Thousands of New Yorkers March Across Brooklyn Bridge to Protest Family Separation
Some estimates put the crowd at 25,000 to 30,000, despite temperatures in the 90s.
Brooklynites Call for End to ‘Child Concentration Camps’ at Borough Hall Rally Thursday
Several hundred people gathered outside Brooklyn Borough Hall Thursday to protest a widely criticized Trump administration policy of separating children from their families when they migrate across the U.S. border.
Want to Vote in the 2016 Presidential Primary in New York? Enroll in Your Party by October 9
New York’s presidential primary vote doesn’t happen until April 19, 2016, but if you’re planning to participate and aren’t already enrolled for your party, you do so by this Friday, October 9, according to the NYC Campaign Finance Board.
Does De Blasio Help Developers, Architects Who Donate to Nonprofit?
Compared to three-term, self-funding, former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Mayor Bill de Blasio and his administration have a far more transactional relationship with backers. Many donors are seeking and expecting business benefits if they help promote the current mayor’s policy agenda, according to a story in Politico New York.
The mayor has so far raised $3,870,000 from unions and developers, among others, who donate to a nonprofit de Blasio set up in December 2013 to promote his agenda, called The Campaign for One New York. (The group is not subject to the rules of the Campaign Finance Board, either, and contributors often donate anonymously.)
“So Brooklyn” Activist Linda Sarsour Wants Borough to Secede — Also to Be Its Mayor
Linda Sarsour — the Brooklyn-born Executive Director of the Arab American Association of New York — has her sights set on a future City Council bid, borough presidency, and eventual Mayorship of an independent Brooklyn, according to a mostly gushing profile in this weekend’s New York Times.
Sarsour has been involved with the city’s politics since joining the Arab American Association in 2001. In the years since, she’s fought the Police Department’s systematic spying on members of New York’s Muslim population, and worked on improving immigration policy, boosting voter registration, fighting Islamophobia and, most recently, advocating and organizing for the Black Lives Matter movement.
In addition to enumerating Sarsour’s many accomplishments, the article reads like a love-letter to her Brooklyn bonafides. Below are Sarsour’s top seven Brooklyn credentials as featured by Times political writer Alan Feuer, in reverse order.
Closing Bell: Participatory Budgeting Results Tallied and Available on Interactive Map
The votes have been tallied in all the City Council districts taking part in the City’s participatory budgeting process — where citizens get to develop and then vote on projects in their neighborhoods that will be paid for by the city. And now the results can be seen on an interactive map. City Council districts are clearly marked, and by clicking on each project, you can find out how much is being spent to do what.
When we last checked in on the process, votes had been tallied only in districts 33, 39 and 45. Now results are in for the rest of the borough’s participating districts: 34, 44, 47 and 38 (not all council members participated in the process).
In District 34, which includes Bushwick and Williamsburg, $700,000 will be spent to upgrade the playgrounds at the Williamsburg Houses and at Brooklyn Arbor School and pedestrian safety will be improved on Meeker Avenue, among other projects.
Queens Art Express wants YOU to get engaged
The Queens Council on the Arts is getting provocative this year at the Queens Art Express festival, asking neighbors to voice their opinions and ideas on hot political issues like healthcare and affordable housing.
Today through Sunday, check out events in Long Island City, Astoria, and Rockaway. This year, it’s all about social change and “making a new world.”
You can get involved on their website poll, visit a ton of galleries and exhibits borough-wide, even hear artists talk policy in 3 different forums over the next few days.
Video source: Queens Arts Express on Facebook
Jews against the Internet rally at Citi Field
Sometimes the Internet seems evil with all its pop-up ads, false information, ashleymadison.com. Ultra-orthodox Jews have had enough. On May 20, they will gather at Citi Field to denounce the World Wide Web, the Jewish Press reports. The goal of the event is “to combat the evils of the Internet and the damages caused by advanced electronic devices,” according to the online publication. The event will reportedly cost $15 million, none of which was raised through Kickstarter.
Battle in the Borough – Addabbo vs Ulrich
[blackbirdpie url=”https://twitter.com/#!/QueensChronicle/status/194813009896542209″]
Francisco Moya Singing Across the Aisle
State Assemblyman Francisco Moya (D-Jackson Heights) tells the Epoch Times that there is a hot karaoke scene at an undisclosed location in Albany, where Republican and Democratic legislators sing together in harmony. So if it’s Wednesday night upstate, and you hear a group of off tune guys and gals in suits, they are probably your representatives. Who knows, maybe the gang is getting ready to perform in our borough’s Legislative Review, or with Councilman Peter Vallone (D-Astoria) and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
