As we enter the sphere of President Trump, we must make a thoroughgoing analysis of the choices that lay before us. Mr. Trump’s relationship with white supremacists and antilabor corporate leaders in and out of his incoming administration has given many people pause. “The Choice” campaign, led by the December 12th Movement, has held many community forums and rallies geared toward Black self-determination and a plebiscite [referendum] on our national status.
On the 2nd day of Kwanzaa, “Kujichagulia”, meaning Self-Determination; a special event, “A Nation Within A Nation”, celebrating Black people’s human right to self-determination, will be held on December 27, 2016 at 7 PM at Sistas’ Place at 456 Nostrand Avenue [corner of Jefferson Ave], Brooklyn, NY.
Omowale Clay
A forum held in Brooklyn last week intensified The Choice campaign. “The question is, ‘Who are we?’ declared Omowale Clay. Here we are, over 40 million Africans in the United States, yet we are not part of the United States. When we walk outside we see the fundamental reality. We are left out of the process of defining who we are. If you can’t define it, then you are a victim of someone else’s definition.”
“White nationalists say, ‘This country belongs to us!’ Black people don’t control anything. What don’t we control?” he asked the people. One by one, some answered, “housing, education, the means of production and distribution, politics, foreign policy, resources, food supply, health care, criminal justice system”.
Clay said, “The one thing we can control is our minds. If we look at our history, many of our greatest leaders taught us we are in fact, a nation within a nation. At the first Pan-African Conference in London in July 1900, W.E.B. DuBois issued an ‘Address to the Nations of the World’ which included the declaration: ‘The problem of the 20th Century is the problem of the color line’.
Malcolm X declared himself a ‘Black nationalist freedom fighter’ in his 1964 “Ballot or the Bullet” speech. He went on to say: “So today, though Islam is my religious philosophy, my political, economic and social philosophy is Black nationalism. It is time for us to take action as a people.”
For more information call the December 12th Movement at [718]398-1766.
Donald Trump has just finished the last of his nine post-election “thank-you tour” rallies. Why did he do them? And why is he planning further rallies after he becomes president?
One clue is that Trump conducted them only in the states he won. And most attendees appeared to have voted for him — overwhelmingly white, and many wearing Trump hats and T-shirts. When warm-up speakers asked how many had previously attended a Trump rally, most hands went up.
A second clue is that rather than urge followers to bury the hatchet, Trump wound them up. “It’s a movement,” he said in Mobile, playfully telling the crowd that in the run-up to the election, “You people were vicious, violent, screaming, ‘Where’s the wall?’ ‘We want the wall!’ Screaming, ‘Prison!’ ‘Prison!’ ‘Lock her up!’ I mean, you were going crazy. You were nasty and mean and vicious.” He called his followers “wild beasts.”
A third clue: Rather than shift from campaigning to governing, Trump’s post-election rallies were almost identical to the rallies he held when he was a candidate — the same format, identical pledges (“We will build a great wall!”) and same condemnations of the “dishonest” media. They also elicited many of the same audience responses, such as “Lock her up! Lock her up!”
And rather than use the rallies to forgive those who criticized him during the campaign, he employed them to settle scores — criticizing politicians who opposed his candidacy, like Ohio Gov. John Kasich; blasting media personalities who predicted he would lose, such as CNN’s John King; and mocking opponents, such as Evan McMullin, the Republican who campaigned against him as an independent in Utah.
Trump vows to continue these rallies after he becomes president. As he told the crowd in Mobile, “They’re saying, ‘As president, he shouldn’t be doing rallies.’ But I think we should, right? We’ve done everything else the opposite. This is the way you get an honest word out.”
“Get an honest word out?” There’s the real tipoff.
Like his non-stop tweets, Trump’s purpose in holding these rallies is to connect directly with a large and enthusiastic base of followers who will believe what he says — and thereby reject facts from mainstream media, policy analysts, government agencies that collect data and the scientific community.
During his just-completed “thank-you tour,” Trump repeatedly claimed, for example, that the murder rate in the United States is the largest it’s been in 45 years. In fact, it’s near a 50-year low, according to the FBI.
He also repeatedly said he won the election by a “landslide,” when in fact he lost the popular vote by 2.8 million votes — over five times Al Gore’s margin over George W. Bush in 2000.
And he repeatedly asserted that the election was marred by “massive voting fraud,” when in fact there has been no evidence of voting fraud at all (unless you consider the possibility that Russia hacked into our voting systems — which Trump dismisses).
