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Looking Back at 100


It Happened In 1904:
• Looking Back at 100
• How The Subway Shaped New York
• A Century Of Subway Activism
• Times Square: 100 Years of Pleasure and Dissipation
• Forgetting – and Remembering – the Slocum
• Also: A page of NYC history sites

This week, some subway passengers will have the eerie experience of entering their regular train to see that its exterior is no longer stainless steel, but wood; the plastic seats have been replaced by wicker; and instead of those computer-generated red-dots that announce each destination, there will be old-fashioned incandescent light bulbs hanging from the ceiling.

These are not the run-down trains that gained for the New York Subway system the designation as “The Most Awful Ride in the World” way back in 1938. They are even older than that; so old that transit officials are calling them “vintage trains" now. Some of them were built as early as 1904, the year the subway began.

The surprise rides in these old subway cars, which will be placed at random throughout the city, are meant to celebrate a special anniversary. On October 27th, the New York subway system turns 100. For weeks now, people haven’t just been riding the subways; they’ve been watching films about it, and listening to lectures, taking guided tours, and attending museum exhibitions.

The subway centennial is one of an unusual number of anniversaries being given elaborate commemorations in New York this year, many of them centennials -- among the most notable besides the subway, Times Square and the fire on the steamboat General Slocum that killed more than a thousand people; among the least notable, the centennial of the Friar’s Club.

What was it about 1904, which also saw the birth of Cary Grant, Graham Greene and Campbell’s Pork and Beans -- and, some claim, the invention of the ice cream cone and of the hamburger as well?

In New York alone, where immigrants swelled the population and the city exploded with social movements, new businesses and new technology, the year saw the birth of the first public high school for the sciences, Stuyvesant High School and the Explorers Club to promote both science and adventure ; the Afro-American Realty Company to develop property in Harlem and encourage black people to move there; and the Hispanic Society of America, whose museum in upper Manhattan celebrates Spanish culture. (There are special events commemorating all of these centennials except the realty company.)

But if a lot happened in 1904, that is not the sole reason why there are so many centennial commemorations this year.

Curators and historians certainly like these events. “If you’re going to get news organizations to pay any attention at all to history, you have to give them a news peg” and anniversaries provide that, said Kathleen Hulser, public historian at the New York-Historical Society, which is itself celebrating its own bicentennial, as well as marking the bicentennial of the death of Alexander Hamilton.

Anniversary observations, observes Sarah Henry, deputy director of the Museum of the City of New York, “give you a very interesting opportunity to look at where we were then and where we’ve come to.”

But it is not just the professionals who are looking back at New York City history; the general public seems interested as well. Attendance at museums and historical sites has increased.

“I would venture to say that after 9/11, the New York City community was brought together not only by a shared tragedy and desire to rebuild our city and our lives, but also by a palpable sense that we were living in a historic time," said Valerie Paley, editor of the New-York Journal of American History, which put out an issue on anniversaries. "Perhaps it is the need to take a look at the past, to put the present in perspective, that is driving that impulse to recognize the city's history in a different way.”

This is certainly not the first time that New Yorkers have suddenly become intensely interested in their history. It has happened, some suggest, at least twice before -- ironically, exactly 200 years ago, when the New-York Historical Society was formed...and 100 years ago. The oldest existing house in Manhattan, the Morris-Jumel Mansion, which was built in 1765 and had served as George Washington's headquarters during the American Revolution, was turned into a museum in 1904. "The museum was created at the height of the colonial revival movement," reads a brochure celebrating the mansion's centennial as a museum, "a time when the romanticization of American history was prevalent and Revolutionary figures were viewed as idols."

THREE CENTENNIALS
General Slocum Fire

Until September 11, the General Slocum fire was the deadliest disaster in New York City history. It killed at least 1,021 people who had set out for a pleasure cruise up the East River.

“If you had ancestors who were in New York City in June 1904, quite possibly they had some role, however minor, in the Slocum disaster" -- knowing a victim, contributing to a relief fund, helping to treat the victims, said Ken Lieb, who has organized events to commemorate the tragedy. "The same thing happens with 9/11 . . . the gamut of people involved,” he said.

For decades, as Edward O’Donnell has written (see related article), the June 12 disaster was largely forgotten. But recently, Lieb said, interest in the tragedy had increased, partly because of the 100th anniversary.

Most of this year’s remembrances, though, are of triumph, not tragedy. “People prefer to remember happy things, so you celebrate victories, not losses,” Hulser said.


The Subway

Whatever irate straphangers may think, the celebration of the subway marks a triumph. One hundred years ago on October 27, the first subway left City Hall. The trip so thrilled then-Mayor George McClellan that he drove the train himself, refusing to relinquish the controls to the motorman.

But the subway represents more than a technical achievement, said Peter Derrick, author of “Tunneling to the Future,” who will discuss his book in a Gotham Gazette book chat on the subway's birthday, October 27. The train enabled people to move out of densely packed neighborhoods. “All the anecdotal evidence we have is that they were able to have much better lives,” Derrick said. “It’s the only time people were able to move up the ladder without making more money.” (See related article)

Some hope the subway anniversary can spur a better transit system for the future. (See related articled by Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign). Mike Wallace, director of the Gotham Center for New York City History, which will hold a forum on the subway on November 10, said ideally such events should examine important issues. Noting that cars came along at the same time the subway did, he would hope to see someone look at “rail versus road … an assessment of the worthiness, expense and ecology of these two systems, which have been struggling for the city’s soul.”


Times Square

This year’s third major centennial marks the year that the city gave a new name to an old square, at the behest of the publisher of the New York Times, who wanted to match the rival New York Herald’s square eight blocks south. The Times moved its headquarters to the area a year later.

Times Square gained ground as the city’s entertainment district in 1904 because of the subway, as James Traub explains. (See article by Traub) With the shady characters and tawdry businesses now pushed out by chain stores and franchise food, writers and critics have used the anniversary to ponder the Times Square of today.

THE PAST IN THE PRESENT

The New-York Historical Society, celebrating its 200th birthday, had been planning an exhibition to coincide with the hundredth birthday of Times Square. It canceled that exhibition, though, and focused on a five-million-dollar blockbuster, an exhibition on Alexander Hamilton, the Revolutionary war hero, first Secretary of the Treasury, the founder of the "New-York Evening Post" and the man now on the ten-dollar bill (a huge blow-up of which is draped across the society's building), who died in a duel with Aaron Burr the same year the historical society was founded.

Some historians were publicly aghast, accusing the New York museum of forsaking New York and going national. Some even looked at the funders -- new board members Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman, both conservative businessmen (Lehrman was the Republican candidate for governor in 1982), --- and the curator -- a Hamilton biographer and a long-time editor at the conservative National Review -- and wondered if there was...if not a vast right-wing conspiracy... at least a political agenda.

