With studies concluding almost as many women with children (74.1%) participated in the labor force as women without, in 2014, women who are juggling careers and motherhood benefit from flexibility at work the most.
With women accounting for 40% or more of the total labor force in several countries, flexible working hours, extended maternal leave, breastfeeding rooms, free education and free healthcare are just a few of the ways that countries have adopted to build the best working environments for mothers.
To celebrate International Women’s Day, calling for a better gender-balanced world in the workplace, Instant Offices, a
workspace innovation company, looked countries with
the most progressive approaches into maternity, and general parental leave
around the world, including additional benefits encouraging mothers to be
comfortable and engaged at work before, during and after pregnancy. The
results: European countries are some of the most progressive for maternity
leave and benefits for working mothers.
Countries with the Most Maternity Leave
COUNTRY
DAYS
WAGES PAID
SWEDEN
480
80%
NORWAY
400+
80-100%
CROATIA
365+
100%
UK
365
90%
SERBIA
365
100%
Sweden – Provides 480 days of maternity leave
Sweden
offers one of the most progressive working environments for parents, which
exceeds international standards. Parents are entitled to up to 80% of their
regular pay for 390 of the 480 days of maternity leave provided, while mothers
in jobs that require heavy lifting, or more risky work are also entitled to
take time off earlier during their pregnancy.
Each
parent
Receives 240 of 480 days of paid parental leave
Is entitled to 90 days exclusively for him or her
Has the right to shorten their work hours by up to 25% until the child turns eight (although only being paid for the time worked)
Norway – Offers 49 weeks with 100% pay or 59 weeks with 80%
pay
Mastering
the art of the work-life balance, the Norwegian Parliament decided to increase
the quota of paternity and maternity leave for new parents in 2018. Parents now
reive 49 weeks of leave at 100% pay or 59 weeks at 80%
Croatia – Offers a year of paid maternity leave with 100%
pay
In
addition to a year of being able to bond with your new-born, full paid parental
leave is available for 120 days in Croatia.
The
country’s protective attitude towards mother’s at work has ensured there are
laws in place to ensure:
Workers who are expecting are provided with free ante and post-natal medical care
Mothers have breastfeeding breaks of over an hour until the child is a year old
Workers are protected from dismissals during pregnancy and maternity leave
The UK – Required to offer one year of leave to new mothers
Receiving
90% of their original pay new mothers are legally allowed up to 52 weeks of
maternity leave:
Ordinary Maternity Leave – first 26 weeks
Additional Maternity Leave – last 26 weeks
You may be entitled to take some of your leave as shared parental leave, although this must be taken within the first year after your child is born
Serbia
Mothers
in Serbia are entitled to 20 weeks of leave at full pay after giving birth,
with an additional year after that, however lowering over time:
For the first 26 weeks – 100% pay
Weeks 27 – 39 – 60% pay
Weeks 40 – 52 – 30% pay
On
the other end of the scale, some of the countries with the shortest maternity
leave/least benefits include:
Philippines – Previously only six weeks, the
Philippines has recently extended the law for paid maternity leave to 105 days.
Australia – Although mothers can receive up
to 18 weeks of leave, it is paid at the national minimum wage.
United States – The law most women rely on is
the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) which protects women’s jobs for up to
12 weeks after childbirth or adoption, however it doesn’t guarantee pay for the
time off.
Maternity Leave and the Gender Pay Gap
Research
by the National Bureau of Economic Research reveals a sharp drop in women’s
earning after maternity leave, with no decrease in salary for men. The study also
showed, from the birth of their first child, women end up making 20% less than
men throughout their career.
In
Denmark, childbearing accounts for 80% of the gender wage gap, as women move to
more flexible hours with fewer hours and lower wages once they’ve had children;
versus men whose careers go mostly unchanged.
With
many European countries moving towards better equality around parental leave,
men are more encouraged to take time off after the birth of their child, and
policies which bring more equity to the workforce are growing as a trend.
The Instant
Group: Flexible Workspace Specialists
Founded
in 1999, The Instant Group is a workspace innovation company that rethinks
workspace on behalf of its clients injecting flexibility, reducing cost and
driving enterprise performance. Instant places more than 7,000 companies a year
in flexible workspace such as serviced, managed or co-working offices including
Sky, Network Rail, Capita, Serco, Teleperformance, Worldpay making it the
market leader in flexible workspace.
Its listings’ platform Instant
Offices hosts more than 12,000 flexible workspace centres across the world and
is the only site of its kind to represent the global market, providing a
service to FTSE 100, Fortune 500, and SME clients. With offices in London,
Newcastle, Berlin, Haifa, Dallas, New York, Miami, San Francisco, Hong Kong,
Sydney, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur, The Instant Group employs 230 experts and
has clients in more than 150 countries. It has recently been included in
the 2018 Sunday Times’ HSBC International Track 200.
Bernie Sanders held his first major rally of his 2020 campaign for president on the campus of Brooklyn College, just a few miles from where he grew up in a 3 ½-room rent-controlled apartment, and where he attended his first year of college. As many as 7,000 people crammed in to see him on Saturday, March 2 – like the 2016 campaign, mostly young people. Judging by the enthusiasm, The Burn is back.
While the agenda now has become pretty standard fare
for all the Democrats running for President – universal health care, lower drug
prices, gun safety, immigration reform, climate action – and while others have
emphasized the need to restore civility to political discourse (in contrast to
the crass vitriol that constantly spews from Trump), what was decidedly
different about Bernie is his willingness to name names, to take on the
corporatists and the billionaires: Amazon and Jeff Bezos, Netflix, Disney,
General Motors.
In some ways, Bernie, while taking credit for the
leftward shift of the Democrats’ platform, needs to stand out – and this is his
way. He also seems intent to correct any missteps from the 2016 campaign. This
time around he is emphasizing his humble origins whose father migrated from
Poland on his own at age 17 with “not 5 cents in his pocket, not speaking
English” to escape crushing poverty and anti-Semitism and make a better life.
He described a hard-scrabble life, appreciating full well the stress and
anxiety of 800,000 government workers furloughed by the record-long Trump shutdown,
who live paycheck to paycheck, at the mercy of employers.
The campaign emphasized his early years as an activist, protesting against housing discrimination and horrible public schools for Chicago’s black children – but he was too modest during the 2016 to focus much attention on his early activism on behalf of civil rights. This time around, Nina Turner, who heads Our Revolution, put Bernie on the same pedestal as Martin Luther King, Jr., and journalist/activist Shaun King connected him with Black Lives Matter.
This time, Sanders also made certain to include issues that concern women on a long “to do” list: child care and women’s reproductive rights.
Taking to the podium to introduce her husband, Jane
Sanders declared, “I’m honored to be his wife – that might not be politically
correct to say, but it’s one of my greatest honors of my life.”
She added, “Today is only the beginning. not a moment, but a movement.”
But as Bernie is forced to differentiate himself
from the rest of the dozens of Democrats who are running, most of whom are
championing the same agenda, he has to go even further than he did, and that may
well turn off centrists, moderates and independents, and fall right into the
hands of Trump and his minions who are made to turn against the notion of
affordable, accessible health care and pharmaceuticals as some kind of Communist
takeover. Imagine, as Trump told CPAC, “taking away private insurance from 180
million people,” banning beef, airplanes, indeed, individual liberty.
And don’t Democrats want as their #1 priority to
have a candidate who can beat Trump? Which means not just the hard-left and
youth who still only vote at a dismal 39% rate and are easily made too peeved
to bother, but centrists, moderates, independents, who might be put off by
being branded a Socialist and not the European-style Democratic Socialist
(which have universal health care, parental leave, child care) but the
Venezuelan kind, especially with such radical talk of a federally guaranteed
job and a Green New Deal?
“Every card carrying American
who loves their Social Security, public schools, roads, police, and fire services
will love their Medicare for All. Labels don’t define us, we come together
around issues – Medicare for All; free college,” a campaign worker noted.
“Bernie believes another
world is possible, that in a modern developed world, people don’t die for lack
of access to medical care. The issues are not blue or red, they are human
rights.”
In actuality, the
Republicans have portrayed every liberal as a Socialist with images of work
camps and everyone collecting the same wage – including Obama, Hillary Clinton,
Edward Kennedy.
Why choose Sanders? “He’s
been consistent for 30 years. He’s been there for 30 years and knows where the next
steps are.”
I
remark to a young fellow as we are crammed into a subway car after Bernie’s
rally at Brooklyn College, how it is that with 30 years in Congress, Sanders
has very little to show in the way of accomplishing the lofty goals he set out
in 2016 and again for his 2020 campaign, and question how he would he be more
successful as a president, given the obstructions Obama faced from a Republican
minority willing to use ruthless tactics. His reply? Sanders’ success has been
to inspire a revolution at the grassroots – look at what has happened in
localities and at the state level. He alone among the Democrats who now all
champion the same ideals of social, political, economic and environmental
justice, has inspired such local activism.
Here are highlights from Sanders’ speech:
“Thank you for being part of the revolution, part of
the campaign that will not just win the Democratic nomination and defeat Trump,
the most dangerous president in modern American history, but with your help,
will transform the country and finally create an economy and a government which
works for all.
“The underlying principle of government will not be
greed, hatred, racism, sexism, homophobia, religious bigotry, tax breaks for
billionaires and efforts to take millions off health care. This campaign will
end all that.
“The principles of our government are based on
justice: economic, social, racial, environmental justice. Tell the insurance companies we will have
Medicare for All, say to Pharmaceutical companies you will no longer charge the
highest prices in world for medicines people desperately need. Your greed will
end.
“We will raise the minimum wage to at least $15,
rebuild infrastructure, and when we do, we will create up to 13 million decent
paying jobs.
“We will have quality affordable child care…. we will
make public colleges and universities tuition free.
“We say to seniors, you can’t survive on $14,000 Social
Security; Republicans want to cut Social Security Benefits: we will raise it.
“We say to Trump and the fossil fuel industry:
climate change is not a hoax, but an existential threat to the entire planet.
We will transform away from fossil fuel into energy efficiency and sustainable energy,
and when we do that, we will create millions of good paying jobs.
“All of us have moral responsibility to make sure
the planet we leave our kids, our grandkids, is healthy and habitable.
”We say to the prison-industrial complex (boo), we
are going to achieve real criminal justice reform. We will end the
international embarrassment of having more people in jail than any other – take
the $80 billion a year and invest in jobs and education instead. No more
private prisons, no more profiteering form locking people up.
“No more war on drugs or keeping people in jail
because too poor to afford cash bail.
“We will have real criminal justice reform –people
have records for possessing marijuana
but not one Wall Street executive went to jail for destroying the economy in
2008. Instead, they got a $1 trillion bailout (boo).
“Instead of deporting undocumented immigrants, we
will pass comprehensive immigration reform and provide a path to citizenship,
legal status for 1.8 million DACA-eligible recipients. We will develop a humane
border policy for those who seek asylum – no longer snatch babies from the arms
of their mothers.
“We say to the 1% and the large profitable corporations in America, under a Sanders Administration, you’re not getting more tax breaks (big cheers). We will end their tax breaks, loopholes, and they will start paying their fair share; we will end the loopholes where Amazon, Netflix, General Motors pay nothing in federal tax, where corporations and billionaires stash money in the Caymans and other tax havens.
“We will end the military industrial complex. We won’t spend $700 billion – more than the top 10 nations combined spend. Instead, we will invest in affordable housing, public education, invest in our crumbling infrastructure. No more major investment in never-ending wars.
“Trump wants to divide us by skin color, where we
were born, gender, religion, sexual orientation. What we are about is doing the
opposite: bring people together – black, white, Latino, Asian, young, old, men,
women, native, immigrant, we are together.
“As return to where I was born, as I launch my
campaign for president, you deserve to know where I came from, the values I
developed… I grew up a few miles from here on Kings Highway, in a 3 ½ room
rent-controlled apartment. My father was a paint salesman who never made much
money; my mother raised the two of us. I learned about immigration from my
father who came from Poland at age 17 without 5 cents in his pocket and no
English, to escape crushing poverty and widespread anti-Semitism. His entire
family was wiped out by Hitler. Coming from a lower middle class family, I will
never forget how the lack of money always causes stress in family. My mother’s
dream was to move out of rent control apartment to a home of her own. She died
young and never saw that dream.
“I came from a family that struggled. That
influenced my life, my values. I know where I came from and will never forget.
“Unlike Trump who shut down government, left 800,000
employees without money to pay their bills, I know what it is like to live in a
family that lives paycheck to paycheck.
“I didn’t have a father who gave me a $200,000
allowance when I was three years old – my allowance was 25 cents a week. But I
had something more valuable – a role model of a father with courage to journey
across an ocean with no money, to start a better life.
“I didn’t come from a family of privilege, who
entertained people on TV by saying ‘You’re fired.’ I came from a family which
understood the frightening power of employers. I didn’t attend an elite private
school, I was educated in public schoo0ls in Brooklyn.
“I didn’t build a corporate empire based on housing
discrimination. I protested against housing discrimination. One of my proudest moments
was joining the March on Washington with Martin Luther King.
“The last two years and before, you, I and millions,
fought for justice in every part of society. Had some success against billionaires
who attack unions, slash wages. We succeeded in raising wages to $15 across
country – forced Amazon, Disney to do the same.
“We stood with teachers across country who went out
on strike to fight for better schools.
“The forces of militarism kept us engaged in war. We
fought back and for first time in 45 years, used the War Powers Act to end the
Saudi-fueled war in Yemen.
“We fought to end the war on drugs, to get states to
decriminalize marijuana possession and we are beginning to see records being
expunged.