A democracy depends on truth. Trump’s claims that the murder rate is soaring may elicit support for policies such as harsher policing and sentencing — the opposite of what we need. His assertions that he won by a landslide may give him a mandate he doesn’t deserve. His claims of “massive voter fraud” could legitimize further efforts to suppress votes through rigid ID and other requirements.
If repeatedly told Muslims are the enemy, the public may support efforts to monitor them and their places of worship inside America, or even to confine them. If told that tide of undocumented immigrants is rising (in fact, it’s been falling), the public could get behind draconian policies to keep them out.
If told to ignore scientific evidence of climate change, the public may reject efforts to reverse it. If told to disregard CIA reports of Russian tampering with our elections, the public could become less vigilant about future tampering.
In short, the rallies and tweets give Trump an unprecedented platform for telling Big Lies without fear of contradiction — and therefore for advancing whatever agenda he wishes.
It’s no coincidence that Trump continues to denigrate the media and hasn’t held a news conference since July.
A president intent on developing a base of enthusiastic supporters who believe boldface lies poses a clear threat to American democracy. This is how tyranny begins.
Robert Reich, one of the nation’s leading experts on work and the economy, is Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley. He has served in three national administrations, most recently as secretary of labor under President Bill Clinton. Time Magazine has named him one of the ten most effective cabinet secretaries of the last century. He has written 13 books, including his latest best-seller, “Aftershock: The Next Economy and America’s Future;” “The Work of Nations,” which has been translated into 22 languages; and his newest, an e-book, “Beyond Outrage.” His syndicated columns, television appearances, and public radio commentaries reach millions of people each week. He is also a founding editor of the American Prospect magazine, and Chairman of the citizen’s group Common Cause. His new movie “Inequality for All” is in Theaters. His widely-read blog can be found at www.robertreich.org.
On December 19th, President Barack Obama grants clemency to 231 federal inmates, he issued 78 pardons and commuted the sentences of 153 prisoners. To date, his acts of clemency totals 1,324– the largest ever for any US President. He has commuted the sentences of 1,178, including 395 serving life sentences. A pardon eradicates any legal liabilities from a conviction. A commutation will shorten actual prison time but does not eliminate a conviction nor restore rights which were lost. President Obama’s actions are an effort to free inmates, mostly African-Americans and Latinos, serving lengthy sentences, the result of the government’s “War On Drugs”. The 12/19 clemency action may not be the last for the Obama White House.
White male millionaire Jean Louis Goldwater Bourgeois will give a little bit of Manhattan back to Native Americans. He will transfer the deed of his $4 million landmarked West Village house, located at 6 Weehawken Street, to a nonprofit controlled by the Lenape tribe, indigenous Manhattan people. The Lenapes were the original inhabitants of Manhattan, land of many hills. Bourgeois advocates for Native American causes. He recently returned to NY after spending two months in North Dakota protesting the proposed pipeline near the Sioux Standing Rock Indian Reservation.
DECEMBER PARTIES
The Apollo Theater presented “The First Noel”, the Classical Theatre of Harlem’s endearing musical about home, memories and family traditions………. The Uptown Dance Academy presented its “21st Black Nutcracker Show”, a Xmas/Kwanzaa dance/music confection which includes music by Tchaikovsky and Ellington and dance genres like ballet, African, modern and hip-hop on 12/16 at the Hostos Center for Arts and Culture in the Bronx. Community Board 10 hosted a holiday celebration on 12/9 and presented a special award to Chet Whye, political strategist-cum-community advocate….Kenneth Morrison’s Lemor Realty hosted a lavish holiday gala at the subterranean hot spot Row House on 12/9, which was frequented by elected officials and mostly Gen-X real estate elites, as was the posh Horsford Group’s Alyah and Rob Annual Holiday Party at the Cove Lounge…….. The MLK Democrats hosted its Annual Toy Drive at the Kennedy Center, which was filled to overflow and politicos everywhere like Assemblywoman-elect Inez Dickens, retiring Congressman Charlie Rangel and the usual suspects, Democratic district leaders, judges, lawyers……………. Unlimited Contact duo Bob Tate and Dedra Tate hosted their Annual Toy Drive at Cove Lounge on 12/18. They got enough toys to open a gift shop.