Whatever the merits of the accusation, it would certainly not be the first time that the past has been used to weigh in on the present. Indeed, it is the major argument for studying history. The exhibition does call Hamilton the most modern Founding Father, indeed, "the man who made Modern America," and the largest gallery of the exhibition includes huge screens that alternate quotes from Hamilton with filmed vignettes of modern American life.

“The reason al-Qaida and its helpers and patrons struck the World Trade Center was that the towers symbolized modern America -- Hamilton’s America,” the curator, Richard Brookheiser wrote in City Journal.

THE PAST IN THE FUTURE

Will any of the events commemorated this year engage the imagination of the public of 2104? Is something happening right now that will merit a centennial celebration in 100 years?

In a city famous for bulldozing its past, it should come as little surprise that one of the biggest celebrations of the nineteenth century commemorated Evacuation Day, the day that the British troops left New York City, their last outpost in the former colonies. In 1883, speeches, parades and banquets hailed the 100th anniversary of Evacuation Day. One hundred years later, however, in 1983, New Yorkers were focused on the centennial of the Brooklyn Bridge; Evacuation Day had been forgotten.

• • • • • • • • • •

Centennial Calendar

ALEXANDER HAMILTON BICENTENNIAL

Alexander Hamilton: The Man Who Made America Modern
This exhibition explores the life and impact of Alexander Hamilton (1757-1804).
New York Historical Society
Through February 28, 2005

"Alexander Hamilton: In Worlds Unknown"
An original multimedia play.
New-York Historical Society
Showing though February 2005

The Age of Alexander Hamilton
A lecture series on Hamilton including his role in the U.S. financial revolution, Hamilton and the Constitution, and why he was never elected president.

SUBWAY CENTENNIAL

Several exhibitions at the New York Transit Museum commemorate the 100th birthday of the opening of the subway:
--"The City Beneath Us: Building the New York Subway" includes photographs of subway construction. (Through spring 2005)
--"Centennial Celebration" commemorates the 1904 opening of subway with artifacts, maps, and drawings. (Through spring 2005)
--"'The World's Safest Railroad': How Ivy Lee Promoted New York's Subway System, 1916-1932” in the museum's Grand Central Station annex, features ads and publications for the subway system. (Through October 31)
--“Subway Style” 100 Years of Architecture and Design in the New York City Subway, in Grand Central Station, displays artifacts to examine the aesthetic side of the transit system. (Through November 5)

"The Riders and the Rebirth of City Transit"
An exhibition on how activism has improved mass transit.
Municipal Art Society
Through October 30

Around Town Underground
Subway related art by some of New York's finest printmakers.
New-York Historical Society
Through November 7

Three on the Subway
Photographs of the subway over the past 30 years by Bruce Davidson, Camilo Jose Vergara, and Sam Hollenshead.
Museum of the City of New York
Through January 17

Tunnel Visions: Subway Photos, 1904-1908
Photographs documenting the construction of the underground lines from 1904 to 1908.
New-York Historical Society
Through February 20, 2005

100 Years of the New York Subway: A Look Back and A Look to the Future
This forum will put the subway in historical perspective, bring the story of the subway up to date and take a look at what might happen to it in the future.
CUNY Graduate Center
November 10

(For a more complete listing of subway events, go to http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/cen/events.htm)

NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY CENTENNIAL

“ Impressions of New York”
Prints from the society’s collection depicting New York City, from 1626 to 1995.
New-York Historical Society
Through March 6, 2005

HISPANIC SOCIETY OF AMERICA CENTENNIAL

Hispanic Society
The museum of Spanish art, history and culture is commemorating its centennial with special events.

“Capella de Ministrers-ludici Signum”
A concert of Renaissance music
October 26, 6:00p.m.

Convergence and Diversity: Art of the Hispanic World
A series of gallery talks to highlight artworks from the museum’s collection.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tech, Art, Protest and Politics


In City Hall Park at the beginning of the month, Joshua Kinberg, a recent graduate of the Parsons School of Design, was exhibiting the device that had gotten him arrested a month earlier. It looked like a bicycle. In fact, that is what it is, though certainly state-of-the-art -- and Kinberg is what you could call a state-of-the-art bike messenger.

The bicycle has both a wireless connection to the Internet, and a printer, and is designed to receive political messages sent from the Internet or from a cell phone, and then print them in neat block letters on the street. The kind of messages he hoped to receive were unambiguous: He calls his project Bikes Against Bush.

This is not graffiti, he is quick to tell people, since the bicycle prints in water-soluble chalk. But the police were apparently not convinced of this. He was arrested a couple of days before the Republican National Convention began, and the police confiscated his bicycle. The police still have his bicycle; his next court appearance is scheduled for November 17. But he was able to bring a demo version of his bike against Bush to City Hall, one of some dozen wireless art projects exhibited as part of Spectropolis. The three-day event sought to show, as its Web site explains, how communication technologies -- cell phones, laptops, wireless internet, PDAs and radio -- are generating "new urban experiences."

Something new does seem to be happening at the intersection of art, protest, politics and technology.

The Protests

Bikes Against Bush was not the only technology developed for use during the protests against the Republican National Convention. Activists used virtually cost-free technology to coordinate hundreds of actions and mobilize thousands of activists. Independent journalists and activist groups used cell phone text-messaging developed by a free service called TxtMob to coordinate their actions. The New York Independent Media Center set up a 24-hour information line to broadcast breaking news and a calendar of events; despite little publicity, the information line received more than 2000 calls over a four-day period.

"We've appropriated technology as an essential tool for radical social change," says Evan Henshaw-Plath, the Indymedia activist that developed the information line.

"Wireless Week"

If innovations like Joshua Kinberg's bicycle make some city officials nervous, they intrigue others; City Councilmember Gale Brewer announced October 4th through 8th as "Wireless Week" in honor of Spectropolis.

Spectropolis allowed New Yorkers to participate in free hands-on technology workshops, which encouraged them to play with the technologies and think about their impact on our lives and environments. In one workshop people built their own radio frequency identification detector (commonly referred to as an ‘RFID tag’); the tags are already used in a variety of ways -- "Pets are often embedded with small chips so that they may be returned to their owners if lost," according to Wikipedia, and they are also used in library books, automobile key-and-lock, anti-theft systems; to pay tolls, to track prisoners -- and the tags are expected to become ever more widely employed in an array of consumer products. Another workshop taught local community members to build their own wireless Internet hotspots.

According to Dana Spiegel, the event’s producer and a director at NYCwireless, “Spectropolis was an amazing success, bringing thousands of people from New York and around the world to Lower Manhattan to experience new wireless art. The event showcases that [wireless Internet] hotspots are about local communities and connecting people, and not just about checking your email."

All of the projects used the public airwaves (technically known as electromagnetic spectrum) in some way in order to create their art. Making more and better quality airwaves available for public use is currently a vital telecommunications policy issue. This is because the majority of the airwaves are licensed by the Federal Communications Commission to government agencies (such as the defense department), telecommunications companies and commercial broadcasters. Currently, only a small portion of the airwaves are available for unlicensed use despite emerging technologies, such as smart radios, which make the current system outdated.

