Dear friends,
The Israeli government’s unrelenting attacks on Palestinian people continue, with hundreds killed and tens of thousands displaced. There’s talk of a cease-fire, but the enduring problem that we, as Americans, must address is our role in sustaining Israel’s subjugation of Palestinians in their own land. There’s new legislation before Congress, HR 2590
To promote and protect the human rights of Palestinians living under Israeli military occupation and to ensure that United States taxpayer funds are not used by the Government of Israel to support the military detention of Palestinian children, the unlawful seizure, appropriation, and destruction of Palestinian property and forcible transfer of civilians in the West Bank, or further annexation of Palestinian land in violation of international law.
Please use this tool to contact your representative and senators and call for them to take action to end the US policy of arming Israel and defending the indefensible assaults on Palestinian people.
The terrifying truth is that any government has the capacity to misuse its power to turn some of its people into criminals. I am happy to announce to launch of the Anti-Criminalization Platform from the People’s Plan NYC. The policy recommendations address the multiple problems with the current ‘justice’ system, including those that entrap young people, Black families, immigrant families, and survivors of domestic, sexual or gender-based violence, among others, in a web of criminalizing encounters with the police, ACS, and ICE. Anti-criminalization is more than defunding the police.
Check out the Anti-Criminalization Platform and broaden your understanding of the issues.
Defund the police remains a misunderstood term. Personally, I’m willing to jettison the language and keep the concept. The big idea is to build safer communities and call on unarmed, properly trained public employees to address the dangers of living among others. Street safety is a prime example of a need best addressed by public servants who are not police. In March, the City Council passed legislation that established
a crash investigation and analysis unit in the Department of Transportation, which would investigate, analyze and report on all vehicle crashes involving significant injury, make recommendations for safety-improving changes to street design and infrastructure, and post reports of its crash reviews.
Incredibly, the Mayor returned the bill unsigned, in spite of having won concessions to allow the police to retain their role of gathering evidence of recklessness following a crash. The bill became law without his signature.
Meanwhile, state legislators are in the final stretch of their session and there are multiple pieces of legislation pertaining to street safety under consideration. These include bills allowing NYC to lower speed limits, install speed cameras, and create a NYS bill of rights for crash victims and their families.
Let your legislators know that street safety is a priority. This is a ready-made action.
The warm weather is here along with confusing mask guidance. The good news is that new cases of COVID have dropped significantly and the city’s positivity rate is under 1.5 percent. High rates of vaccination are making a significant difference.
The city has given out 7,682,972 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine so far, and aims to have five million New Yorkers fully vaccinated by June.
NextGen, a diverse group of youth activists, is on a campaign to Save Summer by texting a million young people to encourage them to get vaccinated. If you have a teenager at home, perhaps they would like to put their thumbs to work for this good cause.
Sign up to text bank young people to encourage them to get vaccinated!
And finally, an invitation to see a short film tonight called "Fridge < a tentacular digestion >." The film was directed by Troy Ogilvie, one of the original team of four behind the community fridge on E. 2nd Street. It is narrated by our fourth grade friends Alejandra and Caden from PS 131!
Tune in at 7:30 PM to see the whole Beyond The Machine broadcast from The Juilliard School tonight (this film will come on around 8:20).
Have a great day!
with love,
L