CULTURE STUFF
Of the 32 Americans who qualified for the 2017 Rhodes Scholars Program, seven are African-Americans. Created in 1902, the Rhodes Scholarship is the highest award for American college students. The scholarship is for graduate study at Oxford University in England. The following is a list of the scholars and their college affiliation. Cameron D. Clarke: Howard; Aryn A. Frazier, University of Virginia; Christian E. Nattiel, West Point; Olivia A. Klevorn, Yale; Aaron C. Robertson, Princeton; Ahmed M. Ahmed, Cornell; and Caylin L. Moore, Texas Christian University.
HOLIDAY READING LIST
Ta-Nehisi Coates’ swan song interview with President Obama which is the Atlantic magazine cover story MY PRESIDENT WAS BLACK: A History of the First African- American White House – And Of What Came Next. It is going to be the talk of all post-holiday parties well into the New Year.
Lebron James
LeBron James is the Sports Illustrated magazine’s “Sportsman of the Year” in its 12/19 double issue. The magazine is chock-full of 2016 sports highlights and rising stars, including a Muhammad Ali remembrance and photo essay. African-American athletes from track, boxing, basketball and football dominate this issue, which looks like Ebony magazine back in the day.
Time magazine’s 2016 TOP 10 Fiction Books includes four titles by African-Americans: “The Underground Railroad” by Colson Whitehead, “Another Brooklyn” by Jacqueline Woodson, “Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi and “Swing Time” by Zadie Smith. On Time’s Top 10 Nonfiction list there are four titles by African-Americans including “Kill ‘Em and Leave, Searching for James Brown and the American Soul” by James McBride; “Hidden Figures”, about Black women mathematicians who were a part of the NASA space program, by Margot Lee Shetterly; Teju Cole’s “Known and Strange Things”, a book of essays; and “MARCH,Vol. 3”, by Congressman John Lewis.
Milton Allimadi’s second edition of his nonfiction monograph, “The Heart of Darkness: How White Writers Created the Racist Image of Africa”. This is a well-researched, cutting-edge, provocative indictment and study of how mainstream media purposely distorts news emanating from Out of Africa. Ugandan-born scholar Allimadi is the publisher of blackstarnews.com and an alum of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.
NEWSMAKERS
Happy Birthday, Dear Capricorns: Mary J. Blige, Morris Chestnut, IT entrepreneur Laurent Delly, Taye Diggs, real estate baron Walter Edwards, entertainment impresario Mary Flowers, George Foreman, attorney Wallace Ford; Cuba Gooding, Jr; Janet Jackson, Mae Jackson, LeBron James, LL Cool J, Steve Harvey, filmmaker Rafee Kamaal, UniWorld founder Byron Lewis, First Lady Michelle Obama, Elayne Richards, culture czar Voza Rivers, NYS Democrat ED, Basil Smikle and Denzel Washington.
Dandy Wellington, master of song, dance and style and his band will spend the holidays performing at the Sydney Opera House in Australia, where their engagement runs through late January…… Valerie Bradley, Harlem businesswoman and co-author of the book, “Harlem Travel Guide”, spends the holidays in Dakar, Senegal where she will attend a wedding……….Victoria Pannell, one of the Millennials referenced in WGO two weeks ago, got an early Xmas gift early admission to Duke University.
Howard Bingham
RIP: Howard Bingham, 77, died in Los Angeles last week. Bingham was Muhammad Ali’s best friend, confidant and photographer. Born in Mississippi, Bingham was raised in Los Angeles. A photo journalist, he worked for Life and Sports Illustrated magazines, photographed world leaders and celebrities. He published numerous photo essays of Ali, his friend for 50 years. He also dabbled in electoral politics, which died with his primary bid. His marriage, which ended in divorce, produced two sons, Dustin and Damian.
RIP: African Sun-Times Publisher Dr. Chika Onyeani died last week. An African Diaspora advocate, he was a household name to Continental Africans, stateside Africans and African-Americans. The NY/NJ- based businessman was the publisher of the African Sun-Times, a weekly newspaper distributed in NY and NJ. He wrote the shock-value book titled “Capitalist Nigger”. The Dean of African Media, he co-founded, then became the first national chair of the United African Congress. He was the first chair of the African Union Diaspora Task Team of the African Union. Read the blackstarnews.com tribute to Nigerian-born Igbu Chika Onyeani. He will be buried in Nigeria. The Onyeani family will host a NY memorial early next year.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS
Award-winning gospel diva comes to town in “Holiday Praise with Vickie Winans”, a musical celebration of the gift of Xmas and the rich heritage of soul food…. and all that you can eat on December 23rd at 8 pm at Thomasina’s Banquet Hall, 205-35 Linden Boulevard, St. Albans, Queens. [Call for reservations at 718.525.5273]
The Voza Rivers New Heritage Theatre and the Museum of Natural History presents “KWANZAA 2016” with Ruben Studdard, “Songs for the Soul”, at the Millstein Hall at the Museum on Central Park
Vickie Winans
West at 79th Street, Manhattan on December 30th, 12 noon to 3 pm. [Visit amnh.org]
MERRY XMAS, HAPPY HANUKKAH, HAPPY KWANZAA!