“We won some victories but clearly have a long long
way to go.
“Because of the work done, we are on the brink of
not just winning election but transforming our country.
“When we are
in the White House, we will enact a federal jobs guarantee.
“We will attack the problem of urban gentrification
and build affordable housing this country desperately needs.
“We will end the decline of rural America – so young
people in rural America have decent jobs and can remain in their communities. We
will reopen rural hospitals.
“We will end the epidemic of gun violence, pass
commonsense gun safety legislation.
“We will address national, racial disparity of
wealth, root out institutional racism wherever it exists.
“We will end the cowardly outrage of voter
suppression, and make it easier to vote.
“We will protect a woman’s right to control her own
body – that is a woman’s right, not federal, state, local government.
“Make no mistake, the struggle is not just about
defeating Trump but taking an incredibly powerful institutions that control
economy and political life of the nation: Wall Street, insurance companies,
drug companies, the military-industrial complex, the prison-industrial complex,
the fossil fuel industry and corrupt campaign finance system that enables billionaires
to buy elections.
“Brothers and sisters, we have enormous amount of
work ahead. The path forward is not easy.
“Wealthy and powerful elites will do all they can to
defend their financial interests, and have unlimited money. But we have the
people.
“This is what I believe: if we don’t allow Trump to
divide us, if we stand together – not blue states, red – but as working people
believing in justice and human dignity, love and compassion, the future of this
country is extraordinary and nothing we will not be able to accomplish.”
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, joined by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, signed the Red Flag Bill, which prevents individuals who show signs of being a threat to themselves or others from purchasing or possessing any kind of firearm. This legislation builds on New York’s strongest in the nation gun laws and makes New York the first in the United States to empower its teachers and school administrators to prevent school shootings by pursuing court intervention. (Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, joined by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in a ceremony on Monday, Feb. 25, signed the Red Flag Bill which prevents individuals who show signs of being a threat to themselves or others from purchasing or possessing any kind of firearm. This legislation, also known as the extreme risk protection order bill, builds on New York’s strongest in the nation gun laws and makes New York the first in the United States to empower its teachers and school administrators to prevent school shootings by pursuing court intervention. More information is available here.
New Yorkers Against Gun Violence (NYAGV), a statewide advocacy organization, applauded Governor Cuomo for signing the legislation into law, which establishes a court process for removing firearms from individuals who pose a serious threat to themselves or others. The bill passed both houses of the legislature with bipartisan support on January 29.
Rebecca Fischer, NYAGV Executive Director, who stood with Governor Cuomo at
the signing ceremony in New York City, stated, “Today, New York State has again
made it a priority to protect our communities by enacting this life-saving gun
violence prevention law. Our children should be able to learn without the
fear of gun violence in their classrooms. Governor Cuomo and the
legislature recognize that to keep New Yorkers safe, family, school officials,
and law enforcement need a tool to remove guns from people in crisis. New
York’s Extreme Risk Protection Order law will help prevent gun violence and
protect our communities, schools, and homes.”
Additional measures passed by the State Legislature in January that await
the Governor’s signature include: extending the background check period, a ban
on arming educators, a ban on bump stocks, a statewide gun buyback program, and
authorization to check out-of-state mental health records of gun permit
applicants.
In many cases of gun violence — including mass shootings, interpersonal
violence, and suicide — the shooter’s family members or school officials see
warning signs before the fatal act of gun violence occurs. However, they often
feel powerless, and are unable to intervene — even with law enforcement
support — before tragedy occurs. ERPO addresses this gap and creates a legal
framework that respects due process and each individual’s rights while
preventing gun violence.
If, upon a petition from a family member, school official, or law
enforcement official, a court finds the individual is likely to harm him- or
herself or others, the judge may issue an initial ERPO, and the individual will
be required to surrender any guns to the proper authorities and will be prohibited
from purchasing guns. After a second hearing, the judge may extend the order
for up to a year — at which point it will expire, unless a petition is filed
to renew the order.
Those subject to ERPOs will have an opportunity during the year-long ERPO period
to petition the court and present evidence as to why the order should be
lifted. If the order expires and is not renewed or if the order is lifted, guns
surrendered will be returned to the individual and all records of the
proceedings will be sealed.
During 2018 and 2019, New Yorkers Against Gun Violence educated and
organized communities across New York State and led a coalition of legislators,
advocates, law enforcement, students, educators, faith leaders, and healthcare
professionals to urge passage of New York’s Extreme Risk Protection Order law.
(www.nyagv.org)
Attending the signing ceremony were Mark Barden who lost his 7
year old son Daniel at Sandy Hook, and Linda Beigel Schulman and her husband
Michael Schulman, who also lost a child to gun violence.
Speaker Pelosi acknowledged the importance of
grass roots support to enact sensible gun control measures and praised New York
State as a model for engagement of local activists and courage of legislators,
noting that two important bills will be coming up in the House this week.
Gun control advocacy groups including Everytown
for Gun Safety are
urging people to contact their Representative to urge support for HR 8, the
Background Checks bill.
Here are highlights from the transcript of the remarks:
Governor Cuomo: Thank you. Thank you all. Let’s give a big
round of applause for John Jay for hosting us today. To
Linda Beigel Schulman and her husband Michael Schulman, God bless you
for taking a terrible tragedy and taking that energy and taking that pain and
turning it into something positive. Scott’s spirit does live today. I believe
that. And congratulations to Linda Beigel Schulman. Let’s give her a
big round of applause.
We also have with us
today, Mark Barden who lost his son Daniel—seven years old—at Sandy Hook. I
don’t know that I would have the strength that Mark had to carry on and I know
I wouldn’t have had the strength to do all the work he has done. He has been a
national spokesperson on this issue. And these made a tremendous difference.
Let’s give him a round of applause.
To all the survivors and
their families, to the advocates, to the moms who demand action, you’re getting
through. I’d like to recognize my sister Maria Cuomo. She calls herself Maria
Cuomo Cole…who produces documentaries, did a documentary on Newtown
telling the story of Sandy Hook and it was a great vehicle to get the facts.
To all my colleagues in
government who are here today, especially to Senator Kavanagh
and Assemblymember Simon who carried the bill…[who] were masterful in making government work. And
to have Speaker Pelosi with us today—how great is that?
Speaker Pelosi, you carry all our hopes and
dreams. You have given us strength and hope in the middle of the darkness.
Speaker Pelosi is a champion for democracy, not just Democrats, she is the
champion for democracy. And she is standing up to an Administration that
constantly flaunts the Constitution, that has deceived the American people,
that tramples their rights, that seeks to divide this nation every day on every
issue, and Speaker Pelosi, God bless you for the job you do. Now New York is proud of what we’ve done on the
issue of gun violence. After Sandy Hook happened, which was next door in
Connecticut, 26 people killed, young children killed in a school. New York
stood up and said no more. The nation said, “oh no Sandy Hook was an
exception. That was just a once in a lifetime, that will never happen
again.” And New York said that’s not true; it’s not an exception and
something has to be done, and we know it’s a hard issue, and we know it’s a
difficult issue, and we know it’s an emotional issue, but something has to be
done because literally we are losing human life.
And when they said in the nation, “well no, it’ll never happen again,” we said “yes, and we’re going to do something.” And that was our quest and that was our conviction as New Yorkers, and we passed the SAFE Act. And we were right, Sandy Hook was not the last, it was not an exception. In many ways, it was only the beginning of a terrible scourge that went across this nation and it’s only gotten worse. One after the other, one more violent than the other, one more nonsensical than the other. And we said no more. Let’s use common sense and we passed the SAFE Act, and the SAFE Act made sense. Yes, people have a right to a gun if they are legitimate hunters, legitimate sportsmen, but not a person who is mentally ill, not a person who has a criminal background. Why would you ever put a gun in their hands?
The SAFE Act banned assault weapons, banned high
capacity magazines, it extended the background check to private sales. Why?
Because otherwise the system is a joke, and right now the fight that the
Speaker is going to have in Washington this week is exactly on this point. if
you don’t have a background check on private sales, you have nothing. All it
means is if you can pass a background check, you walk into a store and you buy
the gun. If you can’t pass a background check, you buy the gun privately. It’s that walking to the store, you walk down
the block and you go to a gun show or you buy it from a private individual and
you pay a little bit more because they know that you can’t pass the background
check, but you can still buy a gun. It
is a total loophole that swallows the law. The reality is there is no
background check in this nation if you want to buy a gun because there are so
many guns. And you can buy a gun privately. It is a joke. And the SAFE Act said
not in New York. We’re going to extend the background check to the private
sales also. So, anyone who has a gun needs to go through a background check.
And today my friends New York is proud to pass a first in the
nation the Red Flag Bill that empowers school teachers to do something when
they believe something bad is going to happen. And we empower school teachers not by giving them guns, which is the
president’s idea. I mean, how ludicrous a concept? Arm the teacher, so when the
bad person comes into the classroom there can be a shootout in the classroom. I
mean it is really ludicrous and nonsensical. No. Arm and empower the teacher
with the law.
So when the teacher sees there is a problem or a
family member sees there is a problem, and believes that a person could be a
danger to themselves or others they can go to a judge. And say, ‘judge, please
do an evaluation.’ It is common sense. If you believe that was going to happen, why would you sit back
and do nothing? You protect the
individual’s rights because you go to a judge. And there is a court-ordered
evaluation. Over half of the school shootings, the teachers now said there were
signs. There were signs in the person’s behavior and the destructiveness.
Students who were suicidal. Over half the time there was signs. And if that
teacher or that administrator had recourse and could have gone to a judge and said:
‘please do an evaluation. I think this young person needs help. Please help
them.’ How many lives could have been saved? And that’s why this bill is in
the spirit of Scott and the testament to the work of
Linda Beigel Schulman and Michael Schulman. God bless you.
And while New Yorkers
are proud of what we have done, we are also a very realistic people. And we know we cannot solve this gun problem
within the borders of this state because guns come over boarders and
the lines on the map are meaningless. This has to be done nationally. It has to
be done federally. This is a uniquely United States problem. We lose more
people to gun deaths than most developed nations. The first year of President
Trump’s administration, we lost 40,000 people to gun deaths. The highest number
in 50 years since the federal CDC was taking numbers.Hopefully the Speaker’s good work this week is going to start us on the
road to end this carnage. Madam Speaker, what New York offers you is proof to
the myths that you will hear in Washington this week and that’s what it really
is. You have the opposition is about fear and lack of facts and lack of
information. And when they say to you Madam Speaker, “this is a slippery
slope, once the government starts to regulate guns, that’s a slippery slope and
then they’re going to take all of our guns. This is just the camel’s nose under
the tent.”
Six years ago, we passed
the SAFE Act. Six years ago. We
have six years of experience. Hunters still hunt. Sportsman still have their
guns. But criminals don’t and the mentally ill don’t and the slippery slope
never happened and government never came to take anyone’s guns and it worked.
And after six years,
Madam Speaker, today there are 130,000
thousand people on a mental health database who could’ve bought a gun the day
before the SAFE Act but now can’t buy a gun because they are not
mentally stable enough to have a gun. One hundred and thirty thousand
names. And, Madam Speaker, when they talk and debate about, “well these
private sales are not really the problem,” after the SAFE Act
private sales have to go through the NICS background check. Thirty-three thousand people have bought
guns through private sales. Of those 33,000, 1,000 sales have been
stopped because the person did not pass the background check. That’s one out of
every 33 gun sales. That is a bigger deal and that’s why it works, Madam
Speaker, and the proof is on your side.
The SAFE Act saved lives and didn’t
infringe on anybody’s rights. The Red Flag bill, I have no doubt, will save lives
and doesn’t infringe on anybody’s rights. It is common sense. It is logical. It is factual. We just have to get past the politics and
get past the fear because Americans are better than this. We are smarter than
this. We are more proactive than this. And we’re losing too many lives to
ignorance and politics in this nation and it has to win and that is the battle
that our Speaker starts this week.
I applaud my colleagues
in state government. I applaud the advocates who worked so hard. I applaud the
parents with the deepest of respect for carrying and turning your loss into a
benefit for others. We wish our speaker Godspeed as she works to end
this ugly chapter in Washington. Ladies and Gentleman, let’s give a New
York welcome.
House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi: Good morning
everyone. Thank you for your kind welcome, Governor Cuomo, thank you for your
invitation to be here today, for your kind words of introduction. Let us salute
Governor Andrew Cuomo for his tremendous leadership on this and so many other issues.
Thank you, Governor Cuomo.
I join Governor Cuomo in
saluting the parents who are with us to Mark, Linda thank you both for
channeling your grief into action to save other lives. I’ve seen Mark around
the country over the years, he has been a relentless champion. And Linda to
hear you say today is a day that you could celebrate, that makes a difference
that warms our hearts. It’s an eloquent message unsurpassed. Thank you Linda
for your family’s leadership in this
I join the
Governor not only in saluting them but saluting Senator Kavanagh,
Assemblywoman Simon and all of the state legislators who are here, thank
you for your courage in passing the legislation. I say to my colleagues in the Congress frequently, the
survival of our children is much more important than your political
survival. The Governor indicated the courage that it takes to
pass this legislation. So once again let us salute Senator Kavanagh,
Assemblywoman Simon and all of the state legislators who played such an
important role in sending this legislation to the Senate.
And Governor thank you
for being a leader and inspiration and relentless persistent advocate for this
legislation. I was pleased and honored to join you, when you signed the
landlord legislation last May, that prevented domestic abusers from
obtaining firearms. Moms Demand Action was an important part of
it, but all of the outside mobilization. Internally I’m sure the
legislators in this state as well as our colleagues in the Congress recognize
that our inside maneuvering is essential and we’re responsible to do the best
possible job to get the best, strongest possible result. But without the outside mobilization this
cannot, we cannot be effective. So let us thank all of the outside groups, for
what they did to make this a success.
