Avenue and dedicated to showcasing the work of contemporary artists, is now host to a new exhibition – Odyssey: Jack Whitten Sculpture, 1963- 2017. The renowned artist Jack Whitten, best known for his abstract paintings, has now been given a posthumous opportunity to fill the third floor of the Met Breur with his unique sculptures.

The walls, filled with texturized pieces that walk a thin line between painting and sculpture, radiate the artist’s Southern African-American routes, as well as his time in New York and the Greek island of Crete. Themes such as place, memory, family, power, roots and migration, are manifes in over 40 sculptures made of carved wood (often black mulberry), combined with found materials such as shells, pebbles, and Styrofoam, as well as more personal additions like family photographs and even the artist’s own American Express credit card.

The exhibition pays special attention to Whitten’s acknowledgement of his black identity, featuring sculptures created by enslaved African Americans in the 1840’s, as well as pieces by unknown artists from African nations such as Nigeria and Ghana. These sculptures served as both context and inspiration for the late artist, and laid the foundation for his fascination with paying homage to his blackness, most notably in his Black Monoliths series.

Whitten was born in Alabama in 1939 and was living in Queens when he died in January of this year.

Using techniques such as raking and scraping of acrylic paint and embedding of tiles, Whitten dedicated his creations to black icons – Mohammed Ali, Barbara Jordan, Maya Angelou, Ornette Coleman, and others. While the images featured on the canvases emerge subtly, they introduce central characteristics of the respective subjects. In Black Monolith XI (Six Kinky Strings for Chuck Berry), red wires cascade over the vibrantly colored tiles, symbolizing the rock ‘n’ roll legend’s guitar playing talent.

Whitten’s interest in African and African-American symbols is revealed most poignantly in his sculpture Homage to Malcolm, created in 1965, the year the activist was assassinated. The sculpture, made of carved wood embedded with nails, pays tribute to the tradition of the Kongo people, “nkisi n’kondi” figures. These figures, which also have sharp figures embedded into them, are believed to have spiritual significance and power, and operate as “spiritual vessels and protective forces.” The allusion to the Central African tradition is suitable for its subject, as Malcolm X stood out for his pride in his African roots and black nationalist beliefs, and was often seen as a leader and protector of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s.

The ‘nkisi’ tradition reappears in two of Whitten’s sculptures, The Guardian I, for Mary and The Guardian II, for Mirsini, made for his wife and his daughter, respectively. The sculpture for his daughter contains ‘secret’ materials, only known by Whitten himself; while the sculpture for his wife contains materials such as locks of her actual hair, bus tickets, sage leaves, and olive leaves, all behind a piece of glass, viewable to the audience. Consistent with his reverence for the ‘nkisi’ beliefs, each material inside the sculptures holds spiritual relevance.

The two pieces not only highlight thematic elements such as family and roots, but they reveal Whitten’s ability to combine these themes in different settings he lived in, such as, in this case, the island of Crete. In Whitten’s work, his time in Crete becomes apparent in the materials he used, which have Cretan origins, but also in the appearance of Greek and Mediterranean themes. One such piece is Afro American Thunderbolt, invoking the idea of the Greek God Zeus, while also alluding to the Black Power Movement that was gaining attention during the era the artist was creating the sculpture. The piece, covered in copper wire, reminds the audience of Whitten’s reliance materials to drive his themes home, and the copper reflects the idea of power.

One of the last sculptures in the exhibit commands the center of the floor, hanging from the ceiling and suspended by a green fishing line. The black mulberry piece, spanning almost six feet from top to bottom, is gutted in the center and filled with fishing materials, drawing on the time Whitten spent in Crete and the water that surrounds the island. However, the sculpture’s name leaves a more haunting sentiment to its onlookers – The Death of Fishing – which is eerily reminiscent of the lynching of blacks in the United States throughout the Jim Crow period. Those who pass by look on with solemn expressions, as the exhibition floor remains silent and as Jack Whitten’s legacy radiates.

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Photo: Councilmembers and staff at Thursday’s hearing. Credit: Hannah Grossman

By Hannah Grossman

The Immigration Committee at City Council rejected a bill on Thursday that would have moved forward with the abolish ICE agenda.

The bill proposed ending revenue contracts with entities that aid or abet immigration enforcement as a step towards a more “humane” immigration policy, according Carlos Menchaca, the councilmember who sponsored the bill.

