6
QUEENS WEEKLY, FEB. 3, 2019
Katz slams Census question at State of Borough
Borough president seeks criminal justice reform, community engagement on Kew Gardens jail
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BY MARK HALLUM
Borough President Melinda
Katz said she would
opt out of responding to
the 2020 Census question
regarding the documented
status of residents and
advised the crowd at Friday’s
State of the Borough
address to follow suit in a
speech that covered not
only immigration, but also
criminal justice reform.
With up to 68,000 children
in Queens live in
mixed status households,
according to Katz, policies
out of the White House administration
could impact
residents across the borough,
citizen or not.
“For each person in
each household unaccounted
for, that’s less
federal funding for our
schools, our hospitals,
our infrastructure, even
less representation in
congress and the state legislature.
An undercount
is something we can’t afford,”
Katz said during the
address, held at LaGuardia
Community College
in Long Island City. “One
way or the other, I plan to
fight this… and if the citizen
question appears on
the survey, I will abstain.
I will refuse to answer the
question. You can call it a
boycott. I, Melinda Katz,
an American-born citizen,
will boycott the citizenship
question. Because times
like these compel courage
by those with the privilege
to do so.”
Katz has created the
Queens Complete Count
Committee, which has
more than 70 people
signed on to go across the
borough and get real data
on residents, regardless of
immigration status.
The 2020 federal census
is still under review by
the House of Representatives
oversight committee
and Commerce Secretary
Wilbur Ross will have
to testify regarding his
decision to add the
controversial question on
immigration status.
Katz walked a fine line
with some Queens residents
when she announced
that she supports the closing
of Rikers Island, on the
grounds that the facility is
antiquated and reforms are
needed, but said neighborhood
residents have to be
involved in the decisions
regarding the placement of
community jails to ensure
a smooth transition.
A new justice system
that is safer, more humane
and less costly is something
Katz advocated for
on the condition that communities
have their say,
something residents have
vocalized the need for in
the past year since Mayor
Bill de Blasio announced
an agreement had been
struck with the state in
February 2018 to create
borough-based jails.
“The irony, however, of
unveiling a citywide plan
for ‘modern communitybased
jails’ in the absence
of community input is not
lost on the boroughs, certainly
not here in Queens,”
Katz said. “Any plan by
the city — especially the
siting and design of any
new jails — must include
meaningful community
engagement and input. I
am deeply disturbed by the
lack of opportunity thereof
for the proposal to erect a
1.9-million square-foot facility
on 82nd Avenue, and
that’s from a supporter of
closing Rikers.”
With a projected timeline
of a decade for the closure
of Rikers, Katz said
there is still time to include
communities and implement
reforms that reduce
the jail population.
Katz said the continuation
of warrant forgiveness,
which outgoing District
Attorney Richard
Brown has implemented,
can prevent small offenses
from evolving into
a life of crime for individuals
who cannot afford
lawyers fees and are
facing low-level offenses
such as loitering.
“And what if you’ve
served time and have proven
that you’ve turned your
life around and are making
good?” said Katz, who’s
also running for Queens
District Attorney. “One of
Gov. Cuomo’s greatest accomplishments,
if you ask
me, is legislation he signed
into law 15 months ago that
allows people with two or
fewer nonviolent convictions
to seal their records
after a decade of staying
clean. As many as 600,000
people across the state
are eligible under the law
but only 51 individuals in
Queens had taken advantage
of it as of December.”
As part of Katz’s “Know
Your Rights” week, generally
intended for immigrants,
the borough
president is now working
with convicted felons to
seal their records which
could help pave the way to
helping them find jobs and
prevent recidivism.
Katz also highlighted
the fact that schools in
Queens are at 106 capacity
borough-wide and schools
get fewer funds per student
here than in any other part
of the city.
Although the School
Construction Authority is
working to site new locations
for facilities, Katz
said it will not be enough
if more funds are not added
to the $11,359 spent for
very student in Queens
— a sharp contrast to the
$14,186 spent in the Bronx.
Borough President Katz said she stands behind closing Rikers and sealing criminal records
after a decade. Photo by Mark Hallum
(From l. to r.) City Councilman Robert Holden, City
Councilman Daniel Dromm and state Sen. Leroy Comrie.
Photo by Mark Hallum
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