The Governor mentioned
some of the statistics involved, was it George Bernard Shaw said the sign of a
truly intelligent person is that they are acknowledge statistics and statistics
tell the story, but the personal stories, personal stories really change the
minds. And the stories of the parents and the families and school children who
were there, the March for our Lives, all of that is changing. This gun violence
issue is a national health epidemic in our country.
Mr. President if you want to talk about
emergencies, this is an emergency.
I thank you Governor and
I thank New York State for being such a leader on this issue. My colleagues I
don’t know if Nydia Velazquez is here with us, a lot of traffic getting over
here, but she and all of the New York members have been so great on this
issue. Mostly all.
In Congress, to follow your lead and keeping
guns out of the hands at risk for themselves and others whose extreme risk –
protection orders – and empower the full force of communities to act, otherwise
known as Red Flag. Now let me say, when we talk about Red Flag and people with
certain challenges, 99 percent with any diagnosis are safe, law-abiding people
in our country. As we do this, we just want to identify – prioritize to save
others, then save lives after the person themselves. And they also say that
when we vote on the bill this week we will pass the bill on the floor of the
House.
Again, because of what you have done here to
build the momentum, the outside, to make the case and now that all 90 percent
of the public supports gun violence prevention by way of background checks and
that includes many gun owners and many members of the NRA. They’re gun owners,
they’ve taken background checks, and they think other people should too. That’s
how you get to 90 percent by not only advocating, by explaining this is what
the bill does so that they can’t characterize, as the Governor says they do,
some of the leadership of the gun lobbyists do. So we go forward as a full
supporter of the American people and we forget, pass bill and what it will do is encouragement and
enactment of the extreme risk, protection order and what it will do here is
prevent abusers, domestic violence abuse and stalkers from obtaining a
gun. Provide funds to the CDC for gun violence prevention research, very, very
important. They can do it but we have to provide the funds and insist that this
administration do it. And so we have the capacity to save lives.
When we had the
election, a lot of it was about health. The health of the American people and this is a health issue. The mobilization of
young people and families of people effected by gun violence and other groups
again are essential, in electing people who have the courage to make the
challenging vote to save lives.
So I thank all of the people of New York. I
thank the Governor for his commitment, his dedication, and his relentlessness
on this issue. I want the families to know that this will not end here. We have
more to do but it’s not about taking guns away from people, it’s just making
sure that the law is effective in making, do a background check in a timely
way and extend the time.
We have two bills this week one is about
background checks and extending the time period. Now if you don’t get a no in
72 hours, it’s a yes so were extend the time on that. But again, all of this, by listening, hearing
what really will save lives. Because
sadly, the tragic events of mass shootings demand a great deal of attention,
rightfully so. But every single day, and every single night in our country,
people are killed by guns, senselessly, unnecessarily, and we want to make sure
that we reduce violence in our country.
So again, I thank all of
you. I’m very proud of the whole Congress of the United States, but our members who will have the courage to
vote correctly when we come together this week. Tonight we’re taking the
bill to the rules committee, tomorrow the rule will be on the floor in order to
vote on the rule. On Wednesday we’ll
pass the bill, the gun violence prevention by background check. Thursday we
will have the bill to extend the time. But starting the week here in New
York, making this gun violence prevention week, not officially, but
legislatively, it just sends a very, very, very strong message. So
thank you for that.
And by the way, just
incidentally, okay, you can clap for that. While we’re together here I
just want to say what else we’re doing this week. I don’t want to take away
from the gun violence prevention, but it’s about the constitution, and the
Governor spoke about that. Tonight we’ll
also go to rules committee to put forth a resolution to overturn the
president’s declaration
Congressman Joaquin
Castro of Texas, and Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, from Texas, a
border state, is taking the lead on this. And that will go to rules committee
tonight, and the floor of the House tomorrow to be voted on. And this is not about politics, it’s not
about partisanship, it’s about patriotism. It’s about the constitution of the
United States of America. It’s about our beautiful constitution,
beginning with the preamble, “We the People of the United
States,” and as soon as that preamble ends, the very next words
are Article One, the
legislative branch, co-equal to every other branch, the executive branch,
the judicial branch, spelling out in the text the powers of the Congress of the
United States, the power of the purse being one of them. So this is not, this
is not about partisanship. This is about saying we must honor our oath of
office. To let the executive branch get away with this assault on the
constitution, we would be delinquent in our duties to the oath of office we
have taken.
And defile the core, the heart of the
constitution, which is the separation of powers, co-mingled branches of
government as a check and balance on each other.So this
is going to be quite a week, when we talk about what our constitution really
says. What it says about the separation of power, what it says about the rights
of people to have gun ownership, but the rights also of us to have some say in
the protection of the American people by advancing gun violence prevention. So
all of you are super patriots who are doing this because you are upholding the
constitution of the United States. As you protect and defend that constitution,
you protect and defend the American people.
Some
55 Long Islanders assembled in front of the Nassau County Courthouse in Mineola
on Presidents Day to protest the anti-President, the illegitimate occupier of
the White House who has yet again fouled the office and undermined the
Constitution and the Rule of Law in his personal quest to see just how much
authoritarian rule he can muster to overcome his incompetence. We were just one
of more than 250 protests in 47 states that were held.
Just
as Trump abused the claim of “national security” in order to usurp power to
implement an otherwise unconstitutional Travel Ban and overturned ratified
trade agreements (Canada, really!) and treaties (the Reagan-era
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with Russia), Trump now perverts
“national emergency” in order to preempt Congress’ Article 1 power of the purse
in pursuit of building his political and personal monument, the southern border
wall. And to do it, he would rob other projects, deemed worthy of appropriation
by Congress: $2.5 billion in military narcotics funding and $3.6 billion in
military construction necessary to cure the decrepit housing.
The
very definition of “emergency” – and the clear intent when Congress passed it –
was to enable a President to react to immediate crises – a foreign attack, a
natural disaster – when Congress could not have time to.
But
after two years of Republican control of all branches – executive, legislative
and judicial – and not getting the appropriation to build the wall that even
Republicans recognized as wasteful and ineffective (when Trump nixed the
Democrats’ offer of $25 billion in exchange for DACA), and then a 35-day
government shutdown followed by weeks of deliberation in which the Congress
deemed $1.4 billion sufficient for “border fencing,” now he insists there is a
“national emergency.”
What
is more accurate is that there is a humanitarian crisis solely of Trump and his
thugs’ making, for which in a just world, he and Homeland Security Secretary
Kirstjen Nielsen, HHS Secretary Alex M. Azar II, and anyone else involved in
conceiving and implementing the torturous “family separations” and “zero
tolerance” policies would be tried, convicted and jailed for crimes against
humanity.
But
in pursuit of these human rights violations, Trump is also violating
international and US law. Those Trumpers who insist “why don’t they come in
legally as my grandfather did?” should recognize that Trump has shut down what
legal immigration system there was – in fact, it hasn’t functioned since
Reagan, which is why there are an estimated 11 million undocumented people.
Instead
of actually dealing with the immigration crisis – starting with reuniting
parents with their children, implementing a program to properly vet and
legalize the status of Dreamers and parents of American citizen children, the
tens of thousands who have been in the US legally for decades under the
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) programs, and those who have a legal claim to
asylum – Trump has actually closed access through legal ports of entry, while
declaring anyone who enters and then surrenders to border patrol, as having
committed a crime, and therefore ineligible for asylum. That violates US and
international law.
The
absurdity of Trump’s unlawful assertion of “national emergency” to build a wall
is the fact that he would only have one year before it expired – and the $8
billion he is expropriating would hardly be sufficient. Moreover, a wall takes
tremendous amount of time to build, even if it would actually keep out drugs
and gangs (which it won’t). Hardly a way to address an actual “emergency.”
Of course, Trump admitted as much when he betrayed his utter ineptitude when he declared the emergency when simultaneously declaring, “Of course I didn’t need to do this. But I’d rather do it much faster.” The money, he said, could be reallocated from the many “unimportant” projects – like disaster aid to Puerto Rico and California, or cutting funding for 9/11 victims.
He then boasted about having so much money – even in the defense
budget. “When
you have that kind of money going into the military, this is a very, very small
amount that we’re asking for,” Trump said.
Here’s the question: if the Defense budget is so bloated (at
$719 billion), doesn’t that mean that Congress should allocate funding
elsewhere, like health care, infrastructure, child care, R&D? (Yes.)
In
addition to the Democratic-controlled House advancing a resolution rescinding
the declaration, and organizations like the ACLU bring suit, 16 states
(including New York), led by California, are now suing Trump. “We’re going
to try to halt the President from violating the Constitution, the separation of
powers, from stealing money from Americans and states that has been allocated
by Congress, lawfully,” California Attorney General Xavier Becerra stated.
Initially,
there was a cheering thought that Trump’s precedent would enable a Democratic
President (in just 2 years!) to finally address real emergencies, circumventing
the obstruction of the likes of Mitch McConnell – health care, climate change,
gun violence, humanitarian crisis posed by Trump’s zero tolerance immigration policy
– that destroy tens of thousands of lives needlessly, tragically each year.
But then I realized that just as Trump’s sing-song description of how he expects to lose in the 9th circuit but expects to win at the Supreme Court, which going back to Bush has been stacked with “justices” who believe in a Unitary Executive (when a Republican is in office), that this same Supreme Court right-wing, Federalist Society majority, that would empower Trump’s “presidential discretion” today would beat back a national emergency claim by a Democratic president for these purposes, just as they contradicted the Constitution and precedent in Citizens United, Hobby Lobby, Heller, Bush v Gore.
“The risk
is that we limit the president’s power to act when it really is necessary, when
it is not practical to bring the Congress into session on a moment’s notice,”
said Congressman Adam Schiff, who chairs the House Intelligence committee. “But
this president doesn’t care about future presidents. He only cares about
himself. And in this case, he only cares about placating his conservative
critics.”
Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, spoke for 23 minutes in frigid 14 degree temperature (feeling like 4 degrees), in a thick snowfall, without hat or gloves, in front of hundreds of supporters on Boom Island who had stood for hours to hear her declare her candidacy for President. Already, with an unprecedented number of women running for Election 2020, the tone is different, as Klobuchar raised issues of child care, universal health care, lower prescription drug prices, gun violence prevention, climate action, criminal justice reform, fair wages and taxes, the need for diplomacy and international alliances as key.
Here are highlights from her speech declaring
her run for President:
Prosperity shared leads
to better lives for all. [America is] a beacon for democracy, one in which
every one matters. We start in this place…
[Recalling when the
deteriorating I 35W Bridge over the Mississippi collapsed, killing 13 and
injuring 145, and the first responders dove in to try to save them, a wake-up call
to the nation’s deteriorating infrastructure.] A bridge shouldn’t fall down in
America..Suddenly the eyes of a nation are on our state. The nation saw in
visceral way that everyone matters. Later, I worked across the aisle and
rebuilt that I 35 bridge- that’s community shared, a story or ordinary people
doing extraordinary things.
That sense of community is fracturing across the
nation, worn down by the petty and vicious nature of our politics. We are tired
of shutdowns, showdowns, gridlock and grandstanding. Today, in this snowy day,
on this island, we say enough is enough
Our nation must be governed not from chaos, but
opportunity, not by wallowing over what’s wrong, but marching inexorably to
what’s right.
It starts with all of us.
My family story – both on
my Mom and Dad’s side, arrived in this country with nothing but a suitcase.
They made a home here.
Like so many immigrants
they wanted a better life for their family. My grandfather worked 1500 ft below
ground mining. My Dad – now age 90 – got a two-year degree, then finished at
University of Minnesota and became a journalist. As a young AP reporter, he
called the 1960 race for JFK, interviewed everyone from Reagan to Ginger Rogers.
Freedom of the press wasn’t some abstract idea to my dad; he embraced it, lived
it.
My Mom, a proud union member,
taught 2nd grade in the suburbs until she was 70 years old, her
students still come up and say she was their favorite.
On this island in the middle of mighty Mississippi,
in nation’s heartland, at a time when we must heal the heart of democracy and
renew our commitment to common good, I stand before you, as granddaughter of
iron ore miner, a daughter of newspaper man, the first woman elected to US Senate
from the state of Minnesota, to announce my candidacy for president of the United
States.
I am running for this job for everyone who wants
their work recognized and rewarded, for every parent who wants a better world
for their kids, for every student who wants a good education, for every senior
who wants affordable prescription drug, for every worker, farmer, dreamer,
builder, for every American, I am running for you.
And I promise you this,
as your president, I will look you in the eye, tell you what I think, focus
on getting things done, that’s what I have done my whole life. And no matter
what, I will lead from the heart.
Let me blunt.
For too long leaders in Washington have sat on
sidelines while others tried to figure out about changing economy, impact on
our lives, disruptive nature of new technology, income inequality, political
and geographic divides, changing climate, tumult in the world.
Stop seeing these as
obstacles on our path – let’s see obstacles as
our path.
This is what I mean.
There are insidious
forces every day trying to make it hard to vote, drown out voices with big
money – time to organize, galvanize, take back our democracy. It’s time America.
It’s time to pass a
constitutional amendment to overturn
Citizens United and get dark money out of our politics.
It’s time to stop
discriminatory action by restoring the
Voting Rights Act. Time to pass my bill to automatically every young person
to vote when they turn 18.
