Press Statements
June 29, 2023
CONTACT: Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org, 203 470 9979
MAYOR ADAMS’ BUDGET FAILS NEW YORKERS: VOCAL-NY WARNS OF DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES TO COME
VOCAL-NY Joins Allies in Calling on Councilmembers to Vote NO on the Budget
NEW YORK — Today, in response to a press conference announcing a handshake deal on Mayor Adams’ dangerous budget proposal, which includes a $2 billion raise for the NYPD while slashing investments in services, VOCAL-NY released the following statement, attributable to Jawanza Williams, Director of Organizing for VOCAL-NY:
“We have long called for an end to criminalization and investment in care, yet this budget deal guts our social services safety net and expands the budget of NYPD.
When we are evicted and trapped in a broken shelter system, overdoses continue to rise, our students and teachers run out of learning tools, and the only people who are paid to respond are cops, it is Mayor Eric Adams we will blame. The mayor’s conservative logic is incompatible with the lived experiences of low-income, working class New Yorkers and does not bode well for 2024. Despite our rallying, advocacy, organizing, and numerous evidence-based reports published supporting our recommendations, our demands for a budget that invests in communities and care were met with little to no response.
This administration has consistently demonstrated itself to be either incapable or unwilling to make the lifesaving community investments that this moment demands, and New Yorkers have been condemned to live with the consequences. Mayor Eric Adams dealt the city council a bad hand and we simply cannot accept a strong-armed city budget that disregards the plight of our communities. We call on the city council to vote no on a budget that does not protect our most vulnerable New Yorkers.
BACKGROUND:
VOCAL-NY has worked in coalition with Communities United for Police Reform and The People’s Plan on the People’s Budget Campaign to demand the city invests in social services and care, instead of policing and criminalization.
Earlier this year, Mayor Adams proposed a regressive austerity agenda that made cuts to housing and homelessness service providers, public libraries, schools, CUNY, and other essential services that marginalized communities rely on, such as support for housing and mental health. Instead, Adams prioritized ensuring that harmful agencies like the NYPD and DOC were spared from any cuts.
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