Harlem-based entrepreneur Victoria Horsford can be contacted at victoria.horsford@gmail.com.
Today, on this sixth day of his death, I have composed myself and tried to find the appropriate words to say good-bye to an icon, Dr. Chika Onyeani.
I first read about his passing in a posting from my friend on Facebook, Afrikan Spot Editor and Publisher Isseu Diouf that simply said, “Rest in Peace”.
It was hard for me to believe at first and I then in-boxed Isseu to verify the truth about Dr. Onyeani’s passing. Indeed, Dr. Onyeani passed a couple of days ago in a hospital.
What was very telling to me was that I had no knowledge of his illness or admission into a hospital. The last time I saw Dr. Onyeani was on September 14, 2016 at 1 Police Plaza when he attended an invitational meeting on Ethnic Media along with other media colleagues to explore business opportunities within the New York Police Department. In typical Onyeani style, he had always advocated for the NYPD to do business with Ethnic Media.
As the God Almighty will have it, his recommendation was approved by the issuance of a request for proposals (RFP) that was announced on the same day of his untimely death.
No one, not even Dr. Onyeani, would have imagined his advocacy will continue to resonate with decision-makers even on his last day on this earth. May his soul rest in peace–AMEENA!
The sudden death of Dr. Onyeani caught a lot of his friends and people he worked with and associated with by surprise. Amongst these people were Ambassador Tete Antonio, the African Union’s Representative at the United Nations who was alarmed by the news. “Oh my God! could you verify the news” were his first comments. He later inquired about funeral arrangements so he can attend.
“He was a voice for the African Diaspora not only in America but the Continent of Africa as well,” Ambassador Tete Antonio added.
Brother Milton Allimadi, Publisher of Black Star News said: “May the ancestors welcome him. Brother Sidique, we lost an icon and champion of our struggle for our African Diaspora empowerment in this United States.” He immediately asked me to pen this tribute.
Professor Dr. Mohammed Nurhussein, National Chairman of the United African Congress (UAC) who succeeded Dr. Onyeani — he had been inaugural chairman and co-founder of UAC– after recovering from the shock suggested we all work on a fitting honor “for all he did and has done for the many voiceless and faceless Diaspora Africans in these United States”.
Mr. Africa Ogo Sow reacted: “The African Diaspora has lost a champion. Lost an icon and lost a great mentor and humanitarian that traveled many nautical miles across the Atlantic to promote the African Diaspora all over Africa. We will all miss his presence as our leader.”
Dr. Michel Cole, Executive Vice President of the United African Congress said: “Africa has lost a noble son. May he rest in peace.”
Gordon Tapper, diplomat, philanthropist and foundation leader summed it all up by saying: “African Diaspora constituencies have lost a giant and powerful advocate. May his soul rest in peace.”
These are a few comments that I received from my friends and colleagues that knew and worked with the late Dr. Chika Onyeani.
I can boldly and honestly state that I also had the honor and opportunity to work with Dr. Chika Onyeani for quite some glorious years in promoting the advocacy and empowerment of the African Diaspora constituency in the United States, including the Continent of Africa.
Amongst his pioneering accomplishments that I am intimately familiar with, allow me to list them for the public’s information and education as noted below:
Dr. Chika Onyeani co-founded and was the first National Chairman of the United African Congress and was even instrumental in registering the organization and finding a permanent office and home address for the organization.
That benefit is still enjoyed by the present leadership of the United African Congress. He introduced the organization to the diplomatic corps and pioneered the unprecedented efforts to consistently advocate for matters of human rights and good governance practices on the Continent of Africa.
Dr. Onyeani coined the term “Continental African”, thereby ensuring that Africans from the Continent of Africa now residing in the United States were proud of their own identity by encouraging them to be proud to wear their African garbs with pride. As the world knows, he hardly ever wore Western clothes; he, instead, dressed traditional as the proud Nigerian Chief he always was.