The obstacle they are
throwing at us with big money, obstacles to voting, are obstacles but also our
path – as Paul Wellstone would tell us, it’s how we organize.
Here’s another: Climate change. The people are on our
side – because like you and I, they believe in science.
That’s why in the first 100 days of my
administration I will reinstate the Clean Power rules and the gas mileage
standards and put forth sweeping legislation to invest in green jobs and infrastructure.
And on Day 1 we will rejoin the International
Climate Agreement.
The obstacles, they are
our path.
Another challenge: Way
too many politicians have their head stuck in the sand when it comes to the digital revolution. It’s not coming,
it’s here. If you don’t know the difference between a hack and slack, it’s time
to pull off the digital highway.
What would I do? Put
some digital rules of the road into law
when it comes to people’s privacy.
For too long big tech
companies have been telling you, ‘Don’t worry, we have your back’ while your
identities are being stolen, your data being mined. Our laws have to be as
sophisticated as those who are breaking them.
I would guarantee net neutrality for all; connect
the digital divide by 2022 – that means you, Rural America. If they can do it
in Iceland we can do it here.
Train our workers today for the jobs of
tomorrow, strengthen economy for what’s ahead– strengthening certifications, 2 year degrees, make it easier to
get them.
And comprehensive immigration reform. It is time America.
Close those tax loopholes designed by and for
the wealthy and bring down our debt and make it easier for workers to afford child
care, housing and education – that is what I mean by shared prosperity.
But we can’t get there
if people can’t afford their health care – that means getting to universal health care, and bringing down
the cost of prescription drugs.
Last week, my guest at
the State of the Union, here with us today, Nicole Smith Colt. Her 26 year old
son Alec, aged off his parents’ insurance just 3 days short of payday. A
diabetic, he couldn’t afford insulin, a simple drug that’s been around for
nearly a century. He tried rationing but it didn’t work, and he died. This
disgrace should never happen in the United States of America today.
The obstacle to change?
Big Pharma. Well, they don’t own me and they don’t own Nicole.
We are teaming up to pass meaningful legislation,
to bring in cheaper drugs from other countries, stop keeping generics off
market – harness the negotiating power of 43 million seniors, lift the ban on negotiating
cheaper prices under Medicare.
I’ve always believed in
doing my job without fear or favor – that’s what I do as a senator, what I did
as a prosecutor – convicting the guilty, protecting the innocent.
It’s why I have and
always will advocate for criminal justice reform.
And, in a state where we
all value hunting and fishing and the great outdoors, I am not afraid to join the
vast majority of Americans, including many gun owners to stand up to gun lobby and put universal background checks and commonsense
gun legislation into law. It is time America.
Even if we isolate from
the rest of world, the rest of world won’t let you – international problems
come banging at the door just as opportunities come knocking.
We must stand consistently with our allies, be clear
in our purpose, respect our front line troops, diplomats and intelligence
officers, who are there every day risking their lives for us. They deserve
better than foreign policy by tweet/
(cheers)
And one last obstacle we
must overcome: To move forward together, stop
the fear-mongering and stop the hate. We may come from different places, pray
in different ways, look different, love differently but we all live in the same
country of shared dreams.
In Minnesota, we have
the biggest Somali population in the country and we are proud of that
community. A few years ago, at the height of angry rhetoric, a Somali family of
4 went to dinner. A guy passing by said, ‘You four go home where you came from.’
The little girl said, ‘Mom, I don’t want to go home. You said we could eat out
for dinner out tonight.’ You think of the innocent words of that little girl – she
only knows one home, our state, one home, the United States.
Walt Whitman, the great
American poet, said: I hear America singing the very carols I hear.” For
Whitman, those were the songs of the mechanics, carpenters, masons, shoemakers,
and those carols are still being sung today – that is also the song of our
sisters and brothers, a chorus of different races, creeds, way of life.
E plurbus unum – out of many is one.
It is more than a motto,
America – it is the North Star of our democracy. It is the North Star of our
effort.
I am asking you to join
this campaign – it is a homegrown one.
I don’t have a political
machine, I don’t come from money, but what I do have is this: I have grit.
I have family, I have
friends, I have neighbors and have all of you who are willing to come out in
the middle of winter, who took the time to watch today from home, willing to
stand up and say people matter.
I am asking you not to
look down, not to look away. I am asking you to look up, at each other, the
future before us, let us rise to the
occasion and meet the challenges of our day – cross the river of our divides
and walk across a sturdy bridge to higher ground.
As one faith leader
reminded me: to pursue the good we must believe that good will prevail.
I do believe it, and so
do you.
Let’s join together as
one nation, one nation, indivisible, under God and pursue the good.
Elizabeth Warren, the senior Senator
from Massachusetts, launched her campaign for President in Lawrence, a small
mill town which was the site 100 years ago, textile workers, led mainly by
women, went on strike to demand fair wages, overtime pay and the right to join
a union. She laid out a platform built
on rebuilding the middle class, strengthening democracy, equal justice under
law.
Here are highlights from her speech:
A little over 100 years ago, the textile mills in Lawrence
employed tens of thousands of people, including immigrants from more than 50
countries.
Business was booming. The guys at the top were doing great. But workers made so
little money that families were forced to crowd together in dangerous tenements
and live on beans and scraps of bread. Inside the mills, working conditions
were horrible. Children were forced to operate dangerous equipment. Workers
lost hands, arms, and legs in the gears of machines.
One out of every three adult mill workers died by the time they were 25.
But one day, textile workers in Lawrence – led by women – went on strike to
demand fair wages, overtime pay, and the right to join a union.
It was a hard fight. They didn’t have much. Not even a common language. But
they stuck together.
And they won. Those workers did more than improve their own lives. They changed
America. Within weeks, more than a quarter of a million textile workers
throughout New England got raises. Within months, Massachusetts became the
first state in the nation to pass a minimum wage law.
And today, there are no children working in factories. We have a national
minimum wage. And worker safety laws. Workers get paid overtime, and we have a
forty-hour work week.
The story of Lawrence is a story about how real change happens in
America. It’s a story about power – our power – when we fight together.
Today, millions and millions of American families are also struggling to
survive in a system that has been rigged by the wealthy and the well-connected.
And just like the women of Lawrence, we are ready to say enough is enough.
We are ready to
take on a fight that will shape our lives, our children’s lives, and our
grandchildren’s lives: The fight to build an America that works for everyone….
Over the years, America’s middle class had been deliberately
hollowed out. And families of color had been systematically discriminated
against and denied their chance to build some security.
The richest and most powerful people in America were rich, really rich – but
they wanted to be even richer – regardless of who got hurt.
So, every year, bit by bit, they lobbied Washington and paid off politicians to
tilt the system just a little more in their direction. And year by year, bit by
bit, more of the wealth and opportunity went to the people at the very top.
That’s how, today, in the richest country in the history of the world, tens of
millions of people are struggling just to get by.
This disaster has touched every community in America. And for communities of
color that have stared down structural racism for generations, the disaster has
hit even harder.
We can’t be blind to the fact that the rules in our country have been rigged
against people for a long time – women, LGBTQ Americans, African Americans,
Latinos, Native Americans, immigrants, people with disabilities – and we need
to call it out.
When government works only for the wealthy and well-connected, that is
corruption – plain and simple. It’s time to fight back and change the rules….
Enough
is enough, enough is enough.
[Enough
is enough. Enough is Enough, the crowd responds.]
They
will say it is “Class warfare” – they’ve been waging class warfare against
middle class for decades. It’s time to fight back.
To
protect their economic advantage, the wealthy and well-connected have rigged
our political systems as well. They have bought off, bullied politicians in
both parties to make sure Washington is always on their side, some even try to
buy into office..The economy is working great for oil companies, government contractors,
private prisons, great for Wall Street banks and hedgefunds, but not anyone
else.
Because
of Climate Change, our existence is at
stake, but Washington refuses to lift a finger without permission from fossil
fuel companies. That is dangerous and wrong.
It
isn’t just climate change – any other major issue in America – gun violence, student loan debt, crushing
cost of health care, mistreatment of veterans, broken criminal justice system,
an immigration system that lacks commonsense and under this administration,
lacks a conscience. Overwhelming majorities want action – huge crowds march on Washington
demanding change, there are letters, phone calls, protests – but nothing
happens.
Why?
Because if you don’t have money and y9ou don’t have connections, Washington doesn’t
want to hear from you.
When
government works, only for wealthy and well connected that is corruption plain
and simple, and we need to call it out.
Corruption
is a cancer on our democracy, and we will get rid of it only with strong
medicine, with real structural reform.
Our
fight is to change the rules, so that our government, our economy, our
democracy work for everyone.
I
want to be crystal clear about exactly what I mean:
First we need to change the rules to
clean up Washington, end the corruption.
We
all know trump administration is most corrupt in living memory – but even after
Trump is gone, it won’t do just to do a better job of running a broken system. We
need to take power in Washington away from the wealthy and well connected and
put it back in hands of people where it belongs.
That
is why proposed strongest, most comprehensive anti corruption laws since
Watergate.
Examples:
shut down the revolving door between Wall Street and Washington; end lobbying
as we know it; ban foreign governments from hiring lobbyists in Washington, and
make justices of US Supreme Court follow a basic code of ethics.
Ban
members of Congress from trading stocks. How is that not already illegal?
And
just one more: make every single candidate for federal office put their taxes
on line – I’ve done it.
2:
Change the rules to put more economic power
in the hands of the American people. Workers and small businesses, middle class
families and people of color have been shut out of their chance to build wealth
for generations. That requires real structural change. Right now, giant
corporations in America have too much power, just roll right over everyone
else. Put power back in hands of workers. Make it quick and easy to join a
union. Unions built America’s middle class and will rebuild America’s middle class.
Make
American companies accountable for their action; raise wages by putting workers into corporate
board rooms where real decisions made; break up monopolies when choke off
competition; take on Wall Street banks so big banks can never again threaten
security of our economy. And when giant
corporations and their leaders cheat customers, stomp out competitors and rob
workers, let’s prosecute them.
One
more thing: I am tired of hearing that we can’t afford to make real, real
investments in child care, college
and Medicare for All. I am tired of hearing we can’t afford to make
investments in things that create economic opportunities for families,
investments in housing and opioid treatment, that we can’t afford
to address things like rural neglect
or the legacy of racial discrimination,
I am tired of hearing what we can’t afford because it’s just not true.
We
are the wealthiest nation in the history of the world. Of course we can afford these investments. But we
need a government that makes different choices- choices that reflect our values
– stop handing out enormous tax giveaways to rich people and giant
corporations. Stop refusing to invest in
our children. Stop stalling on spending money, real money, on infrastructure and clean energy and a Green New
Deal.
Start
asking the people who have gained the most from our country to pay their fair
share. And that includes real tax reform
in this country, reforms that close loopholes
and giveaways to people at the top and an ultra
millionaires’ tax to make sure that rich people do their part for the
country that made them rich.
3:
Change the rules to strengthen our
democracy.
That
starts with a constitutional amendment
to protect the right of every American citizen
vote and have that vote counted.
And
that’s just the beginning.
Overturn
every single voter suppression rule
that racist politicians use to steal votes from people of color.
Outlaw
partisan gerrymandering – by Democrats
or Republicans.
Overturn
Citizens United, our democracy is
not for sale.
It’s
not just elections. Real democracy requires equal justice under law. It’s not equal justice when kids with
ounce of pot gets thrown in jail, while bank executive who launders money for
drug cartel gets a bonus. We need reform.
It’s
not equal justice when for the exact same crime, African Americans are more
likely than whites to be arrested, charged, convicted, and sentenced. Yes we
need criminal justice reform and we need it now.
We must not allow those with power to
weaponize hatred and bigotry to divide us. More than 50 years ago, Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr went to Montgomery and warned us of danger of division, how bigotry
and race bating used to divide blacks from white Americans so rich people can
keep picking all their pockets – that playbook around forever, whether straight
against gay, middle class against poor – same – rich and powerful use fear to
divide us. We’re done with that. Bigotry
has no place in the Oval Office.
This
is who we are – we come from different backgrounds, religions, languages,
experiences. We have different dreams. We are passionate about different
issues, and we feel the urgency of this moment in different ways, but today,
today we come together ready to raise our voices together until this fight is
won.
Our
movement won’t be divided by our differences, it will be united by the values
we share. We all want a country where everyone, not just the wealthy, everyone
can take care of their families; where every American, not just the ones who
hire armies of lobbyists, lawyers, can participate in democracy, a country
where every child can dream big and reach for real opportunity and we are in
the fight to build an America that works for everyone.
I
get it – this won’t be easy – a lot of people with money, power, armies of
lobbyists and lawyers, people who are prepared to spend more money than you and
I could ever dream of to stop us from making these solutions a reality – people
who will say, extreme or radical to demand an America where every American has
economic security and every kid has opportunity to succeed.
I
say, get ready, because change is coming
faster than you think.
[Change
is coming, change is coming, the crowd roars.]
This kind of fundamental change will be
hard –
a lot of people, including some of our friends, will say it’s so hard, it’s not
worth trying. But we will not give up. When I was home with my first baby, I had
the notion to go to law school. It was a crazy idea, but I persisted. It took
some time but eventually I figured out admissions, applications, how to pay
tuition, mapped out the 45 minute commute to campus. Weeks out, there was just
one more thing: child care.
My
daughter Amelia was nearly 2 years old. I looked for childcare but everywhere,
I struck out over and over. So down to the weekend before law school would
start, I finally found small place with cheerful teacher, play area, nothing
smelled funny, I could afford it. But the place would only take children who
were dependably potty trained. I looked over at Amelia – 5 days to dependably
potty train and almost 2 year old. I stand before you today courtesy of 3 bags
of M&Ms and a cooperative toddler.