Laura Forlano is a doctoral student studying communication technology policy at Columbia University.

Working Class New York: Book Club Chat


On September 29, Joshua Freeman,author of "Working Class New York: Life and Labor Since World War II" joined Gotham Gazette's Reading NYC book club to talk about his book. An edited transcript of the conversation, which includes audience participation, is posted below.

The next in-person meeting of the Reading NYC Book Club will be on Wednesday, October 27, the 100th birthday of New York's subway system. To commemorate the date, Peter Derrick will discuss his book Tunneling to the Future, about the massive subway expansion that changed the system in the early 1900s.

Future Selections: We now have a tentative schedule for the rest of 2004. Click here to see -- and purchase -- the books.

Sign up for Gotham Gazette's NYC Book Club.

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GOTHAM GAZETTE: With us today is Joshua Freeman, author of Working Class New York. A good place to start, I thought, would be the attacks of 9/11. About a month and a half after the attacks, you wrote an article in "The Nation" about how 9/11 changed the perception of the working class in popular culture.

JOSHUA FREEMAN: I was struck after September 11, 2001 how visible the groups that I had written about, particularly blue-collar workers who were victims in the attack, became suddenly visible in our society. Many of those who died in the attack in the Trade Center worked in restaurants. And in the days and weeks after September 11, as the work on the site unfolded, the construction workers, the transit workers, the fireman, all the different groups were seen, quite appropriately, as heroic.

The events gave a high profile to groups who had been eclipsed in our images of New York by both the big money New York - the Wall Street New York - and young, yuppie, middle-class, hip New York, like on the television show "Friends."

Frankly, I'm not so sure it had any long-lasting effects. In the planning of construction of the city, the usual cast of power brokers ended up calling the shots - the governor, Wall Street executives, the art critics. Culturally, I'm not sure how much that effect has remained, except the uniformed service workers. The fireman, and the police too, have retained a special place in the city. I'm not sure if this will be an episode that had a long lasting effect or not.

GOTHAM GAZETTE: How has the economic aftermath of 9/11 affected the lives of working people?

FREEMAN: There's no question that this was a big hit on working class New Yorkers. New York has become so attuned to the financial industry, that the economic downturn that followed the attacks also affected people who live off financial economy. Back office workers, people who work in the restaurants that Wall Street workers eat in, people who wash the cars, and nannies - were devastated. The attack was a blow to the city, and I think the city is still in some ways behind the rest of the country in economy recovery.

On the other hand, the city is resilient. Right now, New York has the biggest population in its entire history. A lot of that is a result of immigration, and a much of that is immigration is working class people.

IS THERE STILL A WORKING CLASS?

GOTHAM GAZETTE: In your book you talk about the erosion of the idea of a working class. Today, people generally think of themselves in terms of income groups: low-income, middle class, or upper class. People classify themselves in terms of how much money they make, not what type of work they do. I'd like to hear what other people say about that, if they agree that most people don't identify with being working class anymore.

CHRIS LANESE: People today would rather say "I'm middle class." It sounds better.

PETER DERRICK: Americans don't like to talk about class. Working people want to be called middle class, even though it would probably be in their economic interest to be called working class.

Sven Beckert wrote a book called the "Monied Metropolis." He talks about the rise of the American bourgeoisie, the people who control the wealth in America and the large corporations. They basically grew up in New York. He makes the point that by the 1900s, they basically controlled the American economy - the Fricks and the Carnegies, and all the big industrials were in New York.

They did, as you said, look down their noses at the working class. But they also realized at a certain point that they would be in trouble politically if they flaunted their power and their wealth too much.

He said it at the end of the book, since the turn of the last century, the bourgeoisie that really owned the country tried to convince the majority Americans that they didn't really have any power and tried to get Americans to look at themselves as middle class as a way to deemphasize the whole class structure in society.

As a labor historian, what do you think?

JOSHUA FREEMAN: This is a fascinating subject. I think that Americans have been very ambivalent about manual labor. There's one tradition, republican with a small 'r', that ennobles manual labor.

But I think you're absolutely right there is a tradition, most pronounced in the South, but also in the North, that associates manual labor with degradation. At its most extreme, it's associated with slavery. People want to disassociate themselves from it.

At the same time, the heirs of Sam Walton for example, or Bill Gates, don't present themselves as plutocrats in the way that Henry Clay Frick did. None of them build these estates. Yes, Bill Gates spends a lot of money on his house, but it's private. It's not such a display of his wealth. I think some of that does reflect the lingering democratic influence of the New Deal and their fear of being an obvious target.

Actually, I think you see less of that in New York. Park Avenue, and places in Westchester and Long Island are still pretty darn ostentatious in their exhibitions of wealth.

Another point, there was a study 20 years ago of oil refinery workers in New Jersey that found that these guys - white, blue collar workers - called themselves working people, working men, in the context of their jobs, but when asked outside of their jobs they called themselves middle class.

That's the kind of complicated self-identity, which was bifurcated. On one hand, it's workingmen who go back all the way to the nation to being noble and the qualities of manual labor. On the other hand, they're homeowners, property owners, and middle class.

MICHAEL MISCONE: The nomenclature is very opportunistic. When you want to be romanticized, you're a working stiff. It's got the mythology of the cowboy almost. Certainly when it's for union negotiations and wage increases, you're a working stiff. But when it's time to present yourself to society, you defer to another identity. I think people use whatever label would be to their advantage in a particular instance.

PETER DERRICK: Why is there such a difference in Europe where people talk about the ownership class and the working class? In America, it gets pushed together.

FREEMAN: The United States - beginning with the American Revolution - had elements of an ideology of equality among certain groups. There was an early granting of the franchise to all white men, so that people of economic power had to deal with the system, which they didn't automatically dominate.

There is also greater mobility in the United States. One of the things I talked about in the book was that the strong class identification in New York came in part from the existence of neighborhoods where people lived in tight sets of social relationships with church, work and schools. That is exceptional in American history because you have such a high geographic degree of mobility in this country. New York has got less mobility because of the real estate market. But eventually, even in New York those kinds of neighborhoods became less common and those kinds of identifications weakened as a result of a geographic mobility.

You can think of class in two ways.

One is mechanically; everybody moves in a certain income group or has a certain kind of job. But I don't think that gets you too far.

The second way is to think of classes as created. That's the traditional function of private schools, country clubs, and the wedding pages in The New York Times. They are institutions that gave a sense of belonging to a certain social world. The upper class is constantly creating and recreating itself. The admissions policy of Harvard University is precisely about this issue. Who gets in? Who does not? And what are the criteria? How do you create a sense of "us"? And that's still an ongoing process.

WORKING CLASS VIEW OF WAR

How do you explain the differing views of "hard-hat" workers toward the war in Vietnam and the war in Iraq?

