By Mary Alice Miller
It began two years ago, when the congregation of New Life Tabernacle sought to watch the historic election returns that culminated with Barack Obama winning the presidency. They rented a large flat-screen television for the event. The not-so-simple contract contained a rent-to-own interest rate of 400-500%. Two year later, Governor David Paterson signed into law the strongest rent-to-own consumer protections in the country.
Rev. Robinson was honored at New Life Tabernacle for his efforts leading to the change. He preached, marched, testified at public hearings, and got himself arrested. Family, friends, elected and appointed officials gathered to celebrate Robinson’s achievement.
NYPD Chief Gerald Nelson, Brooklyn North, called Rev. Robinson “a close friend and a hard working advocate. He chose a path the activist way. If I have to be arrested to turn this injustice around, to fight this battle, then I will sacrifice myself. Each time that happened, we made sure he went through the process nicely. We need people like Taharka Robinson who are willing to sacrifice, go out and do the things to make our community that much safer. We have a spokesperson, a fighter like Taharka Robinson who goes out and gives his all – offers himself away from his family – to fight for those causes.” Nelson acknowledged Bishop Eric Figueroa and his wife for “the great work that he does for those causes that affect our community.”
Councilwoman Letitia James recounted an incident when “bullets were flying outside this church, it was the Chief that kept the members here safe. He assured that there were police officers patrolling around this ‘armor of Zion’. On behalf of the members of New Life Tabernacle, James thanked Chief Nelson.
Errol Louis, the new anchor of NY1, congratulated Robinson. Louis recalled Robinson asked him to witness situations that were “kind of hairy, even for a journalist. Going into certain housing projects, staring down gang members. I want to say to the church, you have a gem. He has the heart of a lion. He wants to fight for you and this community. That is good enough for me. I want to acknowledge the work of Kirsten Foy, Bishop Figueroa, Chief Nelson, and Council member James “What they have done [regarding Rent-a-Center] is really important. We are talking about consumer rip-offs; the things that bleed the money, life and hope out of the community one transaction at a time. To put a spotlight on it, to put a halt to it, to turn it around may not be flashy, may not make a lot of big headlines, is important. These are folks who are going to turn this community around.”
Public Advocate Bill deBlasio told the congregation it has much to be proud of, including its role in the community. “We are honoring two of the new breed of activists who combine their spiritual life and their community life
seamlessly and give us much hope. When you see a new generation of leaders rising, it reminds you anything is possible.” DeBlasio said he has seen Rev. Taharka Robinson from “his early days as apolitical activist; a guy who was ready to go knock on every door to get the job done. Now, he is more and more a leader every day. I remembered first meeting Kirstem Foy when he was a student activist; now he is someone who is changing the face of this city, and has the energy and creativity to make a huge difference.” This is a day to be “very proud and hopeful,” said de Blasio. He presented plaques with the gold seal of the Public Advocate’s office to Rev. Robinson, Bishop Figueroa and Kirsten Foy.
Assembly woman Annette Robinson said as a young child Taharka “was watching when we fought for Randolph Evans; when were went out on Eastern Parkway after Gavin Cato was killed. There were so many others we stood for, because we believe in justice. It was always a bitter sweet moment for me each time he stood out and said ‘I am going to get arrested.’ The fruits of his labor have been born. Legislation had been offered, but nothing had happened to it. It was at a stand still. He came and got involved. He outworked seasoned legislators up in Albany. He worked both houses. He talked to people I didn’t even talk to. He talked to the and said ‘We need to get this legislation passed.’
A good climate came to be; the Senate and Assembly was in sink. We didn’t have a [democratic] majority on the Senate side before. Taharka went up there and put it together. It was a joyous day when we passed the legislation. Taharka is the youngest in our family. He has soared to the front of the class in his activism and spiritual development. We thank God for the journey, and the love, concern and commitment he continues to use each and every day.”
During her remarks, Assemblywoman Robinson noted that “Every day we see those RAC trucks in our community going to someone’s house. So, we don’t know where the bedbugs came from.”
Councilwoman James presented a proclamation from the City Council and from State Senator Charles Schumer. When his young daughter Mea sang “Never Could Have Made It,” Rev. Robinson beamed with pride as he fought back tears of joy.
Rev. Conrad Tillard from Nazarine Congregational Church said he was compelled to pay tribute to “these great men of God. Bishop Figueroa is wise enough to know you have to train young ministers coming behind you, like Taharka Robinson.”
Bishop Figueroa told an amusing story of how Rev. Robinson got the governor’s personal cell phone number in order to lobby on behalf of getting the legislation signed. “I Thank God for Taharka,” said Figueroa. “He is committed. Speaking to Rev. Robinson, Bishop Figueroa said, “I am proud of you.” To the congregation Figueroa said, “I love Taharka because he is not for sale.” Other large congregations have tried to recruit Rev. Robinson, but he made a commitment to New Life Tabernacle.
Of Kirsten Foy, Bishop Figueroa said “He is a great mind – articulate. There is nothing worse that having unintelligible language representing you. Kirsten is a brilliant young man with a tremendous future.”
Holding up the framed rent-to-own law with the pen Governor Paterson used to sign it, Rev. Taharka Robinson told of going from being “a law breaker to being a law maker.” Robinson recalled the long line of clergy who engaged in the coupling of “evangelism and activism” including Rev. William Augustus Jones, Rev. Herbert Daughtry, and Rev. Al Sharpton who were based in Brooklyn, because “this is the largest concentration of African Americans in the country. “I remain committed to the cause,” said Rev. Robinson.