Since
that day – never let anyone tell me that anything is too hard.
How
they have tried.
People
said it would be too hard to build an agency that would stop big banks from
cheating Americans on mortgages, credit cards. We got organized. To date, big banks
have paid $12 billion to those they cheated.
When Republicans tried to sabotage the agency, I came back to
Massachusetts and then ran against one of them. No woman had ever won a Senate
seat in Massachusetts, and people said it would be “too hard” for me to get
elected. But we got organized, we fought back, we persisted, and now I am the
senior Senator from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
So, no, I am not afraid of a fight. Not even a hard fight.
When
the women of the Everett Mill walked out from their machines and out into that
cold January air all those years ago, they knew it wouldn’t be easy, but they
knew what was at stake for themselves and their families, and they weren’t
going to tell anyone it was too hard – doubters told abolitionists, the
suffragettes, the foot soldiers of civil rights movement, it’s just too hard,
but they all, all kept going and they changed the history of America.
Sure, there will be plenty of doubters and cowards and armchair
critics this time around. But we learned a long time ago that you don’t get
what you don’t fight for. We are in this
fight for our lives, for our children, for our planet, for our futures – and we
will not turn back.
So here is the promise I make to you today: I will fight my heart out
so that every kid in America can have the same opportunity I had – a fighting
chance to build something real.
And here’s a big piece of how we’ll get it done: We’ll end the
unwritten rule of politics that says anyone who wants to run for office has to
start by sucking up to rich donors on Wall Street and powerful insiders in
Washington.
I’m not
taking a dime of PAC money in this campaign or a single check from a federal
lobbyist. I’m not taking applications from billionaires who want to run a Super
PAC on my behalf. And I challenge every other candidate who asks for your vote
in this primary to say exactly the same thing.
We’re going to keep building this campaign at the grassroots.
Women’s March on NYC organized by Womens March Alliance, Jan. 19, 2019
Tens of thousands took to the streets of New York City on Saturday, January 19, 2019 for the third annual Women’s March organized by the Women’s March Alliance, calling for action on a Woman’s Agenda that encompasses everything from pay parity, paid parental leave and reproductive freedom, to immigration reform, gun violence prevention, climate action, criminal justice reform – in other words, the gamut of social, political, environmental and economic justice. (See also With Cry of ‘Your Voice Your Power,’ Alliance Mounts 3rd Annual Women’s March on NYC Jan. 19)
The marchers got particularly animated outside of
Trump Tower Hotel on Central Park West, chanting “Shame, Shame, Shame,”
extending a finger, and waving placards calling for “Indict, Impeach, Imprison.”
The protesters use their bodies as message boards. Here are highlights:
Environmentalists are hailing energy and environmental legacy initiatives in New York State proposed by Governor Andrew Cuomo in his his annual State of the State and budget address.
“Governor Cuomo made historic commitments today
supporting the advancement of clean energy throughout the state,” stated Lisa Dix, Senior New York Campaign Manager
for the Sierra Club. “With a mandate to source 70 percent of the state’s
energy through renewables by 2030, doubling New York’s distributed solar target
and quadrupling the current offshore wind targets, the Governor has proven that
he is a national leader determined to make New York a 21st century, renewable
energy, economic powerhouse. Through massive investments in offshore wind ports
and clean energy job training centers, New York will be the regional hub for
the offshore wind industry. Working with the administration, climate-affected
communities and labor, we will create long-term, family-wage jobs, while
supporting a robust supply chain and multiplying economic development
opportunities for New Yorkers.”
The initiatives include commitments to:
New York’s “Green New Deal”: The Governor restated his December
goal of making New York 100 percent carbon neutral by 2040. The Administration
will map how New York will achieve carbon neutrality, while providing a just
and fair transition for communities and workers. This initiative includes a $10 billion “Green Future Fund” that supports
climate priorities and emissions reduction goals and $70 million to provide
initial funding for communities affected by the clean energy transition.
Increased Clean Energy Standard Target: New York is now the second state after Hawaii with the most
ambitious clean energy targets in the nation, with a new goal of sourcing 70
percent of New York’s electricity from renewable energy by 2030, including the
most ambitious off-shore windpower program in the country. This doubles the
current targets for energy storage, distributed solar, large scale solar and
wind and quadruples the offshore wind targets.
Increased Green Infrastructure and Jobs: With the Governor
committing to building nearly four times more offshore wind by 2035 than he
initially stated, this is the most ambitious offshore wind generation
commitment in the country. New York will nearly triple the offshore wind
commitment any state has made before. Additionally, about $200 million of the
budget will be invested in building offshore wind ports and clean energy job
training centers.
Clean Transportation and Congestion Pricing: The Governor urged
the legislature to pass congestion pricing legislation to make the Metro
Transit Authority (MTA) more reliable for years to come. Through congestion
pricing, the state would make $15 billion to invest back into the MTA. The
Governor also committed to over $3 billion in funding for clean energy and
clean transportation infrastructure for electric vehicles and charging
infrastructure. The Governor, however, fell short in setting an enforceable
commitment to reducing emissions from New York’s transportation sector, the
economic sector responsible for the most climate/carbon pollution in New York
State.
New York State Governor
Andrew M. Cuomo used his 2019 State of the State Address to delineate a Justice
Agenda that works toward the ideal of full, true justice for all.
In stark contrast to the
federal government’s dysfunction and the self-destructive tactic of using the shutdown
to extort a political prop, the Governor is laying out a blueprint to move
forward, while shielding New Yorkers from Washington’s devastating federal
attacks. It is aimed at strengthening the middle class, safeguards the
environment, improves the health of communities and invests in building an infrastructure
for the 21st century. For the ninth consecutive year, the Budget is balanced
and holds spending growth below two percent.
“In December, in the face of the nation’s biggest social crisis, and with the federal government seeking to undo generations of progress, Governor Cuomo laid out his legislative agenda to enable the Legislature to commence action on these top priorities immediately upon convening.” In this State of the State Address, the Governor called on the Legislature to swiftly and immediately act on these priorities in the first 100 days of session.
“In the face of unprecedented challenges on a national level and a federal government at a complete standstill, New York will deliver on the most productive agenda in our history and build on our record of accomplishments,” Governor Cuomo said. “This is a true Justice Agenda that ensures our neediest schools receive an equitable share of funds, advances historic criminal justice reform, safeguards our health care, protects the rights of women in our state from the federal government, and leads the nation in fight against climate change and contaminants in our environment and our water. While extreme conservatives in Washington govern by division and fuel dysfunction, New York State will raise the beacon of progress and take action to make a real difference in people’s lives.”
Here is a summary of the initiatives (it is long, but New Yorkers should see the detail of the agenda):
The FY 2020 Executive Budget is $175.2 billion on an All Funds basis.
State Operating Funds is $102.0 billion, growth of 1.9%
Health and Education spending grows at 3.6%, Executive Agencies at 0.8%.
ECONOMIC JUSTICE
Continue the Phase-In of Middle Class Tax Cuts: The Budget supports
the phase-in of the middle class tax cuts. Under these reforms, rates will
continue to drop to 5.5 percent and 6 percent when the cuts are fully phased in
– an up to 20 percent cut in income tax rates for the middle class – and
produce a projected $4.2 billion in annual savings for six million filers by
2025. As the new rates phase in, they will be the State’s lowest middle-class
tax rates in more than 70 years.
Extend the Millionaire’s Tax: To protect the progress that has been
made in enhancing progressivity and ensuring tax fairness for New York’s
middle-class, Governor Cuomo is proposing a five-year extension of the current
tax rate on millionaires. This will preserve an estimated $4.4 billion annually
otherwise unavailable to make vital investments in education and infrastructure
to secure New York’s future economic prosperity.
Make Permanent the Property Tax Cap: Governor Cuomo made a
first-ever property tax cap a hallmark of his first campaign for Governor and a
priority of his administration’s first year. Since the implementation of the
tax cap in 2012, growth has averaged approximately 2 percent and the tax cap
has produced approximately $25 billion in taxpayers’ savings. The Governor
proposes that New York preserve and make permanent the property tax cap, as he
has advocated in the past.
Close the Carried Interest Loophole: Because of an egregious
loophole in federal law, some of the wealthiest people in the country,
including hedge fund managers and private equity investors, are paying lower
tax rates on their income than many middle class families. This “carried
interest” loophole results in a substantial cost to middle-class New
Yorkers, with the State losing about $100 million every year. To ensure that
the wealthiest Americans are paying their fair share, Governor Cuomo will take
a landmark step to close the carried interest loophole under New York State law
and effectively eliminate the benefits of this loophole under the federal tax
code.
Fight for the Full Deductibility of State and Local Taxes: Governor
Cuomo fought the federal tax bill every step of the way while it was under
consideration in Congress. After its passage, New York joined together with
three other states to sue the federal government over this illegal and targeted
assault. The Governor will continue to fight against this law and the threat
that it poses to New York State, and he urges the new Democratic House of
Representations stand together and demand that the SALT deduction is fully
restored.
Continue Lawsuit Against Federal Government Challenging Unconstitutional Tax
Law That Targets New York: Governor Cuomo and Attorney General Barbara
D. Underwood filed a lawsuit to protect New York and its taxpayers from
Washington’s drastic curtailment of the SALT deduction. The lawsuit argues that
the new SALT cap was enacted to target New York and similarly situated states,
that it interferes with states’ rights to make their own fiscal decisions, and
that it will disproportionately harm taxpayers in these states. The Governor
and Attorney General Letitia James will continue in their fight to overturn the
law’s unprecedented and unconstitutional limitations on SALT deductibility.
Building 21st Century Infrastructure
Invest an Additional $150 Billion in the Nation’s Largest Infrastructure
Program: Governor Cuomo has made an unprecedented commitment to invest
$150 billion in infrastructure projects over the next five years. Beginning in
FY 2020, these capital projects will rebuild transportation and mass transit
systems, drive economic and community development, create new environmental and
park facilities, and support our sustainable energy future.
Reduce Traffic Congestion in NYC and Fund the MTA: This year, the
Governor will implement congestion pricing to establish a reliable funding
stream to transform the transit system and reduce congestion in Manhattan. By
charging fees for vehicles to move within the most congested area of New York
City and then reinvesting those funds into transit improvements, this plan will
combat gridlock and deliver to New York City’s residents and visitors the
world-class transit system they deserve.
Establish Accountability for the MTA: The MTA is a bureaucracy that
lacks any accountability. The board of 17 members gives no single person a
clear majority of nominees and there are 32 unions representing MTA employees
that exert significant political power over the elected officials who appoint
the board members. To overhaul this bureaucracy and fix the system, the
Governor will work with the Legislature to establish clear authority over the
MTA, while continuing to solve the need for dedicated funding and splitting
capital funding shortfalls between New York City and New York State. Only with
clearly designated authority and adequate funding can the MTA can be overhauled
into the efficient and effective transit system that New Yorkers deserve.
Expand Design-Build and Enact Other Efficiencies to Expedite Construction
Projects: Governor Cuomo’s $100 billion infrastructure program is arguably
the nation’s largest and boldest. Key to the program’s success is the
Governor’s decision to deploy the design-build method on complex projects, saving
taxpayers time and money by making a single contractor responsible for both a
project’s design and its actual construction. To ensure efficiency across State
projects, the Executive Budget includes legislation authorizing the use of
state-of-the-art methods such as construction manager at-risk and construction
manager-build, while expanding design-build to additional agencies.
Continuing New York’s Bottom-Up Economic Development Strategy
Invest $750 million for Round Nine of the Regional Economic Development
Councils: In 2011, Governor Cuomo established 10 Regional Economic
Development Councils (REDCs) to develop long-term regional strategic economic
development plans. Since then, the REDCs have awarded $6.1 billion to more than
7,300 projects. This strategy has resulted in 230,000 new or retained jobs in
New York. The Executive Budget includes core capital and tax-credit funding
that will be combined with a wide range of existing agency programs for a ninth
round of REDC awards totaling $750 million.
Invest in Communities Across the State Through the Fourth Downtown
Revitalization Initiative: The Downtown Revitalization Initiative is
transforming downtown neighborhoods into vibrant communities where the next
generation of New Yorkers will want to live, work and raise families.
Participating communities are nominated by the State’s ten REDCs based on the
downtown’s potential for transformation. Through three rounds of awards, each
winning community was awarded $10 million to develop a downtown strategic
investment plan and implement key catalytic projects that advance the
community’s vision for revitalization. The Executive Budget provides $100
million for the Downtown Revitalization Program Round IV.
Ensuring A Quality Education for All
Require Districts to Distribute State Aid in a More Equitable Manner to
Their Neediest Schools: Although the state distributes 70 percent of
its funding to the neediest districts, the districts do not always distribute
funding to their schools in an equitable manner. In fact, some school districts
have schools with significantly higher needs receiving less than the average
school in the district. Governor Cuomo proposes to require that these school
districts devote a portion of their 2019-20 school aid to increase the
per-pupil allocation in those high-need schools. This increase in allocation
will help ensure that funding intended to help improve educational outcomes for
the neediest students reaches those students.
$1 Billion Education Aid Increase: State support for school
districts will have increased by $8.1 billion (42 percent) since FY 2012. Over
70 percent of this year’s increase goes to high-need school districts.
Foundation Aid is increased by $338 million.
Expand Universal Pre-Kindergarten: The Budget includes an
additional $15 million investment in pre-kindergarten to expand high-quality
half-day and full-day prekindergarten instruction for three- and four-year-old
children in high-need school districts.