FREEMAN: I think you have to be careful when you make generalizations. There are millions of people who work in construction or other kinds of industries who think of themselves as "hard hat" jobs. And I think many Americans would be surprised to learn that polling data in the late 1960's and 1970's found that working people were more likely to oppose the war in Vietnam than wealthier or middle upper-class people.

With the Iraq war, I am struck with how much more quickly labor unions as official bodies have expressed their skepticism of the Iraq war as opposed to the war in Vietnam. In Vietnam, there was very little dissent from unions until late in the war. But in the last six or eight month, big American unions have officially passed resolutions very skeptical of the war. That does not get much publicity.

And even working class families are voicing their opposition to the war. There's a high school in Long Island called Brentwood High School and three of its graduates have been killed either in Iraq or Afghanistan. The parents of the latest victim are just scathing about the war. That kind of openly stated denunciation of the war by family members of soldiers, to me, it seems much more open today.

GOTHAM GAZETTE: The perception that continues among a lot of New Yorkers is that everyone in Manhattan opposed the war in Iraq, whereas people in Staten Island were in favor of it. But it seems that since September 11, the image of Ground Zero has been used to try to encourage people to support both the war in Afghanistan and the war in Iraq.

FREEMAN: I agree. Whatever you think of President George W. Bush, his people are good at certain things. They created the right image with the president standing next to firemen and hardhats at Ground Zero. But I'm not so sure it's been completely successful.

WHAT IS UNIQUE ABOUT NEW YORK'S WORKING CLASS?

GOTHAM GAZETTE: Your book starts with the end of World War II where you mentioned that the neighborhoods in New York lent themselves to forming a strong working class. What else is there in New York that has made it become the exception to the rest of the country?

FREEMAN: There are a few things that I know that if I was doing this again, I would think harder about. One is - how much was New York an exception? I took it for granted, implicitly and sometimes explicitly, but I'm no longer quite as convinced that New York was as exceptional as I thought.

However, there were some things about New York that were unusual. Having tight-knit immigrant neighborhoods was not something that was unique to New York, though it was certainly true in New York. Another thing that I think was important was the low level of property ownership among New York workers. That didn't give them the split identity, whereas in places like Detroit and Los Angeles, workers even very early on had high levels of homeownership.

New York also had tremendous radical traditions going back to Henry George and the progressive era and an influx of immigrant radicalism from the Jewish, and to the large extent Italian and Puerto Rican, communities. These traditions had a class-based way of seeing the world and saw their mission as promoting a working class identity. They actively worked for that.

GOTHAM GAZETTE: So you don't think New York was such an exception in having a strong working class culture?

FREEMAN: After the book was done, I read someone's doctoral dissertation about Milwaukee, and it turns out that they had a lot of things - a very active labor movement, they too had a active social tradition, this one coming out of the German community, and they actually had socialist mayors. Minneapolis had a pretty strong tradition. If New York was an exception, there were other exceptions, too.

The general permeation of society by labor and working class culture was perhaps more widespread in Northern cities. It did not happen in the whole country, but maybe I overestimated about how much of an exception New York was.

IMMIGRANTS AND THE WORKING CLASS

PETER DERRICK: Can you talk a little bit about the working class today? I don't think anybody would have predicted that what happened over the last 25 years would happen. In,1980, you would see the loss of over a million manufacturing jobs in New York City, the rise of what people now call the underclass, a large number of very poor people of Hispanic and Black origins. The city seems to be split. The construction workers who are left don't move to Queens, they move to Nassau County or Rockland County. You get this bifurcated city, where everyone is worried how will its economy survive. Then you get this massive wave of immigration from all over the world since the 1970s. Now over half of the city is either foreign born or the children of foreign born, sort of the way it was in 1910. Those people seem to be working class, but it's unclear to people like myself who have tried to follow it, what they're working at. They're not in government, they're not in construction, and they are not in manufacturing. How are they making their living?

JOSHUA FREEMAN: I wish I knew more about this. First of all, it's not completely true they're not working in manufacturing.

PETER DERRICK: It's only about 300,000 jobs.

FREEMAN: Yes, it's small, but it's still there. And that's almost all immigrants. Certainly in the service sector, you have a decent number of immigrant workers, and even low-end construction, for instance demolition, is immigrant.

I live in Inwood, in upper Manhattan. These days, when they're redoing fire escapes, they're non-union, non-licensed crews. It's like the Wild West, they don't even have scaffolding licenses. The idea that you could have freelance people, outside the law, outside the union structure, in Manhattan, doing construction is amazing. So there are immigrants working in these industries - service, small enterprise.

One of the differences is that the immigrant groups who come into the city in the 1980s and 1990s arrive after the fiscal crisis, and after the defeat ideologically of the world I was writing about. They don't really expect much from politics. They don't enter politics and the civic realm with a set of assumptions that an earlier generation of New York workers might have had. It just doesn't occur to them that you could turn to the state for these kinds of functions. There's this private quality - yes, they may be new to the city, maybe they are illegal and want to keep a low profile - but they kind of have accepted the norm of the privatized society.

I'm also struck by how quietly and quickly so much can happen. There's something like 500,000 or 600,000 Mexicans living in the city. It's an astounding number, it happened extraordinarily quickly, transforming these historic neighborhoods in Harlem overnight. People know it on some level, but it hasn't registered. Who knows where this is going to go?

MICHAEL HALPERT: I do. Eventually they're going to legalize them, and eventually they'll be the new minimum wage workers.

FREEMAN: A lot of workers who come to New York come from much more politicized societies to America, and they bring tradition that may in the long run lead to quite significant change, we don't know yet. Especially I think of Latin America and Central America.

PETER DERRICK: Do you think that many of the new immigrants who come here - Indians, Koreans, Pakistanis - come here with money and education, and that that may be the difference between recent and previous immigrants?

FREEMAN: Yes. The 1965 Immigration Reform Act was one of the most important laws of the 20th century. It does a lot of things, like limiting overtly racist immigration law, but it also gives priority to people who have certain types of skills, money, businesses, and family connections.

Prior to 1965, when we're looking at immigration, it's entirely working class. Now, that's not true. There is a very large middle class strata - take Koreans for example - people who had been middle class, often had high levels of professional training and education before they came to the United States. And they are very different. But I also think it varies from national group to national group.

GOTHAM GAZETTE: For immigrants who have specifically working class jobs, how good has New York organized labor been in getting them on board?

MICHAEL HALPERT: Immigrants? They're too low on the radar.

FREEMAN: That's not completely true. It's often true, but there are some exceptions, and the big exception right now is the people who are about to go on strike: the building service employees union, which has a lot of immigrant workers in it. The health care industry has also been organizing immigrant workers. But there are huge areas of the economy and parts of the city where immigrants are below the radar screen of organized labor, such as retail, service jobs, and restaurants. Restaurants are complicated, because high-end restaurants and hotel restaurants are unionized.

MICHAEL HALPERT: But they have low-end workers too.