ICE has become a “rogue agency,” City Council speaker Corey Johnson said. Instead of preventing terror and targeting serious criminals, ICE began to “wrongly detain” hundreds of American citizens and undocumented immigrants with clean records, critics have said.

Other abuses, according to Councilmember Helen Rosenthal, include reports of sexual abuse at its facilities. From 2013-2017 there were 1,300 complaints of sexual abuse from ICE detention facilities, it was said at the hearing on Thursday.

Those opposing the idea of abolishing ICE wondered if scrapping the agency might make the country less safe. “They are removing people with a criminal past. I know there are abuses, but correct the abuses. Don’t throw the baby out of the bathwater,” Councilmember Robert Holden said.

Holden also questioned a de Blasio official, Commissioner of Immigrant Affairs Bitta Mostofi, about the clarity of the agenda. “You say abolish ICE and then replace it with something, but we don’t know what that is,” he said.

Those supportive of abolishing ICE said they want to transfer ICE’s essential functions to other governmental agencies. “There are other entities that can do that work,” Johnson said.

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Photo: Dr. Alexander Goldfarb, Marina Litvinenko, and attorney Bertrand ‘Randy’ Sellier. Credit: Oscar Montenegro

By Oscar Montenegro

After months of raising funds and planning, a lawsuit filed against two Russian media outlets accused of being propaganda platforms for Russian President Vladimir Putin is going forward.

During a press conference in front of the United States District Court in Lower Manhattan, Dr. Alexander Goldfarb, a Russian-American microbiologist, along with his attorney Bertrand Sellier and a supporter, Marina Litvinenko, announced they filed a civil lawsuit against two prominent Russian media outlets, Channel One Russia and RT America (Russia Today).

“From the beginning, the Russians created a false narrative to deflect blame on the murder of Alexander Litvinenko,” Sellier said.

According to Goldfarb, he is a victim of ‘malicious defamation’ by both outlets, after they accused him of murdering his friend, Alexander Litvinenko and his own wife. The Russian outlets also accused Goldfarb of being an agent of the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Marina Litvinenko is the widow of Alexander Litvinenko, and has offered her support to Goldfarb during this lawsuit.

These accusations come in the aftermath of the poisoning of former Russian military intelligence officer, Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury, England in March. As in Litvinenko’s case, this poisoning has been blamed on the Russian government. Pushing the claim that the Russian government had nothing to do with these poisonings, both One Channel Russia and Russia Today broadcasted several programs about the Litvinenko case, accusing Goldfarb of being the murderer. They provided no evidence for their claim.

Alexander Litvinenko was a former officer of the Russian Federal Security Service who was living in London when he was poisoned and died in November 2006. On his deathbed, Litvinenko accused Putin of ordering his murder.

One Channel Russia and RT are funded by the Russian government and the latter, in the words of Putin himself, is on a list of “core organizations of strategic importance to Russia.” Both outlets are considered state-controlled media. Yesterday’s development in New York comes two years after a British judicial inquiry established that two Russian agents, Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun, poisoned Litvinenko. Both are believed to be in Russia.

When Marina Litvinenko was asked who she believes murdered her husband, she said, “This case is hard to bring to justice because the people who committed this crime are in Russia, and decided to destroy my friend [Goldfarb], who helped us.” She says the probability that Putin ordered her husband’s murder is “very high.”

Litvinenko said the world doesn’t know how to fight against Russian propaganda and has done little to stop it. She also mentioned how dangerous this all is to democracies in the West and around the world, when outlets like One Channel Russia and RT spread disinformation.

When asked whether he is scared of consequences from their lawsuit, Sellier said, “I’m not.” He added that he would not be traveling to Russia anytime soon. Responding to the same question, Goldfarb said he also had no intentions of visiting Russia.

Goldfarb said he didn’t have much of a reaction when the Russian media  accusations first came out, branding them as expected Russian state propaganda. But after hearing people call him a murderer, he had a “creepy feeling” and realized these kinds of accusations can have serious consequences.

Sellier said he and the others with him yesterday want a retraction of all accusations made by One Channel Russia and RT. Also, they want compensation for emotional distress and for the costs associated for the lawsuit.

Thirty thousand dollars has been raised on Goldfarb’s Go-Fund-Me pages, both in English and Russian, to help cover costs for this case.

When asked by a reporter if Sellier had a message for Putin, he chuckled and said, “It’s all in the case copy I gave you.”

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