Recruit 250 New Teachers in Shortage Areas through the We Teach NY
Program: With the goals of diversifying and strengthening the teacher
workforce pipeline, Governor Cuomo proposes to invest $3 million in the We
Teach NY program, which will strategically recruit 250 new teachers to fill
identified needed positions in New York classrooms in 2024.
Expand Master Teacher to High Poverty Schools to Increase Access to Advanced
Courses: In 2013, Governor Cuomo launched the New York State Master
Teacher Program to strengthen our nation’s STEM education, giving selected
educators an annual $15,000 stipend for four years, professional development
opportunities and a platform to foster a supportive environment for the next
generation of STEM teachers. In order to recruit and retain outstanding
educators in the highest poverty schools, the Executive Budget will provide
$1.5 million to support 100 new Master Teachers who teach in high-poverty
schools with high rates of teacher turnover or high rates of relatively
inexperienced teachers.
Protect Student Loan Borrowers: There are approximately 2.8 million
student loan borrowers in New York that have tens of billions of dollars in
outstanding student loan debt, which is serviced by about 30 student loan
servicers. The Governor will advance sweeping protections for student loan
borrowers by requiring that companies servicing student loans held by New
Yorkers obtain a state license and meet standards consistent with the laws and
regulations governing other significant lending products such as mortgages;
banning upfront fees; requiring fair contracts and clear and conspicuous
disclosures to borrowers; and providing penalties for failing to comply with
the law.
Creating Economic Opportunity for Every New Yorker
Launch the $175 Million Workforce Initiative: Governor Cuomo will launch a new Consolidated Funding Application for workforce investments that will support strategic regional efforts that meet businesses’ short-term workforce needs, improve regional talent pipelines, expand apprenticeships, and address the long-term needs of growing industries — with a particular focus on emerging fields with growing demand for jobs like clean energy, health technology, and computer science. These funds will also support efforts to improve the economic security of women, youth, and other populations that face significant barriers to career advancement.
Expand Employer-Driven Training Opportunities by Enhancing the Employee Training Incentive Program: Governor Cuomo proposes to expand the Employee Training Incentive Program to provide more training options to more industries by enabling employers with dedicated training shops to draw on in-house expertise in delivering approved training, and by extending ETIP tax credits to internship opportunities in additional high-tech industries.
Protect Workers from Union-Busting Activity by Codifying EO 183 into Law and Expanding its Protections to Local Governments: New York State has a long and distinguished history of standing by union workers. This year, Governor Cuomo will continue to advance his support for unions by introducing legislation that not only codifies EO 183 into law, but expands its protections to local governments to ensure that more union workers are protected.
Increase Criminal Penalties for Wage Theft: Governor Cuomo will advance legislation to increase criminal penalties for employers who knowingly or intentionally commit wage theft violations to more closely align with other forms of theft.
Ensuring Access to Affordable Housing
Enact Historic Legislation to Strengthen Rent Regulation: This year, the Governor proposes aggressive rent regulation reforms, including ending vacancy decontrol, repealing preferential rent, and limiting building and apartment improvement charges. These changes will preserve the rent regulated housing stock, strengthen tenants’ rights to affordable housing, and ensure New Yorkers safe, quality affordable housing.
Limit Security Deposits to Reduce Housing Barriers: Governor Cuomo will propose legislation to limit security deposits to a maximum of one month’s rent across New York State, making New York’s security deposit limits among the strongest in the nation This law will serve to ensure that burdensome security deposits will no longer serve as a barrier to entry for anyone trying to find a new place to live.
Help Families Build Credit and Holistically Evaluate Credit Scores: In New York State, most landlords conduct background credit checks on potential tenants, which often leads to rejecting applicants with low credit scores or an insufficient credit history. To ensure all New Yorkers have a fair shot of accessing affordable, quality housing, Governor Cuomo will issue regulations prohibiting state-funded housing operators from automatically turning away applicants with poor credit or histories of bankruptcy. Instead, the State will require that all potential tenants and homeowners be holistically evaluated to determine the circumstances behind their credit history and their ability to pay rent on a forward-looking basis.
Enact Source of Income
Protections to Support Fair Housing for All: In certain parts of New York State, landlords
can reject applicants based on their lawful source of income,
disproportionately impacting households that rely on non-wage income or income
assistance and those who use vouchers to obtain housing for their families. The
Governor will work with the legislature to amend the New York State Human
Rights Law to prohibit discrimination based on lawful source of income statewide
to ensure that such lawful income is not a blanket barrier to housing, reducing
financial instability for New York’s most economically vulnerable individuals.
Combating Poverty
Support ESPRI Communities and Establish ESPRI Representation on REDC
Workforce Development Committees: In 2016, Governor Cuomo
created the Empire State Poverty Reduction Initiative (ESPRI) to combat poverty
and reduce inequality. ESPRI is an important component of the Governor’s
anti-poverty agenda, and this year Governor Cuomo proposes to build on the
success of these State and local partnerships to address poverty, supporting
more community-based efforts through continued funding of ESPRI. Governor Cuomo
will also continue to support efforts by the REDCs and the economic development
community to broaden and deepen their commitments to local anti-poverty efforts
and he will ensure an ESPRI representative is included on each region’s
Workforce Development Committee and involved in the review process for the
Governor’s new Workforce Development Initiative.
Reduce Hunger and Food Insecurity: Building on historic investments
to combat food insecurity, Governor Cuomo will establish a goal to reduce
household food insecurity in New York State by 10 percent by 2024. In order to
achieve this goal, Governor Cuomo is directing the following actions: create a
food and anti-hunger policy coordinator; simplify access to SNAP for older and
disabled adults; enhanced resources and referrals in clinical settings;
participate in SNAP online purchasing pilot; and expand food access in Central
Brooklyn.
Supporting the Rural and Agricultural Economy
Continue the Revitalization of the Great New York State Fairgrounds: The
State Fair drives $100 million a year in economic activity in Central New York
and thousands of jobs. Under Governor Cuomo’s leadership, New York State has
invested more than $120 million dollars in two phases over the last three years
to remake the New York State Fairgrounds. To continue the transformation of the
State Fairgrounds, the State will make additional renovations and upgrades to
enhance user experience. The Governor’s commitment continues to make the
fairgrounds a year-round destination.
Fund Key Programs to Support New York’s Farmers: The agricultural
industry is full of variability and uncertainty. As a reflection of the
Governor’s resolve to support New York’s farmers, this year’s Executive Budget
will continue funding the specialized technical assistance, industry promotion,
and research investments statewide to reduce farms’ exposure to economic and
climate inconsistency.
SOCIAL JUSTICE
Advancing Criminal Justice for All
Bail and Pretrial Detention Reform: Governor Cuomo is advancing
legislation that will end cash bail once and for all, significantly reduce the
number of people held in jail pretrial, and ensure due process for anyone
awaiting trial behind bars. This series of reforms will include a mandate that
police issue appearance tickets instead of making arrests in low-level cases,
eliminate money as a means of determining freedom, and institute a new
procedure whereby a district attorney can move for a hearing to determine
whether eligible defendants may be held in jail pretrial, for which the judge
must find reasonable cause to believe the individual is a danger to themselves
or others.
Improve Transparency in the Discovery Process: As only one of ten states
where prosecutors can withhold basic evidence until the day a trial begins,
Governor Cuomo’s plan will bring New York’s discovery process into the 21st
century by requiring both prosecutors and defendants to share all information
in their possession well in advance of trial. Defendants will also be
allowed the opportunity to review whatever evidence is in the prosecution’s
possession prior to pleading guilty to a crime.
Ensure the Right to a Speedy Trial: Governor Cuomo will introduce
legislation that ensures criminal cases no longer drag on without
accountability. With this proposal, Governor Cuomo will guarantee that all
necessary discovery procedures are completed quickly, and that no New Yorker is
unduly held in custody as they await their day in court.
Abolish the Death Penalty: Although the New York Court of Appeals ruled
the death penalty unconstitutional in 2004, capital punishment was never fully
repealed in statute. To address this disparity, Governor Cuomo will
introduce legislation to permanently strike capital punishment from the law to
guarantee that this draconian punishment is never again practiced in the State
of New York.
Transform the Use of Solitary Confinement in State Prisons: New
York has dramatically reformed and reduced the use of solitary confinement for
people who engage in misconduct within state prisons. The Governor is directing
DOCCS to accelerate the momentum of solitary confinement reform by limiting the
length of time spent in separation, building dedicated housing units for
rehabilitation and integration following a disciplinary sanction, and expanding
therapeutic programming to reinforce positive and social behavior.
Establish Compassionate Release: The Governor will establish a
process of compassionate release for incarcerated individuals over the age of
55 who have incapacitating medical conditions exacerbated by their age.
Enact a Comprehensive Re-entry Package to Improve Outcomes for Formerly
Incarcerated Individuals: Governor Cuomo will enact a four-point plan
to ease the burdens placed on individuals who have paid their debt to society
and provide them with the opportunities they need to succeed.
Legalizing Adult Use Cannabis
In January 2018, Governor Cuomo directed the Department of Health to launch a
multi-agency study to review the potential impact of regulated cannabis in New
York. The study, issued last July, concluded that the positive impact of a
regulated cannabis program in New York State outweighs the potential negative
aspects. Building on extensive outreach and research, Governor Cuomo is
proposing the establishment of a regulated cannabis program for adults 21 and
over in the FY 2020 budget that protects public health, provides consumer
protection, ensures public safety, addresses social justice concerns, and
invests tax revenue. Specifically, the program will:
Reduce impacts of criminalization affecting communities
of color.
Automatically seal certain cannabis-related criminal
records.
Implement quality control and consumer protections to
safeguard public health.
Counties and large cities can opt out.
Restrict access to anyone under 21.
Generate approximately $300 million in tax revenue and
create jobs.
Advancing Reproductive Justice and Women’s Equality
Pass the Reproductive Health Act and Comprehensive Contraceptive Coverage Act and Enshrine Roe v. Wade into the New York State Constitution: Governor Cuomo will work with the legislature to pass the Reproductive Health Act within the first 30 days of the 2019 Legislative Session, codifying the principles of Roe v. Wade into State law. This law will ensure the right of people to make personal health care decisions to protect their health, in addition to their life, and ensure that health care professionals can provide these crucial services without fear of criminal penalty. Upon passage of the RHA, the Governor will advance a concurrent resolution to enshrine the principles of Roe v Wade into the New York State Constitution. Additionally, Governor Cuomo will advance legislation to codify affordable access to contraception, including emergency contraception, into New York State law, by passing the Comprehensive Contraceptive Coverage Act.
Improve Access to In-Vitro Fertilization and Fertility Preservation Coverage: This year, Governor Cuomo will advance legislation to expand access to coverage for IVF, as well as medically-necessary fertility preservation services. This legislation will specifically mandate that large group insurance providers cover IVF and will also require large, small, and individual group insurance providers to cover egg-freezing services for women with certain health conditions, including those undergoing cancer treatment.
Reduce Maternal Mortality and Morbidity and Racial Disparities: Based on recommendations from the Maternal Mortality Taskforce established by Governor Cuomo in 2018, the Governor will advance a series of policies to reduce maternal mortality and racial disparities in New York State, including creating an education and training program to reduce implicit racial bias in health care institutions statewide, expand Community Health Worker programs, enacting legislation to create a statewide Maternal Mortality Review Board, creating a data warehouse to provide near real-time information on maternal mortality and morbidity and to inform targeted quality initiatives, and convening an Expert Workgroup on Postpartum Care to develop recommendations targeting the critical time immediately after birth.
Pass the Equal Rights Amendment: Governor Cuomo will push to pass the Equal Rights Amendment to add sex as a protected class to Section 11 of Article 1 of the New York State Constitution. With this change, Section 11 of Article 1 of the New York State Constitution will read: No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws of this State or any subdivision thereof. No person shall, because of race, color, sex, creed or religion, be subjected to any discrimination in his or her civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation or institution, or by the State or any agency or subdivision of the state.
Pass the Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act: Governor Cuomo will advance the Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act, which will build on Jenna’s Law to include more meaningful sentence reductions and encompass crimes committed not only against, but also at the behest of, abusers. The Act will also permit a small population of currently incarcerated survivors to apply for re-sentencing and earlier release due to their prior victimization.
Eliminate the Statute of Limitations for Rape: While New York removed the statute of limitations for Rape in the First Degree, a five-year statute of limitations remains for Rape in the Second Degree and Rape in the Third Degree. Therefore, in 2019 Governor Cuomo will advance legislation to remove the statute of limitations for Rape in the Second Degree and Third Degree.
Increase Protections Against Harassment in the Workplace: Building on the nation’s most comprehensive sexual harassment package signed into law by Governor Cuomo in 2018, Governor Cuomo will advance legislation to lower the high bar set for employees to hold employers accountable under the New York Human Rights Law for sexual harassment, protect employees’ rights to pursue complaints, and ensure workers know their rights, by requiring all employers to conspicuously post a sexual harassment educational poster in their workplace.
Modernize New York’s Pay Equity Law: Since taking office, Governor Cuomo has fought aggressively to close the gender pay gap in New York. This year, Governor Cuomo will build upon that effort by championing the passage of a salary history ban. In addition, the Governor will advance legislation to expand the definition of “equal pay for equal work” to require equal pay on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, and other protected characteristics, and expand the requirement that equal pay be provided for all substantially similar work, adding flexibility in recognition of the complexity of the issue.