FREEMAN: But some are unionized. If you look at who died in the World Trade Center, which I did do, you look at Windows on the World workers - in fact, if you look at brokerage firm workers - you have a huge number of immigrant workers. Windows on the World workers were unionized and building service employees were unionized. But then many restaurants, of course, are not unionized; the vast majority are neighborhood restaurants.

I think organized labor recognizes this problem, and they have made some initiatives, even some successful initiatives in this direction, but the scale of the effort does not correspond to the challenge.

GOTHAM GAZETTE: Can you contrast the way recent immigrants compare to the 1950s when many more blacks and Puerto Ricans were coming into the city?

FREEMAN: It was a different economy, for one thing. Obviously there were still a large number of manufacturing jobs in the '40s and '50s. Although that was on the verge of declining, it hadn't yet declined. So there were opportunities to get into these industries that Puerto Ricans, for example, particularly in manufacturing were able to take. African Americans went into civil service jobs and many of these were unionized areas. So these were groups that were able, particularly African Americans more than Puerto Ricans in some ways, to lock in certain kinds of economic gains through job opportunities and unionization.

One of the statistics that I ran into when working on this book that just absolutely blew me away was my discovery that the average family income in Queens of African Americans was higher than white Queens residents, which is an astounding thing. This is south Queens and it's civil service and health care workers. They're unionized. It's an amazing success story in a lot of ways.

On the other hand, a lot of the areas they were entering were also beginning to contract .

I think Puerto Ricans in particular suffered this way. They were recruited to come to New York in the '40s and '50s to work in these low wage-manufacturing industries, some of which were unionized, like jewelry and garments. But just as they were in the position where they might move into more skilled jobs, as Jews and Italians began to leave them, the industries themselves started to close. And they didn't get the opportunity.

Of course, Puerto Ricans and African Americans are citizens. They're migrants but they come with full political rights and that's also a difference because they can get involved and they do to some extent in pursuing their interests, but also working class interests in the political arena in a way that's harder for other immigrants.

LABOR AND CIVIL RIGHTS

GOTHAM GAZETTE: How did the labor movement and the civil rights movement interact?

FREEMAN: That's a story I tried to write about in the book. It's a very complicated story. In some cases unions acted as job monopolies that used their power to exclude African Americans from job opportunity, which was obviously true in the construction industry and other industries.. The bagel makers union was probably as bad as any construction union that ever existed in restricting membership to basically children of existing members. Bagel making now is entirely non-union I'm sure, but it was once a very heavily unionized industry.

So at one extreme you had the use of unions as a weapon of exclusion.

At the other end, you have the strong commitment that many New York unions had to the civil rights struggle both outside New York, in the south, but also in some cases, here in the city itself. New York State had an anti discrimination law on employment starting in 1945. The federal government didn't have that for another 20 years. I don't know if it was enforced but it was an official commitment.

Of course, one group that was a critical linchpin in this was black trade unions. And this was a group that has really not been given their due I think—people like Philip Randolph, who's based in the city, and many less known people who were critical in the '40s, '50s and the '60s in pushing both the union movement to become more committed to civil rights, but also in pushing the civil rights movement to issues of job opportunity and economic opportunity.

The 1963 March on Washington was originally called a March for Jobs and Freedom; jobs came first. That march grew out of the efforts of black trade unionists. People like Martin Luther King, Jr. then picked it up. And many trade unions here in the city sent huge delegations of whites and blacks to that march.

So, I think there was a very intimate connection. Clearly there's a lot of bitterness in the black community against those unions that not only did not support, but that resisted civil rights.

It's a complicated story but I think as social sectors go the trade union movement did better than most institutions. It did better, for example than Ivy League colleges or country clubs, or other institutions that were much slower to accept civil rights. I think trade unionists like other people often have broader visions. And some of them were very progressive and they were committed to the idea of racial equality.

I think there were also trade unionists in this country who were committed to the idea of white supremacy. In Birmingham, Alabama, some of the key organizers of the resistance to civil rights were trade unionists. Trade unionists did discover that blacks were more likely to join unions than whites. To this day, that is still true. So in that sense there was a pragmatic pay off as well.

GOTHAM GAZETTE: Why are blacks more likely to join unions than whites?

FREEMAN: I think this also goes back to a discussion we were having in the beginning, that African Americans have been less prone to buy into the notion of individual advancement, individual mobility, individualism than European Americans, for historical reasons. So I think there's a kind of cultural notion of mutualism that's stronger in the black community. And organizational life is in some ways richer in the black community than at least in parts of the white community.

In embracing trade unions, blacks are also confronting a very long tradition of discrimination in the trade union movement, which was not as strong here as in other parts of the country, but blacks joined trade unions that at some point in their history kept them out. As late as the 1950s there were unions in the United States that by constitutional provision refused to allow African Americans to join.

LABOR'S ROLE IN THE FISCAL CRISIS

GOTHAM GAZETTE: In terms of the fiscal crisis in New York in the 1970's, you write about how many people saw it as an opportunity to roll back social liberalism in America. But the one thing you didn't really touch upon was how much you thought that these policies did or did not contribute to the crisis.

FREEMAN: You've hit me on a sore point because you're right, I really should have.

I think there was a very broad definition of government function at the time - radio stations that played classical music were owned by the government, hospitals were run by the government, and free college was paid for by the government. And in particular, federal programs like welfare couldn't be sustained over the long run on the local tax base.

There were a whole series of government administrations starting with the late Robert Wagner years and the John Lindsay years and the Abe Beame years when rather than having to really fund government, you simply borrow the money and hope you can make it through the next week. It works for decades and eventually stops working and the banks don't want to lend you money any more.

In that broad sense, I think, labor did contribute to that.

However, I would reject the narrow arguments that were made at the time - that municipal pensions caused the fiscal crisis or that firemen were paid too much. That I think is actually not the case.

AUDIENCE QUESTION: What is your view of Mayor John Lindsay? (Read a book discussion on a biography of Lindsay)

FREEMAN: I wrote fairly harshly about him in some ways. Particularly from the point of view of labor and a view of white, working class New York, he did display some patrician attitudes that were contemptuous of low and working class culture.

On the other hand, there was something refreshing about his notion that government could be an experiment in democracy. He was a strong supporter of the civil rights movement at a time when that was not politically advantageous. He tried to confront some of these fiscal issues. Lindsay did get the city income tax, which was a wise step forward in developing a better financial base for the city.

So I don't think it's fair to blame Lindsay for all of these problems. I think these problems were primarily structural, not his personality. Lindsay has gotten a bad shake. To me it's amazing that he is one of the most looked-down-upon mayors in modern New York history. He left a lot more behind than other mayors have.

I think New York still does have structural problems, part of which has to do with state politics. Some of it has to do with the continuing way that much of the country views New York, which goes back to the 19th century. There is a view that what is good in America is not New York.

What's Better, What's Worse During Bloomberg's Administration


New Yorkers' experience of the transportation system has changed since the current mayor took office. That is clear from the newly released mayor's management report, which emphasizes the administration's accomplishments, but in fact presents both good and bad news.

