One day after the funeral of officer Wilbert Mora, who lost his life in Harlem in the middle of an operation together with uniformed Jason Rivera, and in the middle of the escalation of crime in New York City that increased more of 38% in January, President Joe Biden visited the Big Apple, and gave his support for Mayor Eric Adams’ plan to curb crime and gun violence.
At the same time, Biden unveiled a federal initiative to stem the flow of illegal weapons and warned that “if someone commits a crime with a phantom weapon, not only will state and local prosecutors go after them. , but will also await federal charges and federal prosecution.”
At her meeting this Thursday at the New York City Police Department (NYPD) headquarters with the Mayor, Governor Kathy Hochul and Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell, Biden analyzed the crime wave that shakes the five boroughs, and there he stated that the only way in which the Big Apple can improve security is by increasing investment in communities, but also giving greater resources to the Police and their training. His statements coincided with the vision that Adams has expressed to make New York recover security and showed distance with those more progressive sectors that advocate defunding the NYPD.
Biden, who stressed that New York will benefit from the investment of federal funds in the country’s police forces, made it clear that, as Adams opposes those who advocate defunding the police, but agrees that it is essential to invest more in violence prevention, with education, job opportunities, after-school programs and initiatives to help those released from prison get jobs and do not fall into criminal activities.
“Mayor Adams, you and I agree: the answer is not to leave our streets, that is not the answer,” said the Democratic leader in One Police Plaza. “The answer is to bring us together: police and communities, building trust and making us safer. The answer is not to defund the Police, it is to give them the tools, the training, the funds to be partners, protectors and leaders in the communities. The Police need to treat everyone with respect and dignity”.
“NYC sets the example”
The President He also stressed that the federal government will support the City of New York, of which he said that, in the midst of the armed violence that is escalating throughout the country, it is setting an example to be a leader in the fight against crime.
“Together we can reduce gun violence and make our communities safer (…) You can count on me to be an ally in those efforts”, said the President. “I want to help every city mayor follow New York’s lead. Every day, here in New York, federal, state and municipal authorities meet to share intelligence on arrests and shootings and work to get these gunmen off the streets”.
The president was accompanied by the Attorney General Merrick Garland, who called on district attorneys to intensify their fight and persecution against guns, and New York leaders in Congress such as Representative Nydia Velásquez and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.
Biden also stressed that the inclusion of more social workers and mental health workers who work hand in hand with the Police should be promoted.
“We need more people than when they call in these scenes and someone is about to jump off a roof, not just someone standing there with a weapon, but there is also someone who knows how to talk to people and dissuade them, “said the president. “We cannot wait for them to do everything alone, everything that must be done to keep a community safe.”
The President, who publicly congratulated police officer Sumit Sulan, who killed the individual who killed officers Rivera and Mora, also called on Congress to approve legislative proposals against arms trafficking, such as the background check law, and mentioned the urgency of fighting more severity to illegal weapons.
All levels of government are united
Mayor Adams thanked the President for his support, and insisted on his vision of working jointly from crime prevention and police intervention, just when it was revealed that shootings in the city increased by 28.,6% last month, reaching 100 facts that left almost thirty deaths.
“The President is here because he knows what the American people want: justice, security and prosperity, and he deserves it all . He wants to end gun violence in our city and in our country,” Adams said. “We will not have a recovery without justice and security.”
Governor Kathy Hochul, who also attended the meeting with President Biden, optimistically highlighted that all levels of government are united in the fight against violence.
“The President, Mayor Adams and leaders from across the State and the nation are coming together like never before, with one purpose: to stop the flow of illegal weapons. The State of New York is proud to be an ally in this battle”, said Hochul, who warned that “the violent must be afraid”.
NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell reiterated her word that the NYPD will continue to work to ensure public safety and He mentioned that with tasks such as the daily meetings of the special task force of the NYPD that Biden attended, where officials from multiple agencies are involved to “connect the dots” on crime, and the support of Washington, the City will see results.
“This violence against our people and our officers is unacceptable and has to stop now (…) there are too many people carrying weapons,” said the Commissioner. “This is our solemn vow to New Yorkers and to New York City. It remains essential that all allies come to the table in this shared mission to combat gun violence.”
In the afternoon Biden visited the PS school 251 Jacob Blackwell, in Long Island City, Queens, who under the City’s Cure Violence program has implemented programs to reduce gun violence, hand in hand with organizations such as ‘Community Capacity Development’ (CCD) , which have had a positive impact on public safety in the neighborhood.
Through conflict mediation initiatives and actions at ‘Queensbridge Houses’, the largest public housing complex in the country, these efforts have managed to reduce shootings there to zero .
During the visit to Queens, Mayor Adams highlighted that part of his security plan includes continuing to work with groups to cure violence.
But the vision of the President, the Mayor and the Governor regarding investment in greater police surveillance is not shared by all sectors of the city.
Thus let it be seen Donna Lieberman, executive director of the Union of Civil Liberties of New York, who assured that the focus against crime should be on supporting community initiatives that advance public safety, such as increased access to housing, employment assistance, expanded resources for treatment and mental health care, and life interruption programs violence.
“What New York City does not need is more federal resources to unnecessarily overburden the NYPD, which already has the largest budget and manpower of any police force in the nation, or to impose blanket surveillance that will trample on civil liberties and targeted communities of color,” the activist said.
“We are deeply concerned about (Mayor Adams’) plans to restore the NYPD’s ‘anti-crime’ units, the direct descendants of the Street Crime Unit that came to symbolize the worst of policing abusive, racist and deadly with broken windows,” added Lieberman.
- Crime in New York in the
- 38% increased crime in the city compared to last year
- 9,566 felonies occurred in January of 2022
- 6,905 were the major crimes reported in 2021
- 28 homicides have been recorded and so far this year
- 33 were the homicides in January of last year
- 111 shootings have been reported this 2022
- 76 were the shootings in January of 2021
- 28.6% increased shootings in this one 2022
- 33.1% increased robberies in the city
- 1,251 were the robberies in January of 2022 compared to 940 in January of 2020