If You Can See It, You Can Be It 2019—Girls in Government: Governor Cuomo will create an opportunity for girls to learn about the impact they can have through politics through the new Girls in Government initiative, a non-partisan program to encourage girls in grades 8 through 12 to get involved in government and public policy. The program will introduce girls to the machinery of advocacy and public policy and teach young girls about public affairs and issues that matter to them personally and in their community. They will witness first-hand the inner workings of state government and meet with elected officials and senior staff.
Creating a Safer New York
Establish Extreme Risk Protection Orders to Save Lives: Governor Cuomo will continue to champion the Red Flag Bill, also known as the Extreme Risk Protection Order Bill, which would prevent individuals determined by a court to have the potential to cause themselves or others serious harm from purchasing, possessing, or attempting to purchase or possess any type of firearm, including handguns, rifles, or shotguns. This legislation builds on New York’s strongest-in-the-nation gun laws, and, if passed, would make New York the first state to empower its teachers and school administrators to prevent school shootings by pursuing court intervention.
Extend the Background Check Waiting Period: Governor Cuomo continues to support legislation to establish a 10-day waiting period for individuals who are not immediately approved to purchase a firearm through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
Ban Bump Stocks: Governor Cuomo will advance legislation to close existing statutory loopholes to prohibit ownership or sale of a bump stock. As evidenced by the 2017 Las Vegas shooting, bump stocks can be equipped to semi-automatic weapons to simulate machine gun fire with deadly consequences. Bump stocks serve no legitimate purposes for hunters or sportsmen and only cause unpredictable and accelerated gun fire, and there is no reason to allow for their continued sale in New York State.
Pass the Child Victims Act: Having advanced the Child Victims Act, Governor Cuomo is fighting to enact the bill and provide survivors with a long-overdue path to justice. This legislation will increase the length of time during which a child sex abuser may be held criminally accountable, allow abuse victims to commence a civil lawsuit at any time until they reach age 50, and ensure that each and every survivor has an opportunity to seek justice by creating a one-year window for victims whose claims have previously been time-barred to bring suit.
Enact Comprehensive
Safety Reforms for Large Passenger Vehicles: The horrific tragedies involving modified stretched
limousines in Schoharie County in 2018 and Suffolk County in 2015 filled every
New Yorker with a deep sense of empathy and sorrow for the victims and their
loved ones. Governor Cuomo proposes a number of statutory reforms to both
protect passengers and hold those accountable who seek to flout the law, including
an outright ban on the registration of remanufactured limousines, prohibiting
their operation in New York State.
Authorize Speed Cameras: In order to reinstate the bill signed into law
by Governor Cuomo in 2013 authorizing the City of New York to develop a system
to advance school zone highway safety utilizing camera technology to record and
enforce speeding violations, the Governor will put forward a proposal to
reinstate and expand the speed camera program in New York City.
Enacting the Democracy Agenda
Allow Universal Absentee Voting: Governor Cuomo will push to amend the
constitution to make absentee ballots available to any eligible voter, no
matter their reason for wanting one.
Enact Statewide Early Voting: This proposal would combine early voting
with electronic poll books, making make it easier for poll workers to keep
track of voting records and verify voter identity and registration
status.
Permit Same-Day Registration: Governor Cuomo is proposing amending the
constitution to eliminate this outdated but formidable barrier to the ballot
box.
Automatic Registration: Today New Yorkers are given the opportunity
to register to vote when interacting with State agencies and they must
affirmatively ask to be registered. The budget will include a proposal to
reverse that process and register eligible New Yorkers to vote unless they
affirmatively ask not to be registered. Automatic voter registration will not
only boost voter registration and turnout in this state, it will also strengthen
our democratic process.
Make It Easier to Register to Vote: In order to ensure voter
registration is as simple as possible, the Governor is proposing that all
automatic voter registration opportunities be available online, and that New
Yorkers are able to apply to register to vote on the State Board of Elections
website if they choose to do so.
Make Election Day a Holiday: An inability to take off of work
should never be a barrier to voting. For this reason, Governor Cuomo will
advance legislation to ensure that every worker in New York State receives, as
of right, paid time off to vote on Election Day.
Eliminate Restrictions on Voting Before Noon in Upstate Primaries:
Governor Cuomo will fix unequal ballot access across the state by ensuring that
voting hours are extended for primary elections upstate to match those voting
hours across the rest of the state.
Fight to Ensure that All New Yorkers Are Counted in the 2020 Census: In
2019, Governor Cuomo will launch a comprehensive campaign to protect the
integrity of the 2020 Census and to ensure that every New Yorker is counted.
Enacting Ethics Reform
Adopt Campaign Finance Reform: Governor Cuomo will advance a
comprehensive package of campaign finance reform legislation to combat the
unprecedented influence of big money in politics and empower the voices of all
New Yorkers.
Public Financing of Elections: There is no incentive in today’s campaign finance
system for candidates to focus on ordinary donors. Large donors provide
large donations which drown out the voices of ordinary people. Public
campaign financing is the remedy to this problem. By enacting a 6:1 public
financing matching ratio for small donations, candidates will be
incentivized to focus on small donors.
Lowering Campaign Contribution Limits: Governor Cuomo is proposing lowering contribution
limits for all candidates. By implementing these reforms, and creating a
strong public financing system, New York will dramatically reduce the
influence of money in politics and return to a government by the people
and for the people.
Ban Corporate Contributions and Fully Close the LLC
Loophole: Ever since the Citizens United
decision in 2010, corporate money has overtaken our elections system. It
is time for New York State to finally say enough is enough. Governor Cuomo
will fix this problem once and for all by banning all corporate and LLC
contributions. It is time to restore the power to the people, and take it
out of the hands of dark money and special interest donors.
Strengthen Disclosure Laws that Expose Dark Money inPolitics : In June 2016, Governor
Cuomo advanced ethics reform legislation to address the impact of Citizens
United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 310 (2010). The Governor
cautioned about the increase of dark money in politics and promised to
“strengthen disclosure requirements and mandate that groups report
the identity of anyone exerting control over them.” In August 2016,
the Governor signed into law New York Executive Law § 172, which requires
disclosures of political relationships and behaviors widely recognized to
be influential but which operate in the shadows. Now, with the lessons of
the 2018 election in hand, the Governor proposes strengthening this law in
a variety of ways to assure all New Yorkers have critical information
about who is actually speaking to them. Further, the Governor is seeking
to streamline the reporting process for 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4)
organizations, including by providing a mechanism for organizations to
apply for a statutory exemption before the start of a reporting period.
Require Financial
Disclosures by Local Elected Officials: This proposal will require these local elected officials to
submit basic financial disclosure information to JCOPE, just like their state
counterparts, so that the people of New York State can have the information
they need about the people they choose to represent them at all levels of
government.
Build a Dynamic, User-Friendly Database of Economic Development Projects: In
an effort to increase transparency and modernize the information available on
State economic development efforts, the Governor is directing Empire State
Development (ESD) to build and host a searchable online database that will give
the public more current and relevant information on projects that receive ESD
assistance. When deployed, the new database will provide the public with more
recent information on projects and combine the data from many static,
program-specific reports into one dynamic, user-friendly website.
Ensuring Immigrant Rights
Pass the Jose Peralta DREAM Act: Governor Cuomo will pass the Senator
Jose R. Peralta DREAM Act to finally open the doors of higher education to
thousands of New Yorkers. The Senator Jose R. Peralta DREAM Act will give
undocumented New York students, who are deserving of the same advantages given
to their citizen peers, access to the Tuition Assistance Program, as well as
state administered scholarships.
Codify Executive Order Prohibiting State Agencies from Inquiring About
Immigration Status: In 2017, Governor Cuomo issued Executive Order 170,
prohibiting State agencies and officers from inquiring about or disclosing an
individual’s immigration status unless required by law or necessary to
determine eligibility for a benefit or service. Building upon further
amendments to the Executive Order, Governor Cuomo proposes codifying the
protection of the amended EO 170 into law.
Protecting LGBTQ Rights
Pass the Gender Identity and Expression Non-Discrimination Act:Governor
Cuomo supports the passage of the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act
(GENDA), solidifying protections against discrimination, harassment, and hate
crimes against people on the basis of gender identity.
Banning Conversion Therapy: Governor Cuomo supports legislation to
expand the definition of professional misconduct for professions licensed under
the education law to include engaging in, advertising for, or allowing someone
under one’s direction or oversight to engage in conversion therapy with a
patient under the age of eighteen years.
Ban the “Gay Panic” Defense: Governor Cuomo will again
push to close the loophole in New York State by passing legislation to ban gay
and trans panic defenses.
Make Surrogacy Legal in New York State: New York State law
presently bans the practice of gestational surrogacy, and creates destabilizing
uncertainty about who the legal parents are when a child is conceived via other
reproductive technology like artificial insemination or egg donation. The
Governor is proposing legislation to lift the ban on surrogacy contracts to
permit gestational carrier agreements.
Serving Our Veterans
Support for Transgender Troops: New York will stand with all
veterans regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. This year, all
New York State Division of Veterans’ Affairs staff will receive LGBTQ cultural
competency training to help understand how to best serve LGBTQ veterans. DVA
will also work with LGBTQ-focused organizations to make sure that each and
every LGBTQ veteran receives individualized assistance in a safe and supportive
environment, including by helping LGBTQ veterans upgrade their service
discharges so that these brave veterans will be able to access healthcare,
education, financial compensation, and other benefits they have earned.
JUSTICE FOR ALL NEW YORKERS
Protecting Quality, Affordable Health Care
Codify Health Care Protections and Coverage Guarantees for New
Yorkers: In light of the continued federal attacks on the ACA,
Governor Cuomo believes it is essential that New York codify key ACA
provisions, including the state’s health insurance marketplace, as well as
enhanced State regulatory protections into State law. This is critical to
stabilizing the health insurance market and inoculating New York from any
further federal attacks on the health care system.
Take Action to Achieve Universal Access to Health Care: Governor
Cuomo is establishing a Commission on universal health care to be supported by
Department of Health and Department of Financial Services, and comprised of
health policy and insurance experts to develop options for achieving universal
access to high-quality, affordable health care in New York. This review process
will consider all options for expanding access to care, including strengthening
New York’s commercial insurance market, expanding programs to include
populations that are currently ineligible or cannot afford coverage, as well as
innovative reimbursement models to improve efficiency and generate savings to
support expanded coverage.
Fighting to End the Opioid Epidemic
Protect New Yorkers from Predatory Practices: Governor Cuomo will
advance legislation to 1) require that out-of-state facilities be licensed in
their home state and accredited by a nationally recognized organization, and 2)
prevent predatory out-of-state providers from targeting justice involved
individuals by working with courts to immediately connect individuals to
in-state treatment programs and by advancing legislation to protect in-state
court ordered treatment. He will also direct OASAS to implement regulations
that require out-of-state marketers comply with OASAS requirements when
marketing in New York State. With these actions, New York will implement the
strongest practices in the nation to protect its residents, forcing predatory
treatment programs to look elsewhere to fill their facility quotas.
Expand Access to Buprenorphine: Buprenorphine is an important
advance in Medication Assisted Treatment, which, like methadone and injectable
naltrexone, is used in combination with counseling as appropriate to help
people reach and sustain recovery from Opioid Use Disorder. To expand use of
buprenorphine, Governor Cuomo will direct the Department of Health to require
all hospitals statewide to develop protocols for their Emergency Departments to
address Opioid Use Disorder based on the standard of care for treatment or
referral for treatment.
Expand Access to Medication Assisted Treatment in Criminal Justice Settings: To
expand access to treatment in prisons and jails, Governor Cuomo has directed
OASAS to distribute over $4 million to support addiction treatment services in
over 50 facilities. Additionally, Governor Cuomo will expand access to
Medication Assisted Treatment by providing $1.2 million to support the
establishment of up to three new MAT programs in State prisons.
Increase Access to Naloxone: Governor Cuomo will direct DOH to
advance legislation that expands Good Samaritan laws to apply to workers in
restaurants, bars, and other retail establishments. In addition, Governor Cuomo
will increase access to naloxone at SUNY and CUNY by ensuring that naloxone is
provided as part of every dorm first aid kit, or available for the Resident
Assistant on duty every night in every SUNY and CUNY dorm.
Launch a Comprehensive Substance Use Prevention Blueprint for Schools: At
Governor Cuomo’s direction, New York State will launch a statewide
collaborative to streamline all prevention resources and develop best
practices, standards, and metrics for substance use prevention into a focused
“Prevention Blueprint” that will assist schools to follow a
comprehensive, evidence-based and data-driven approach to prevention. OASAS
shall work in collaboration with the State Education Department, Department of
Health and the Office of Mental Health to develop the Prevention Blueprint for
use in the 2020-21 school year.
Creating Healthy Communities
Protect New Yorkers from Unknown Exposure to Toxic Chemicals: Governor
Cuomo will introduce new legislation authorizing the Department of
Environmental Conservation, the Department of Health and the Department of
State to develop regulations establishing an on-package labeling requirement
for designated products, indicating the presence of potentially hazardous
chemicals, developing a list of the more than 1,000 carcinogens and other
chemicals that will trigger labeling, and identifying the types of consumer
products that will be subject to the new regime. DEC and DOH will be further
empowered to require manufacturers to disclose the chemical contents of
consumer products in sold or distributed in New York State and explore possible
additional measures to protect consumers.
Control Health Threats from Tobacco: Governor Cuomo is proposing
comprehensive legislation to combat the rising use of tobacco products. This
legislation includes:
Raising the Minimum Sales Age for Tobacco and
Electronic Cigarette Products from 18 to 21: Most underage youth obtain tobacco and vapor
products from friends who are over 18 and can legally purchase products.
