Gotham Gazette

Gotham Gazette Articles Security in NYC(03/24/03) As the United States invasion of Iraq intensifies, New Yorkers are faced with competing concerns. In Operation Atlas and the Security of New York, Julia Vitullo-Martin details the city's vulnerability to attack, and analyzes the efforts to defend it. (Also, in An Assessment Of The Threat From Al Qaeda, terrorism expert Rohan Gunaratna summarizes the debriefing he gave to the New York Police Department.) In Special Registration, Chaleampon Ritthichai focuses on one security measure that critics say has gone too far. The Fire Department's Lessons From 9/11 (09/23/02) On September 11, 2001 the New York Fire Department was hampered by organizational and equipment failures, according to a report by McKinsey. A major point of the study was that the fire department's radios and other communications equipment did not work reliably. Last week commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta told the City Council that it may take several years to fix the problem. Monica Gabrielle of the Skyscraper Safety Campaign, whose husband Rich died in the attacks, asks why the city has yet to address some of the simple lessons learned that day. Retired deputy fire chief Vincent Dunn details 12 ways he believes firefighters could do their job more safely and effectively. Civil Liberties Since 9/11 Andy Humm, columnist covering civil rights for Gotham Gazette, writes about the state of civil liberties in New York City, including workplace discrimination, police harrassment, and reactions within schools. Are New Yorkers Any Safer? (09/10/02) 72 percent of New Yorkers believe another terrorist attack is very or somewhat likely. Julia Vitullo-Martin explores the question of whether or not New Yorkers are any safer a year after the September 11 attacks. Security In New York (02/25/02) Nearly six months after the terrorist attacks, security remains a national priority and a local one as well. But has all the beefed-up security actually made us safer? And what has been the cost, in dollars and in other ways? Police Commissioner Ray Kelly on Security (02/25/02) New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly testifies for the first time about the steps the department is taking "to restore both the sense and the reality of security in New York."

Latest News

Fundraising For Memorial Has Yet to Begin - Sep 11, 2004
Eight months after the World Trade Center memorial design was unveiled, Gov. Pataki and Mayor Bloomberg have yet to find a prominent person willing to lead the foundation that's raising the money to build it. (New York Daily News)

Bush Now Supports Larger Role for New Intelligence Post - Sep 9, 2004
President Bush said on Wednesday that he wanted to give a new national intelligence director "full budgetary authority,'' a sharp shift from an earlier position and an acquiescence to a major recommendation of the Sept. 11 commission. (New York Times )

New York Officials Reject New Homeland Security Funding Plan - Sep 8, 2004
A Republican plan to give New York more anti-terror funding in time to mark Saturday's 9/11 anniversary hit a wall yesterday after Mayor Bloomberg and other lawmakers said the proposal is useless. (New York Post )

Trade Center Veterans Plan Cooperative Restaurant - Sep 7, 2004
Memory can make a bitter dish, but a group of 50 waiters, cooks and busboys who once worked at the Windows on the World restaurant are intent on honoring 73 colleagues who died when the twin towers collapsed by opening what may be New York's first cooperatively owned restaurant. (New York Times )

Despite Terror Concerns, New York Builds Glass Skyscrapers - Sep 6, 2004
Defying concerns after the attack on New York three years ago that post-9/11 construction would be dominated by brute concrete bunkers, the designers of significant new public and private buildings in the city are turning again and again to glass facades. (New York Times )

Bloomberg, Thanking Bush for Help After 9/11, Gets Mixed Reception at Convention - Aug 31, 2004
Former Democrat Mayor Bloomberg yesterday welcomed Republicans to their convention, removing any doubt about where his political allegiances lie. He threw his support behind President Bush and thanked the GOP for aiding New York in the wake of 9/11. (New York Post )

City Security is Ready for Convention, Says Homeland Security Chief - Aug 26, 2004
"The city is secure." That was the message from Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge during a Republican National Convention security briefing at NYPD Headquarters yesterday. (New York Post )