Dr. Onyeani presided over the first African Day Parade that was held on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx to demonstrate to America that Africans are here to stay as good neighbors and co-workers. He liked to say we can “speak for ourselves”.
This demand for African identity often got him into hot water with some of the powerful detractors who, in his view, were benefiting from African Diaspora invisibility by usurping their voices.
He often repeated the parable: “When a child grows up as an adult, that child has earned the right to wash his or her hand and sit at the table to eat with his or her elders.”
This was the point he drilled into many of us whom he mentored, trained and groomed to continue advocating for our brothers and sisters that were often the subject of discrimination and could not fight for themselves.
Dr. Onyeani orchestrated and chaired the only worldwide African Diaspora telephone conference call to discuss the 2030 Agenda for Africa document that was introduced to the world by the African Union’s Executive Chairperson Dr. Nkosizana Dlamini Zuma of South Africa. This was the first and only time any African Diaspora leader has ever hosted such a meeting for the African Diaspora around the world. The telephone conference generated some spirited debate amongst constituents throughout the world.
Dr. Onyeani was intimately involved in hosting the first Interfaith Harmony event at the Brooklyn Academy of Music that was organized by the UAC after the killing of Amadou Diallo by an NYPD officer. It was attended by then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Commissioner Howard Safir. This event was very controversial but nevertheless helped diffuse some of the tensions following the killing. Dr. Onyeani presided over the critical dialogue events that took place between New York City legislative leaders and civil society.
Dr. Onyeani was elected the inaugural Chairman of the African Union Diaspora Task Team of the African Union Commission following a 3-day meeting that was held in New York after which 6 members of the African Diaspora were elected to represent the sixth region of Africa. “I was also elected as a community representative of the Task Team and honored to once again be a professional colleague. We produced two reports that were submitted to the CIDO Office of the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia.”
Dr. Onyeani mentored many of us while also providing employment counseling and opportunities for many Africans that have today found their own voices and professions that allow them to serve their families and communities with excellence and distinction in these United States.
Dr. Onyeani always drew a line in the sand against dictators in Africa that held onto power for too long against the will of their people. Through his powerful editorials in the African Sun-Times, he excoriated corrupt rulers and praised good ones. His editorials played a role in generating opposition to and rejection of the candidacy of Uganda’s Dr. Specioza Kazibwe, who wanted to succeed the AU’s Dr. Zuma.
Some African diplomats praised him in private while echoing the sentiments of their dictatorial leaders in public. He often referred to them as “sellouts”.
With all said and done, we did not always agree on the direction on some critical issues; but never once did he hold even his detractors in contempt. In fact, he was always kind and encouraged those that occasionally disagreed with him to keep on “fighting for the common good of Africa no matter where they might find themselves in life”.
Even whenever we went for long periods without communicating, whenever I called these would be his first words: “Lord Sidique. How you do? You do fine?”
On my part, whenever he called I greeted him as “the Distinguished Chairman”.
Indeed, Dr. Chika Onyeani was first and foremost a family man; our African Chairman; Champion of African Diaspora Empowerment; Dean of African Media; author of the highly acclaimed book and best-seller “Capitalist Nigger,” deploring our dependence mentality; an Economist; the youngest Diplomat from Nigeria in the 1960s; Editor and Publisher of the African Sun-Times; and the host of the radio program “Straight Talk”.
Now he belongs to the ancestors.
The Hon. Sidique Wai is President/National Spokesperson for the
United African Congress (UAC).
Is it lingering anger from September 11, 2001, or is it Old Jim Crow? Is the pressure cooker bombing in Chelsea still unnerving or is it the imagery that Donald Trump drew up during his US Presidential campaign? Hate crimes that are civil and criminal offenses are occurring in Brooklyn.
St. Francis de Sales School for the Deaf was the venue for Civil & Human Rights Speak Out: Responding to Hate on December 14, 2016. St. Senator Jesse Hamilton organized the event because he is “aware that there are people who don’t know that they can do something about being called a derogatory name or having their scarves pulled off their heads”. National Action Network’s Kirsten Foy served as moderator for the panel discussion and comments from the community. Attending agencies and community organizations included NYS Office of New Americans (ONA), NYC Commission on Human Rights (CHR), the New Yrk Police Department Hate Crimes Unit (NYPD), NYS Office of the Attorney General (OAG), Anti-Defamation League (ADL), American Jewish Committee (AJC), New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) and the Center for Anti-violence Education (CAE).