Raising the minimum age will remove sources of tobacco from high schools.
Ending the Sale of Tobacco and Electronic Cigarette
Products in Pharmacies: Health
care related entities should not be in the business of selling tobacco,
the leading cause of preventable death in New York State. Ending the sale
of tobacco and electronic cigarette products in pharmacies will reduce the
availability, visibility, and social acceptability of tobacco use,
especially to youth.
Clarify the Department of Health’s Authority to Ban the
Sale of Certain Flavored E-Cigarette Liquids: Flavored combustible cigarettes, except menthol, were
banned by the FDA in 2009 to reduce youth smoking as they were frequently
used as a starter product. Most e-cigarette users said their first
e-cigarette was flavored. Flavors, such as sweet tart, toffee, and bubble
gum, make e-cigarettes more attractive and make e-cigarettes more attractive
to youth. Legislation is being introduced to provide the Department of
Health the authority to ban the sale of flavored liquids that target youth
use of e-cigarettes.
Restricting Available Discounts Provided by Tobacco and
Electronic Cigarette Manufacturers and Retailers: New York has the highest cigarette tax in the
nation, but manufacturers and retailers have developed tactics to reduce
prices, such as “buy one, get one free” discounts. These tactics
directly target price-sensitive consumers, including youth. Restricting
discounts on tobacco and vapor products will strengthen the impact of New
York’s tax on tobacco and disincentivize tobacco use.
Introduce a Tax on E-Cigarettes: Tobacco use is reduced or prevented when the price of
tobacco products is high. Youth are particularly sensitive to price
increases on tobacco products. New York State has one of the highest taxes
on combustible cigarettes and one of the lowest youth smoking rates in the
country. The same rationale is expected to apply to taxation and youth use
of electronic cigarettes and e-liquids.
Require E-Cigarettes to Be Sold Only Through Licensed
Retailers: Currently the sale of
e-cigarettes is almost entirely unregulated. Restricting the sale to
licensed retailers will allow the current enforcement infrastructure to
ensure that minors do not purchase tobacco products.
Invest in Community-Based Supports for Aging New Yorkers: Governor Cuomo proposes investing $15 million in community-based supports for aging New Yorkers. This needed targeted investment in NYSOFA’s programs and services will help serve more older adults and will help them maintain their autonomy, support family and friends in their caregiving roles, and delay future Medicaid costs. Working with the Department of Health, NYSOFA will develop specific metrics to evaluate the success of this investment.
Create the Family First Transition Fund: The state will leverage the investment of private foundation funding to create a Family First Transition fund that will provide resources to local departments of social services and foster care agencies to have the resources needed to prepare for the implementation of the Family First federal legislation. This investment will allow New York State to adequately prepare for the implementation of Family First and will position New York to continue to prioritize the needs of its most vulnerable children and families and ensure the local departments of social services are fully equipped to meet those needs while maintaining compliance with important federal benchmarks.
Continuing New York’s Environmental Leadership
Launching the Green New Deal: Amidst the Trump Administration’s assault on the environment and in order to continue New York’s progress in the fight against climate change, Governor Cuomo is announcing New York’s Green New Deal, a nation-leading clean energy and jobs agenda that will put the state on a path to carbon neutrality across all sectors of New York’s economy. At the Governor’s direction, New York will move boldly to achieve this goal with specific near-term actions and long-term strategies to spur unparalleled innovation and transform the state’s electric, transportation, and building infrastructure while prioritizing the needs of low- and moderate-income New Yorkers. This landmark initiative will further drive the growth of New York’s clean energy economy, create tens of thousands of high-quality 21st century jobs, provide all New Yorkers with cleaner air and water by reducing harmful emissions, and set an example of climate leadership for the rest of the nation and world to follow.
Establish $10 Billion Green Future Fund: This year, Governor Cuomo will advance a $10 billion Green Future Fund to support clean water infrastructure, renewable energy and clean transportation, and open space and resiliency. This fund includes $5 billion in total for drinking water and wastewater infrastructure—building upon the $2.5 billion Clean Water Infrastructure Act and effectively doubling the state’s investment in clean water over the next five years.
Continue Historic $300 Million Environmental Protection Fund: Governor Cuomo proposes maintaining the State’s historic $300 million EPF. This investment will prioritize programs to protect New York’s water bodies, promote stewardship projects in parks and on other state lands, revitalize municipal waterfronts, and build community resilience to climate change—all while creating jobs and stimulating local economies.
Expanding the Bottle Bill to Include Most Nonalcoholic Drinks: In order to reduce litter and provide relief to overburdened municipal recycling entities who are struggling amidst changes to the global recycling markets, Governor Cuomo will expand the Bottle Bill to make most non-alcoholic beverage containers eligible for 5 cent redemption, including those for sports drinks, energy drinks, fruit and vegetable beverages and ready-to-drink teas and coffee.
Prohibiting the Use of Plastic Bags: To address the environmental impacts of single-use plastic bags, Governor Cuomo proposes a statewide plastic bag prohibition with certain exceptions.
Women’s March Alliance, the official organizer of the March on NYC since 2017, will stage its third annual march on Saturday, January 19. Line up begins at 10 a.m. with the march kicking off at 11 a.m. on 61st Street and Central Park West (main entrance on 72nd and Columbus). The march, which is expected to draw 100,000 participants, will run along Central Park West south around Columbus Circle, east on 59th Street then south on 6th Avenue.
The theme for this year’s Woman’s March, taking place in New York City on Saturday Jan 19, could well be “I am woman. Hear me roar,” especially after the dramatic successes culminating in the 2018 elections that saw a record number of women running for office and elected – women now one-fourth of Congress, and there are four more women governors.
And in New York, the
successful takeover of the Senate gives new hope for a progressive agenda,
topped with the Women’s Reproductive Health Act.
But the Women’s March
Alliance organizers worry that sheer exhaustion and complacency might rightly
set in after all that happened to produce the success of 2018, but that there still so much work to be
done, not the least is: Now you have heard our roar, act.
“We want to make sure we don’t
stop fighting. We are half way there. We can’t stop now. We have to move
forward,” said Katherine Siemionko, founder and president of Women’s March
Alliance. “The theme for the march
is ‘Your Voice Your Power.’ We have seen what happened in 2018 Elections. New York cannot stand back. New
York leads nation in progress.” (The actual hashtag for the march is #YourVoiceYourPower)
Indeed, that there is still
so much work to be done is reflected in the cavalier attitude Trump and
Republicans have to shutting down government, with no clue and no care of the
ramifications on women and families that go beyond withholding pay to 800,000
federal workers as well as contractors,from food safety to food stamps, from
mortgages to small business loans, from housing vouchers to veterans benefits. They
even stood by while the Violence Against Women Act expired.
And then there is the
unbelievable cruelty being inflicted on millions of families across the nation
who may have an undocumented immigrant among them but American citizen spouse
or children, or the four million Dreamers whose lives are in limbo. Think of
the desperate migrants as the Trump Administration tries to overturn domestic
violence and gang violence as a basis for asylum; the forced separation of
families; the families of tens of thousands of migrants and refugees here for
decades under Temporary Protected Status who have been told they will be
deported. Think of the families ripped apart. That’s a woman’s issue, too.
Now Trump is threatening
to declare a national emergency in order to take funds allocated for rebuilding
communities devastated by climate disasters in Puerto Rico afflicted by Maria,
in California after the wildfires, in Florida and South Carolina after Michael.
And then there is the humanitarian crisis created by Trump’s anti-immigrant
policy that has led to two children dying while in US custody, and hundreds of
children rendered orphans, thousands more traumatized by their condition.
But this is New York
State, and thankfully, there is finally full control by Democrats. On January
22, the 46th anniversary of Roe v Wade, the State Legislature is
expected to pass the Reproductive Health Act, strengthening abortion access by
codifying the principles of Roe v. Wade in state law, after 12
years of trying but failing. But this action cannot be taken for granted. There
is still need to push the politicians to act –and not take such landmark for
granted..
This is no time to be
complacent – the regressive forces are not complacent, they are seizing the opportunity of a hard-religious right
majority on the Supreme Court, to push through personhood amendments that
essentially give more rights to a fetus than the mother carrying it. Women have
actually been prosecuted for miscarrying and such laws could be applied to
punish women for behaviors that are deemed harmful to a fetus. Essentially,
women would become slaves of the state, not considered entitled to the same
right of self-determination as a man. Big Brother doesn’t begin to describe
government’s intervention..
If Roberts’ Court rules that the fetus has “personhood” rights under the Constitution, all abortions would be illegal — even in states like New York that overwhelmingly support a woman’s right to choose. (See the full series of editorials in the New York Times, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/12/28/opinion/abortion-law-pro-life.html).
So this year’s march has
its own urgency: to cement and recommit, to make sure that the electeds carry
out what could be called a woman’s agenda but encompasses so much because women’s
issues are so broad.
Here’s a partial list:
gun violence prevention, universal health care, universal pre-K, affordable
college, climate action and environmental justice, immigration reform, pay
equity, parental leave, criminal justice reform… Way too many to fit into a
soundbite, a poster or a tweet.
But if you still need a
motivation, consider this: the 2020 presidential election is already underway,
and the way women candidates for office are once again being evaluated
according to a different standard (“likeability,” “shrill”).
The danger of
complacency needs to be recalled: that’s what happened in 2016, when too many believed
that Hillary Clinton becoming the first woman to head a major party ticket
meant that America had entered a post-feminist era, just as Obama’s election
was supposedly a post-racist era. Okay to stay home out of some manufactured
outrage, just because you could; okay to throw a vote away on an independent
candidate, because of course the most qualified candidate, who stood for gender
rights, civil rights, criminal justice, environmental justice, economic
justice, would win. We saw how that went.
The march, which will
include opportunities to register to vote (and local elections in 2019 are
important), is a call to action to get things done while we have the
“honeymoon” of the new electeds and the fear of God in the incumbents – because
they think they can do anything they want and ignore the voices of 2018 because
the electorate won’t remember in 2020.
It is important, as
well, to keep the networks and the alliances intact, for the affirmation and
validation that the marchers give to one another. And because 2020 is right
around the corner.
Indeed, the greatest
threat to the Women’s movement is complacency (and fatigue) after the hard-won
victories of 2018.
“We must be fearful that
people have become comfortable, because that’s what happened in 2016 – we were
the popular vote, we still are the popular vote, we don’t want to get
comfortable and let the crazy seem like the status quo & normal,” said
Freedom Shannon, a member of the board of WMA which describes itself as “a nonprofit alliance of human rights
supporters who seek to close the social, political and economic gender divide.”
“We are changing what it
means to be a woman in our society. We have marched to being one in five in Congress,
but we need to come out January 19 to honor those who have come before us, to
show those in countries that cannot assemble, what democracy looks like, and
pave the way for future generations,” Shannon said. “On January 19, we will unify our voices so we amplify enough to be
heard by the people in power and soften their hearts so they can act without
prejudice.”
The organizers at a
press conference introducing the event stressed that WMA is completely separate
from Womens March Inc. which organized the Washington March in 2017 and is
holding a rally in New York City also on January 19. That organization raised
controversy of being anti-Semitic when leaders expressed support for Louis
Farrakhan.
Siemionko noted “We
are a local grassroots team of volunteers hosting this event for the third year
in a row, and we do not have nor have we ever had an association with Women’s
March, Inc. or its founders.”
She continued, “Our mission is to include and advance women regardless of
faith, sexual identity and preference, race, cultural and religious background
or political affiliation.”
Siemionko was firm on
insisting that WMA is inclusive, and that like all the other sister marches
that took place in 2017 and 2018 in cities across the nation, all grew
organically, as local grassroots organizations reflecting their communities.
She stressed how WMA
went out of its way to accommodate the Jewish community, including organizing
the march so it would start within walking distance of a large segment of the community
on the Upper West Side. “We wanted to honor those Jews who want to honor Sabbath without taking public
transportation, but can march to support women’s rights.” In addition,
Siemionko will be participating in a panel on January 17 at the Stephen Wise
Synagogue.
“The confusion happened
when Womens March Inc, the official march of DC, decided to break ground here
in NYC. Unfortunately that happened at time when irresponsible wording was used
to insult different communities.
“One of the reasons we
became part of WMA since its inception is that anti-Semitism, racial discrimination,
LGBT discrimination had no place here, especially in New York City, the most
diverse place in the nation, in the world,” said Debra Dixon Anderson, director
of operations of the New York City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and a WMA board
member, “and we appreciate all different walks of life.”
WMA is the only
organization that has a permit from New York City for a march on January 19.
Enter at 72nd
Street to Central Park West, or enter from Central Park. There will be a
15-minute kickoff at 11 am (not a rally), then the march will get underway at
11:15, go south past Columbus Circle, east on 59, then south to 44 Street.
Check the site for details.
There will be a female Indian chief to bless the march, female drum bands, brass bands, acrobats, DJs, and activists.
In conjunction with
the event, people will have a chance to see “Eyes of the World,” a giant, collaborative mosaic, 5 ft tall and
18 feet wide, produced by thousands of contributors since the first Women’s
March on New York City in 2017. that is on view at the Newburger Gallery in the
lobby of SUNY Optometry (33 West 42nd Street), across from Bryant
Park, noon to 9 pm.
“’Eyes of the World’ is
a tangible and permanent reminder to the United States government that our eyes
are constantly watching to ensure all policies embody human rights, advance
civil rights, and promote the highest degree of equality,” write Joanne and
Bruce Hunter, artists and creators of public art.
The message of the 2019 Women’s March should be: We won. Now act.
