Press Statements

BREAKING: Challenging Wrongful Convictions Act Pass Key Legislative Committee

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CONTACT:Nick Encalada-Malinowski, nick@vocal-ny.org, 347-259-4835 CHALLENGING WRONGFUL CONVICTIONS ACT PASSES KEY ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE, MOMENTUM GROWS FOR PASSAGE BY LEGISLATURE THIS SESSION Advocates and Bill Sponsors Optimistic About Passage after Vote which Follows a New Poll That Shows Broad Bipartisan Support For The Bill Among New Yorkers  ALBANY, N.Y. – Formerly incarcerated organizers and activists, including people exonerated from wrongful convictions […]

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VOCAL-NY Celebrates Passage of the Safer Consumption Services Act Through Assembly Health Committee, Calls on Senate to Act

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CONTACT: Jasmine Budnella, jasmine@vocal-ny.org, 720-480-5262 VOCAL-NY CELEBRATES PASSAGE OF THE SAFER CONSUMPTION SERVICES ACT THROUGH ASSEMBLY HEALTH COMMITTEE, CALLS ON SENATE TO ACT The Safer Consumption Services Act Would Authorize Overdose Prevention Centers to Open Across the State In New York City, Overdose Prevention Centers Have Saved More Than 280 Lives from Fatal Overdoses ALBANY,

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VOCAL-NY Responds to Death of Dashawn Carter, Fourth Death on Rikers Island This Year

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CONTACT:Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org VOCAL-NY RESPONDS TO DEATH OF DASHAWN CARTER, FOURTH DEATH ON RIKERS ISLAND THIS YEAR NEW YORK – Today, in response to news of the death Dashawn Carter, a 25-year-old homeless manwho took his own life while detained on Rikers Island – the fourth death on Rikers Island this year – VOCAL-NY released the following statement, attributable

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VOCAL-NY Responds to Mass Shooting and Hate Crime at Buffalo Supermarket

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VOCAL-NY Leaders in Buffalo Will Join Allies at a Vigil on Sunday Morning  BUFFALO, N.Y. —  In response to the racially motivated shooting at a Tops supermarket in a predominantly Black community on Jefferson Avenue in Buffalo, VOCAL-NY has released the following statements from our Buffalo community leaders: “I’m a Black man who lives in Buffalo. I’m already afraid

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VOCAL-NY Responds to Mayor Adams Budget Proposal

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CONTACT: Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org, 203 470 9979 VOCAL-NY RESPONDS TO MAYOR ADAMS BUDGET PROPOSAL NEW YORK — In response to Mayor Adams announcement of his administration’s Budget Proposal for Fiscal Year 2023, VOCAL-NY released the following statement, attributable to Althea Matthews, a Homelessness Union leader and New York City-based harm reduction street outreach worker who is currently experiencing

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NEW POLL: Majority of New Yorkers Support Expanding Overdose Prevention Centers & Decriminalization of Drug Possession

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CONTACT Jasmine Budnella, Jasmine@vocal-ny.org, 720-480-5262 Mariah McGough, Mariah@vocal-ny.org, 203 470 9979 NEW POLL: MAJORITY OF NEW YORKERS SUPPORT EXPANDING OVERDOSE PREVENTION CENTERS & DECRIMINALIZATION OF DRUG POSSESSION  See Exclusive Coverage of the Polling in City & State; Poll Shows Support Across All Regions Of New York NEW YORK – Today, VOCAL-NY released polling conducted by

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VOCAL-NY Responds to the Police Assault of an 8-Year-Old in Syracuse

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CONTACT: Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org VOCAL-NY RESPONDS TO THE POLICE ASSAULT OF AN 8-YEAR-OLD IN SYRACUSE This is a Clear Example of Criminalizing Poverty SYRACUSE, N.Y. — In response to the arrest of an 8-year-old boy in Syracuse on Tuesday, VOCAL-NY released the following response: “Under no circumstance does an alleged possession of a bag of chips warrant

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VOCAL-NY Responds to the Police Assault of an 8-Year-Old in Syracuse

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CONTACT: Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org VOCAL-NY RESPONDS TO THE POLICE ASSAULT OF AN 8-YEAR-OLD IN SYRACUSEThis is a Clear Example of Criminalizing Poverty SYRACUSE, N.Y. — In response to the arrest of an 8-year-old boy in Syracuse on Tuesday, VOCAL-NY released the following response: “Under no circumstance does an alleged possession of a bag of chips warrant excessive force and dismissal

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NEW: VOCAL-NY Releases Roadmap With Immediate Steps for Mayor Adams to Reverse Harm and End Homelessness

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CONTACT: Mariah McGough, Mariah@vocal-ny.org NEW: VOCAL-NY RELEASES ROADMAP WITH IMMEDIATE STEPS FOR MAYOR ADAMS TO REVERSE HARM AND END HOMELESSNESS Roadmap Available Online Here The Roadmap Comes Ahead of the Adams Administration’s Anticipated Housing Plan and After Hundreds of Encampment Sweeps Across the City NEW YORK — Today, after a press conference in Fulton St. Station, VOCAL-NY released a roadmap with immediate actions the Adams Administration can

NEW: VOCAL-NY Releases Roadmap With Immediate Steps for Mayor Adams to Reverse Harm and End Homelessness Read More »

Gov. Hochul, You Failed Us: VOCAL-NY Condemns Final Budget That Neglects Homeless New Yorkers and Enables Mass Incarceration

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CONTACT Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org, 203 470 9979 GOV. HOCHUL, YOU FAILED US: VOCAL-NY CONDEMNS FINAL BUDGET THAT NEGLECTS HOMELESS NEW YORKERS AND ENABLES MASS INCARCERATION After Promises to be Different Than Cuomo, Gov. Hochul Final Budget Offers More of the Same Failed Tactics, Without Investments in Evidence-Based Solutions Gov. Hochul Will Have a Direct Hand in the

Gov. Hochul, You Failed Us: VOCAL-NY Condemns Final Budget That Neglects Homeless New Yorkers and Enables Mass Incarceration Read More »

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