Dear friends,
The walls were closing in on Cuomo, but his resignation on Tuesday was still a bit of a shock. Two weeks notice seems like more than we need, however, and his successor noted, “It’s not what I asked for.”
We’ve got pressing business that needs attention.
Sign Common Cause’s petition to Cuomo demanding that he step down immediately.
This week, I learned, among other things, how to pronounce Kathy Hochul’s name, which rhymes with vocal.
Hochul calls herself a progressive, which is interesting, given her political back story. As a clerk of Erie County, she was firmly opposed to allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain drivers licenses. As a Congresswoman, she had an A-rating from the National Rifle Association.
As I’ve learned more about Hochul, who is from Buffalo, I am reminded of when Gillibrand was first appointed to fill the Senate seat vacated by Hillary Clinton.
Gillibrand’s upstate district was overwhelmingly white and she held some provincial views. Gillibrand has been open about her political evolution. She has moved dramatically on immigration and gun control and has emerged as an important voice for reforming the military and securing rights for immigrants, women, and LGBTQ+ people.
Hochul also appears to be someone learning and thinking on the job. She reversed her position on issuing drivers licenses to undocumented immigrants and in 2018, she rallied support for gun control legislation in the state senate. In addition, she supported the Fight for $15 and New York’s Paid Family Leave Act.
We have an opportunity to contribute to Hochul’s political education and to support her as she edges along the glass cliff.
After men resign in scandal, female leaders are often asked to clean up the messes left behind. The phenomenon is so familiar it has a name: the glass cliff. A derivation of the glass ceiling, it refers to women being elevated to positions of power when things are going poorly, creating a greater risk of failure.
Hochul is inheriting, among other things, the current wave of the pandemic, a housing crisis, and the state’s faulty rent relief program.
As of Aug. 9, the state had distributed about $98.6 million to landlords of tenants in more than 7,000 households with tenants who fell behind on rent during the pandemic. Less than $1 million had gone out in the first two months of the program. Still, the nearly $100 million distributed so far is less than 4% of the $2.7 billion available that needs to get to tenants in need.
The federal eviction moratorium, courtesy of the CDC, goes until October 3, but it does not prevent landlords from filing for evictions; it should prevent people from being removed from their homes. Still, we need action at the state level.
Call on the soon-to-be-Governor to extend New York’s eviction moratorium and accelerate the distribution of rent relief.
There’s some debate over whether the governor can extend the eviction moratorium on her own. An extension may require action by the legislature. Apparently, legislators are scheduled to meet this week and next to address the problems with the rent relief program.
Contact your Assembly member and state senator and demand swift action to release the funds and extend the state eviction moratorium. Here’s a sample message.
We are going to seize the opportunity to work with our new Governor to pursue a bold agenda to meet this moment, including Fair Pay for Home Care and the Climate and Community Investment Act. More on all of that soon.
On Tuesday evening, I was in a panel discussion with Gloria Pan of Moms Rising, a group that is educating and mobilizing more than a million Americans to
Bring the voices and real world experiences of women and mothers straight to our local, state, and nation's leaders;
Amplify women's voices and policy issues in the national dialogue & in the media across all platforms (from print, to radio, to blogs, social media, and more);
Accelerate grassroots impact on Capitol Hill and at state capitols across the country;
Hold corporations accountable for fair treatment of women and mothers & for ensuring the safety of their products.
As a justice-seeking generalist, I rely on the work of more specialized advocacy groups to inform our actions. Since there are always difficult choices to make about what to include on any given day, I recommend two quick actions today:
Join Moms Rising.
Contact your Congressional representative to ask them to raise the minimum wage.
We are going to be hot today, and so it seems like a good day for some climate action. Pour yourself a tall glass of water.
The battle against NRG’s proposed power plant in Astoria, Queens is underway. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined local environmental groups to protest the plant, which will further contribute to the elevated levels of particulate pollution in Astoria and Long Island City. This battle needs reinforcements from all around the city and state.
Please make a second comment to let NYS decision-makers know that we oppose the new power plant planned for Astoria.
It’s bad enough that National Grid wants to build a fracked gas pipeline in North Brooklyn; to add insult to injury, they expect us to foot the bill for more fossil fuel infrastructure.
Call the Public Service Commission at 1-800-335-2120 right now and leave them a message telling them to reject National Grid's rate hike for the North Brooklyn Pipeline.
The injuries abound. The Indigenous Water Protectors working to halt construction on the Line 3 pipeline are determined to stop “a climate crime.”
More than 600 people have now been arrested or received citations over protests amid growing opposition to the Line 3 oil sands pipeline currently under construction through Minnesota.
Protests against Line 3 are becoming a national and international cause as demonstrators seek to highlight the environmental impact of the pipeline, especially amid an escalating climate crisis that is caused by fossil fuel emissions.
Donate to the Lakota People’s Law Project Action Center to help secure treaty land and water rights, stop the tar sands pipelines, and defend native voting rights, health, and safety. Sign their Line 3 petition, too.
I’m taking a long weekend and I’ll be back on Monday. Stay cool and hydrated.
with love,
L