Each panel member explained the organization that they represented and how the agency responded to hate incidents. Assistant Attorney General Diane Lucas said, “The Civil Rights Bureau investigates and prosecutes ‘patterns’ of discrimination for New Yorkers and will prosecute on behalf of the people of the State of New York”. The OAG, therefore, focuses on routing out systemic discrimination.
Rachelle Dickerson, External Relations Director for ONA, said that her “office enforces equality in housing, employment, business opportunity, education and public accommodations for newcomers to America [residing in New York]”.
CHR’s Hamilton Lee of the Law Enforcement Bureau told the audience that the “Commission on Human Rights deals with discriminatory harassment. Discriminatory harassment entails threats, intimidations, harassment, coercion or violence that interferes with a person’s civil or constitutional rights”. The audience was advised to call 311 when they believe they have experienced discriminatory harassment.
NYPD Hate Crimes Unit’s Charles Senat described the unit as one “performing criminal investigations and apprehension” of perpetrators of violent hate crimes on people and property due to race, gender, ethnicity or gender identification bias. The Hate Crimes Unit was established in November by Governor Cuomo due to the spike in such crimes since Donald Trump’s election.
ADL’s Community Service & Policy Director Etzion Neuer said the “ADL responds to all forms of hate by educating the public about biases and civil and criminal hate crimes”. Neuer pointed out that the “ADL protects Jewish people and others. This organization has brought together 20 Muslim and 20 Jewish leaders to develop a domestic policy agenda on discrimination”.
Eric Post, Assistant Director for the local AJC, explained that the “AJC is the global advocate for the well-being of the Jewish people and Israel, and for the advancement of democratic values around the world. Our unique access to world leaders who influence policy and world opinion enables us to pursue positive outcomes”.
Jenny DeBower, CAE’s Programs and Evaluation Director, described the center as “a place to learn physical and emotional self-defense for women, girls and LGBT”. DeBower has observed “more attacks on LGBT, Muslim and women after Trump’s election”. DeBower welcomed people to join the organization, particularly those “who want to own up to their privilege, whether it is being white or heterosexual”. To demonstrate the need for peace or resolution services, DeBower said the “CAE has a waiting list of approximately 10,000 people”.
NYIC Legal Initiative Associate Hallam Tuck said, “The mission of the New York Immigration Coalition is to achieve a fairer and more just society that values the contributions of immigrants and extends opportunity to all. The NYIC promotes immigrants’ full civic participation, fosters their leadership and provides a unified voice and a vehicle for collective action for New York’s diverse immigrant communities”.
In review of the panel membership and their opening statements, one may see an effort to bring nonprofit and government agencies that deal with criminal activity perpetrated on people and property as well as civil indignities meant to demean or harass. Kirsten Foy asked, “Who should be called first to clarify civil and criminal aspects of hate crimes? P.O. Senat replied: “If an emergency, call 911 so that the police can respond.” Foy followed with another clarifying question: “What is considered a hate crime?” CHR’s Hamilton Lee said, “It can be a derogatory word said or the desecration of a site”. In this case dialing 311 is appropriate.
Other aspects of formal responses to hate crimes are who is being represented in a court of law and how discrimination is being carried out. ONA’s Rachelle Dickerson explained that “discrimination can be overt and covert”. The NYS Office of New Americans is noticing disability offenses in that veterans are not able to get housing and other accommodations.
Assistant AG Diane Lucas explained that her office “does not investigate for individuals. Rather, we are looking for discrimination based on a group which is made known by individual complaints”.
There were more than 40 people in the audience. Keith Brooks, President of the Georgetown Civic Association, asked, “How can we make a statement that hate crimes aren’t acceptable in New York State?” The response was that the governor has a task force established that advances hate crimes are not acceptable in this state.
A young woman of color who wished to be unnamed expressed the need for organizations that deal with hate crimes before they are executed. She wanted the organizations named. The response was there were many in existence throughout the five boroughs. The New York Immigration Coalition and the Center for Anti-violence Education were present and named. Also represented at this event were the National Action Network and Anti-Defamation League.
The event closed with a call to action by Raul Rothblatt, Chair of Senator Hamilton’s Civil Rights Task Force. Rothblatt encouraged meeting attendants to keep up the momentum by joining this civil rights task force.