(Except as noted, all figures compare fiscal year 2004, which ended this past June, with fiscal year 2001, during which the mayor took office.)

Better

* Traffic fatalities declined by 15 percent to 330. There were declines in every category: motorists/passengers, bicyclists/pedestrians and those related to driving while intoxicated. New York City now has about one-half the number of traffic fatalities per 100,000 residents as do Los Angeles and Cook County (which includes Chicago).

* Bridges that are rated very good or good increased from 14.7 percent to 27.8 percent as a result of comprehensive preventive maintenance and rehabilitation programs. Subway service on the Manhattan Bridge doubled as a decade-plus of work on that bridge was completed. However, the amount of bridge painting - a simple but essential maintenance function - declined by 17 percent.

* Slightly fewer people are running red lights at camera-equipped intersections: Notices of Liability issued from red light cameras declined seven percent.

* Travel time on through streets in Midtown declined by about two minutes, to six minutes and 31 seconds since launch of the program in October 2002. The Thru Streets program restricts some vehicular turns off of nine streets between 34th and 60th streets on weekdays from 10 am to 6 pm.

* One hundred percent of intersections have LED lenses and international pedestrian signals; there were none three years ago. The LEDs are brighter, use less electricity and last longer than their predecessors.

Worse

* Streets maintained with a pavement rating of "Good" fell from 82.2 percent to 74.3 percent. Ratings declined in all boroughs even as the number of pothole repairs increased by 57 percent, to 190,000.

* The cleanliness rating of city-franchised, privately operated buses dropped from 96.8 percent to 70 percent. City officials blamed this decline on labor issues and the pending (and repeatedly postponed) transfer of the program from the city Department Of Transportation to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

* Average response time to traffic signal defects increased from one hour 37 minutes to two hours and 35 minutes. These are required to be fixed within two hours.

* On-time trips on the Staten Island ferry declined from 97 percent to 93.4 percent due to heightened security procedures, mechanical problems on aging boats, terminal construction and a fatal accident in October 2003.

* Taxicab service complaints increased 46 percent. This increase might be in part due to greater public awareness of the 311 complaint number, which began taking taxi complaints last October. But the profile of complaint by type suggests that service quality worsened in some areas but not others. Complaints for service refusals increased by 59 percent; for violation of traffic rules complaints increased by 59 percent. Complaints for overcharging increased by much less (16 percent) and the number of complaints about rude or abusive cab drivers was essentially unchanged.

* "Adoption" by businesses of arterial highway segments fell from 93.1 percent of the system to 62.2 percent. The business community evidenced a lack of interest in this program to sponsor the cleaning of highway segments.

About the same

* Operable on-street parking meters as a percentage of all meters inched up from 90.7 percent to 91.6 percent. The chance of finding a non-working parking meter was essentially unchanged as the percentage of parking meters that are electronic nearly doubled, from 58 percent to 96 percent. Evidently, the electronic meters work just as well as the old mechanical parking meters.

Better or worse? - depends on your point of view

* Summonses issued for moving violations fell by 11 percent to 1,252.

* Parking violation summonses increased by 16 percent to 8,859 summonses. The number issued by police officers declined slightly, more than offset by increased issuance by parking enforcement officers.

* Vehicle tows increased by 13 percent to 117,189.

Bruce Schaller is head of Schaller Consulting, which provides research and analysis about transportation, and is also a Visiting Scholar at the Center for Transportation Policy and Management at New York University.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2004 NYC General Election State Legislature Candidates


BRONX
BROOKLYN
MANHATTAN
QUEENS
STATEN ISLAND

To read more about competitive state races, see Eye On Albany Campaign 2004. Click here for Election Results beginning at 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 2, 2004.

BRONX


Bronx Senate
Senate District 28
Augustin Alamo Estrada (Con)
Olga Mendez (Rep/Ind)
Jose Serrano (Dem/WF)

 

Senate District 31
Jose Goris (Rep)
Eric Schneiderman (Dem/WF)

Senate District 32
Ruben Diaz (Dem)
Michael Walters (Con)
Senate District 33
Efrain Gonzalez, Jr. (Dem)
Jeffrey Sternberg (Rep/Con)

Senate District 34
John Fleming (Rep)
Jeffrey Klein (Dem)
Stephen Kaufman (Ind/Con)

Senate District 35
Ruth Hassell-Thompson (Dem/Ind/WF)
Andrew Osterczy (Con)

 

Bronx Assembly
Assembly District 76
Dennis Fiddler (Rep/Con)
Peter Rivera (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 77
Anthony Curry (Rep/Ind/Con)
Aurelia Greene (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 78
Richard Retcho (Con)
Jose Rivera (Dem)

Assembly District 79
Michael Benjamin (Dem/WF)
William Britt, Jr. (Con)
Gina Demalijaj (Rep)
Eric Stevenson (Ind)

Assembly District 80
Anthony Chiofalo (Rep/Con)
Naomi Rivera (Dem)

Assembly District 81
Stephen Bradian (Rep/Con)
Jeffrey Dinowitz (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 82
Raymond Capone (Rep/Con)
Michael Benedetto (Dem)

Assembly District 83
Carl Heastie (Dem/WF)
Assembly District 84
Agustin Alamo (Con)
Carmen Arroyo (Dem)

Assembly District 85
Ruben Diaz, Jr. (Dem/WF)
William Newark (Rep/Con)

BROOKLYN

Brooklyn Senate
Senate District 17

Victor Guarino (Rep/Con)
Martin Malave Dilan (Dem/WF)
J. Rebecca White (Green)

Senate District 18
Patricia Hunter (Con)
Velmanette Montgomery (Dem/WF)

Senate District 19
Abrinmore Britton (Rep)
Ernest Johnson (Con)
John Sampson (Dem/WF)

Senate District 20
Carl Andrews (Dem/WF)
Anthony Herbert (Con)

Senate District 21
Sal Grupico (Rep/Con/Ind)
Kevin Parker (Dem/WF)

Senate District 22
Martin Golden (Rep/Ind/Con)

Senate District 23
Al Curtis (Rep/Ind/Con/School Choice)
Diane Savino (Dem/WF)

Senate District 25
Martin Connor (Dem/WF)

Senate District 27
Carl Kruger (Dem/Rep)
Stephen Walters (Con)

Brooklyn Assembly

Assembly District 40
Diane Gordon (Dem)
Mohammad Qureshi (Rep/Con)

Assembly District 41
Mary Madden (Rep/Con)
Helene Weinstein (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 42
Rhoda Jacobs (Dem)
Harriet Katz (Rep)

Assembly District 43
Clarence John (Rep/Con)
Clarence Norman, Jr. (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 44
Susan Cleary (Con)
James Brennan (Dem/WF)
Lawrence Littlefield (Ind)

Assembly District 45
Stephen Cymbrowitz (Dem)
Arthur Gershfeld (Rep/Con)
Paul Gouldini (Ind)