Tags: "Never Could Have Made It", Annette Robinson, Barack Obama, bill DeBlasio, Bishop Eric Figueroa, City Council, councilwoman letitia james, Errol Louis, Gavin Cato, Governor David Paterson, Kirsten Foy, Mea, Nazarine Congregational Church, New Life Tabernacle, NYPD Cheif Gerald Nelson, Randolph Evans, Rev. Conrad Tillard, Rev. Robinson, Senate and Assembly, State Senator Charles Schumer
During his yearlong quest for Mayor, Bill Thompson faced the biggest multi-million dollar campaign juggernaut in municipal history. He did so with style, grace and a gentlemanly comportment. The Thompson campaign spent election night at the New York Hilton, where hundreds of supporters packed the ballroom.
A Who’s Who of Democratic leadership made remarks. Moderated by Harlem Assemblyman Keith Wright, those who addressed the crowd during the hours as the vote count between Bloomberg and Thompson remained tight (48% to 49%) included Norman Seabrook of the Corrections Officers Association, DC 37′s Exec. Dir. Lillian Roberts, President of RWDSU Stewart Applebaum, President of the Uniformed Firefighters Association Steve Cassidy, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, Bronx Borough President Reuben Diaz, Jr., Councilwoman Letitia James, Assemblyman Darryl Towns, Assemblyman Espaillat, NYS Comptroller Tom Dinapoli, Assemblywoman Debra Glick, Assemblyman Jeff Genowitz, Congressman Anthony Weiner, and Rev. Al Sharpton.
Bill DeBlasio said “our candidate Bill Thompson is one of the most decent people in public life. He has done everything right. He has served with distinction. Bill Thompson has served us well. John Liu told the crowd that Bill Thompson “has confounded” every pollster, referring to re-election polls that inflated Bloomberg’s lead. Liu said, “we have seen results that speak well of democracy in NYC.” NYS Senate President Pro Tempore Malcolm Smith said, “It is Thompson’s time.”
As the night wore on, the crowds jubilant mood began to change as word spread that the vote total moved to 51% for Bloomberg, 46% for Thompson.
Governor Paterson said he could not leave the stage without telling the truth, “The fact is, there are too many Democrats who stayed home today, because they listened to the polls. They stayed home because they listened to people who represented everybody else’s interests except there own. Democrats need to believe in a Democratic party and those that represent the Democratic party – fighting against poor housing; fighting against drugs; crime; unemployment and underemployment. Fighting for decent educational facilities. Fighting to save the environment. And fighting for the education of our children.” Paterson added, “I want to congratulate Bill for not giving up.”
Bill Thompson was called to the stage with the crowd chanting, “Billy! Billy!” and was greeted by warm, enthusiastic applause.
Thompson’s words announcing he had just called to congratulate Michael Bloomberg was met with disapproving boos at the election results. Thompson said, “Although we have had our differences, we have always found common ground in our deep desire to serve this city. And to build a better future for this city.” He added, “And I pledge to do whatever I can to put the differences of the campaign behind us. And help him move this city forward as we work to address some very serious challenges.”
With his head held high, Thompson said, “Tonight when the final votes are counted, the results will not be in our favor yet we still have much to be proud of. This campaign was about standing up for your core values. This campaign was about standing strong, standing tall, and never backing down in the face of a formidable challenge. We are New Yorkers, That’s what we do.”
“The work we started during this campaign doesn’t end tonight, in fact, it’s just beginning,” said Thompson. “I’ll continue to work with you to make this city better. For others. It is our duty to make sure the issues we highlighted do not fade back into the shadows of our public dialog.”
Thompson said he learned about public service from parents, a school teacher and an appellate court judge. He said, by their example, “I dedicated my life to giving back to this city that has given so much to me.”
Citywide voter turnout was 1.1 million votes. Preliminary results are Bloomberg 51% (557, 059 votes); Thompson 46% (506,717 votes). Thompson won Brooklyn by 18,331 votes, and took the Bronx with 32,755 more votes than Bloomberg.
Mayor Bloomberg spent upward of $90 million dollars, outspending Thompson by 14-to-1. With an average of $157.27 per Bloomberg vote compared to $13.12 per vote for Thompson, some attendees noted that Thompson may indeed be the better money manager.
Thompson ended his remarks by saying, “Your support, your enthusiasm and desire for change is what carried me to this point. We may not have won this election, and yet I know, this campaign had to be waged. I’ll never forget how much you gave to our cause”
In central Brooklyn, election night affirmed the results of the primary. Councilwoman Letitia James won with 92% of the vote; Al Vann 63%; Mathieu Eugene 94%; Darlene Mealy 95%; and Charles Barron 93%. Jumaane Williams, who unseated Kendall Stewart, won with 76% of the vote.
Public Advocate elect Bill DeBlasio won with 77% and John Liu, Comptroller elect, won with 76%.
Tags: Add new tag, al vann, assemblyman darryl towns, assemblyman espaillat, bill DeBlasio, Bill thompson, billionaire, bronx borough president, charles barron, congressman anthony weiner, corrections officers association, councilwoman letitia james, darlene mealy, dc 37, executive director lilian roberts, Governor Paterson, harlem assemblyman, john liu, Jumaane Williams, keith wright, Kendall Stewart, Malcolm Smith, manhattan borough president, mathieu eugene, Mayor Bloomberg, norman seabrook, NYS comptroller tom dinapoli assemblywoman debra glick assemblyman jeff genowitz, NYS Senate President Pro Tempore, president of rwdsu stewart applebaum, reuben diaz jru, rev. al sharpton, scott stringer, steve cassidy, stewart applebaum, uniformed firefighters association