Assembly District 46
Adele Cohen (Dem/WF)
Alexander Kaplan (Rep/Con)

Assembly District 47
Glenn Bell (Con)
William Colton (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 48
Dov Hikind (Rep/Dem)
Herbert Ryan (Con)

Assembly District 49
Peter Abbate, Jr. (Dem/Ind/WF)
Fred Martorell (Rep/Con)

Assembly District 50
Joseph Lentol (Dem)
Allan Romaguera (Rep/Con)

Assembly District 51
Felix Ortiz (Dem)
Allan Romaguera (Rep/Con)

Assembly District 52
Anne Marie Coffey (Con)
Joan Millman (Dem/WF)
Scott Santandrea (Rep)

Assembly District 53
Mark Borino (Gre)
Anthony Miranda (Ind)
Vito Lopez (Dem/WF)
Theresa Prevete (Con)

Assembly District 54
Khorshed Chowdhury (Rep/Con)
Darryl Towns (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 55
William Boyland, Jr. (Dem/Ind)
Rose Laney (Rep)

Assembly District 56
Mayra Radden (Rep)
Annette Robinson (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 57
Roger Green (Dem)
Ricardo Ocasio (Rep)

Assembly District 58
Nick Perry (Dem/WF)
Dora Robertson (Rep/Con)

Assembly District 59
Robert Mahoney (Con)
Frank Seddio (Rep/Dem/Ind)

Assembly District 60
Donna Hyer-Spencer (Dem/WF)
Matthew Rones (Rep/Ind/Con)

MANHATTAN

 

 

Manhattan Senate

Senate District 25
Martin Conner (Dem/WF)

Senate District 26
Liz Krueger (Dem/WF)
Peter McCoy (Rep)

Senate District 28
Augustin Alamo Estrada (Con)
Olga Mendez (Rep/Ind)
Jose Serrano (Dem/WF)

Senate District 29
Emily Csendes (Rep)
Thomas Duane (Dem/Ind/WF)

Senate District 30
Alphonzo Mosley (Rep/Ind)
David Paterson (Dem/WF)

Senate District 31
Jose Goris (Rep)
Eric Schneiderman (Dem/WF)

Manhattan Assembly

Assembly District 64
Carrie Sackett (Ind)
Sheldon Silver (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 65
Pete Grannis (Dem/WF)
Patricia Leslie (Rep)

Assembly District 66
Deborah Glick (Dem/WF)
Nic Leobold (LBT)

Assembly District 67
Adam Shun (Rep/Ind)
Scott Stringer (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 68
Adam Clayton Powell IV (Dem)

Assembly District 69
Christopher Lanzillott (Rep)
Daniel O’Donnell (Dem/WF)
Assembly District 70
Edward Daniels (Rep)
Keith Wright (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 71
Allen Cox (Ind)
Herman Farrell, Jr. (Dem)
Faron Henry (Rep)


Assembly District 72
Martin Chicon (Rep/Ind/Con)
Adriano Espaillat (Dem/WF)
Assembly District 73
Jonathan Bing (Dem/WF)
Douglas Winston (Rep)

Assembly District 74
David Berkowitz (Rep/School Choice)
Steven Sanders (Dem/WF)

QUEENS

 

Queens Senate
Senate District 10
Ada Smith (Dem/Ind/WF)

Senate District 11
Frank Padavan (Dem/Ind/Con)

Senate District 12
Danniel Maio (Rep)
George Onorato (Dem)

Senate District 13
John Sabini (Dem/WF)

Senate District 14
Malcolm Smith (Dem/Rep/Con/WF)

Senate District 15
Serphin Maltese (Rep/Con/Ind)

Senate District 16
Toby Ann Stavisky (Dem/WF)

Queens Assembly

Assembly District 22
Evergreen Chou (Green)
Barry Grodenchik (WF)
Jimmy Meng (Dem/Con/Ind)
Meilin Tan (Rep)

Assembly District 23
Audrey Pheffer (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 24
Mark Weprin (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 25
Brian McLaughlin (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 26
Peter Boudouvas (Rep/Con)
Ann Margaret Carrozz (Dem/Ind/WF)

Assembly District 27
Nettie Mayersohn (Dem)

Assembly District 28
Michael Cohen (Dem/Ind)
Michael Weiss (Rep)

Assembly District 29
William Scarborough (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 30
Margaret Markey (Dem)

Assembly District 31
Michael Duvalle (Ind)
Michele Titus (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 32
Vivian Cook (Dem/WF)
Jereline Hunter (Rep/Con)
Assembly District 33
Barbara Clark (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 34
Ivan Lafayette (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 35
Jeffrey Aubry (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 36
Michael Gianaris (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 37
Catherine Nolan (Dem/WF)

Assembly District 38
Anthony Seminerio (Rep/Dem/Ind/Con)
Assembly District 39
Giash Ahved (Rep)
Jose Peralta (Dem/WF)

STATEN ISLAND

Staten Island Senate
Senate District 23
Al Curtis (Rep/Ind/Con/School Choice)
Diane Savino (Dem/WF)

Senate District 24
John Marchi (Rep/Dem/Ind/Con)

Staten Island Assembly

Assembly District 60
Donna Hyper-Spencer (Dem/WF)
Matthew Rones (Rep/Ind/Con)

Assembly District 61
Charles McLean, Jr. (Ind)
John Lavelle (Dem/WF)
John Russell (Rep/Con)

Assembly District 62
Mario Bruno Jr. (Con)
Vincent Ignizio (Rep)
Emanule Innamorato (Dem)
Robert Straniere (Ind/WF)

Assembly District 63
Michael Cusick (Dem/Ind/Con/WF)
Victor Grossman (Rep)

 

2004 NYC General Election Judicial Races


2004 NYC GENERAL ELECTION – JUDICIAL CANDIDATES

Bronx
Brooklyn
Manhattan
Queens
Staten Island

Click here for Election Results beginning at 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 2, 2004.

 

BRONX

 

BRONX – SUPREME COURT (3 Vacancies)
Mary Brigantti-Hughes (Rep/Dem)
Christopher Garvey (Con)
Barry Salman (Rep/Dem/Con)
Fernando Tapia (Con)
Robert Torres (Rep/Dem)

 

BRONX – CIVIL COURT – COUNTYWIDE (2 Vacancies)
Nelida Malave (Dem)
Lucianna Locorotondo (Rep/Con)
John Wilson (Rep/Dem/Con)

BRONX – CIVIL COURT – DIST 2
Lizabeth Gonzalez (Dem)
James Walsh (Rep/Con)

 

BROOKLYN

 

BROOKLYN – SUPREME COURT(5 Vacancies)
Louis Marrero (Rep/Dem)
Sylvia Hinds-Radix (Rep/Dem)
Michelle Weston Patter (Rep/Dem)
Eric Prus (Rep/Dem)
Wayne Saitta (Dem)
Matthew Sciarrino, Jr. (Rep/Con)
Thomas Stadnik (Con)
Philip Smallman (Con)

BROOKLYN – CIVIL COURT – COUNTYWIDE (3 Vacancies)
Johnny Baynes (Dem)
Gerald Dunbar (Dem)
Richard Izzo (Rep/con)
Evelyn Laporte (Dem)
Vincent Martusciello (Rep/Con)
Joanne Minsky Cohen (Rep/Con)
April Newbauer (WF)

BROOKLYN – CIVIL COURT – DIST 1
Sarah Krauss (Dem)

BROOKLYN – CIVIL COURT – DIST 2
Geraldine Pickett (Dem)
Robin Kelly Sheares (WF)

BROOKLN – CIVIL COURT – DIST 6
Pamela Elisofon (Rep)
Bernard Graham (Dem/WF)

 

MANHATTAN

 

MANHATTAN – SUPREME COURT (5 Vacancies)
Emily Jane Goodman (Dem)
David Saxe (Rep/Dem)
Jacqueline W. Silberman (Dem/Rep)
Peter Tom (Dem/Rep)
Louis B. York (Dem)


MANHATTAN – SURROGATE COURT
Eve Premnger (Dem)

MANHATTAN – CIVIL COURT - COUNTYWIDE (4 Vacancies)
Alrene Bluth (Dem)
Shirley Kornreich (Dem)
Milagros Matos (Dem)
George Silver (Dem)

MANHATTAN – CIVIL COURT – DIST 2
Martin Shulman (Dem)

MANHATTAN – CIVIL COURT – DIST 8
Jose Padilla, Jr. (Dem)

MANHATTAN – CIVIL COURT – DIST 10
Debra James (Dem)

 

QUEENS

 

QUEENS – SUPREME COURT (6 Vacancies)
Augustus Agate (Rep/Dem/Con)
Randall Eng (Rep/Dem/Con)
William Erlbaum (Rep/Dem)
James Golia (Rep/Dem/Con)
James McGuire (Rep/Dem/Con)
Brathwai Nelson Vale (Rep/Dem/Con)

QUEENS – CIVIL COURT – COUNTYWIDE
Peter Lane (Rep)
Lee Mayersohn (Dem)

QUEENS – CIVIL COURT – DIST 1
Joseph Esposito (Dem)
Cassandra Mullen (Rep/Ind/Con)

 

STATEN ISLAND

 

STATEN ISLAND – SUPREME COURT (4 Vacancies)
Slyvia Hinds-Radix (Rep/Dem)
Louis Marrero (Rep/Dem)
Michelle Weston Patter (Rep/Dem)
Eric Prus (Rep/Dem)
Matthew Sciarrino (Rep/Con)
Thomas Stadnik (Con)

 

State Assembly District 22 - Flushing, Queens


GENERAL ELECTION CANDIDATES

Evergreen Chou (Green)
Barry Grodenchik (WF)
Jimmy Meng (Dem/Con/Ind)
Meilin Tan (Rep)

PRIMARY ELECTION RESULTS - Winner: Jimmy Meng (Dem)

PRIMARY ELECTION CANDIDATES

Barry Grodenchick (Dem)
Jimmy Meng (Dem)

CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES

Evergreen Chou is a Diagnostic Medical Sonographer at the Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn who received his B.A. at the Downstate Medical Center. He ran for City Council in 2001 and State Legislature in 2002. He is a member of the Queens Network for Peace and Justice.

Barry Grodenchik is the incumbent for the 22nd Assembly District. Previously, he served as the chief administrative officer for former Queens Borough President Claire Shulman as the Queens regional Representative under former Governor Cuomo.

Jimmy Meng is the owner and operator of the Queens Lumber Company in Flushing. He was also formerly the president of the Flushing Chinese Business Association. He immigrated from Taiwan.

Meilin Tan (no bio available).

CAMPAIGN TRAIL

10/22/04
Setting an American precedent, the three candidates for the seat in the New York State Assembly for the 22nd District in Queens will square off for a debate where the only language spoken will be Mandarin, one of the two main Chinese dialects. The three candidates, Jimmy Meng (Democrat), Meilin Tan (Republican) and Evergreen Chou (Green), all fluent in Mandarin, taped the event on Oct. 19 at QPTV Studios in Flushing. It was moderated by Ada Sheng, the event’s co-producer, on The Chinese New Yorker, a public access television show cablecast throughout Queens. (Queens Tribune)

10/18/04
With Jimmy Meng's victory over Assemblyman Barry Grodenchik in the Democratic primary, the Asian-American community has proven it has gained power and influence in New York. On November 2, Meng will face Republican Meilin Tan, Greens No To War Party candidate Evergreen Chou and Grodenchik, who is running as the Working Families Party candidate. However, Meng is the favorite in Flushing. According to John Liu, who in 2000 became the first Asian-American elected to the City Council, the Asian American community could potentially be a powerful force. "The numbers continue to grow quickly, and the turnout rates are potentially much greater than the overall turnout rates of other groups," he said. "When Asian-Americans are registered to vote, they vote." (Newsday)

09/29/04
The Board of Elections yesterday certified Jimmy Meng, a Flushing businessman the winner over Assemblymember Barry Grodenchik in the September 14 Democratic primary. However the board said it was continuing to look at voter registrations in the district and could turn the matter over to prosecutors. A review of voter registration records shows a pattern of suspicious registrations in the district, with hundreds of voters giving home addresses that turned out to be businesses like restaurants, hair salons and a plumbing supply store. (New York Times)

09/26/04
City election officials are expanding their probe into an allegedly tainted primary that put Queens businessman Jimmy Meng in line to become the first Asian-American elected to the state Legislature. They're now looking at more than 600 voters, most with Asian names, who registered as living at shops, banks and other nonresidential addresses in Flushing prior to the Democratic primary for Assembly won by Meng on Sept. 14 (NY Post)

09/24/04
Jimmy Meng, the Queens businessman who won an upset victory over Assemblyman Barry Grodenchik in last week's Democratic primaries, is all but certain to win the November general election and make history by becoming the Legislature's first Asian-American member. Meng's first act after taking office should be the introduction of legislation to reform New York's fraud-friendly state voter registration system. It's only fitting, because Grodenchik's camp has uncovered evidence that dozens, even hundreds, of people on the voter rolls in the Flushing district were registered improperly, often at commercial establishments and even at vacant lots. Nobody is alleging that Meng's slim 500-vote margin of victory was gained illegally - but neither can anybody rule out that possibility. The Queens district attorney and the city's Board of Elections are probing the matter, which means Meng will arrive in Albany with an asterisk next to his name. (Daily News)

09/23/04
After losing to Jimmy Meng on the Democratic ticket for State Assembly in the 22nd District, Barry Grodenchik will run on the Working Families Party Line. Meng's most formidable challenger, however, will be Republican Meilin Tan. (Queens Tribune)

09/18/04
Two days after his surprising primary defeat of an incumbent assemblyman, Jimmy K. Meng sat in his campaign office in Flushing, Queens, greeting a stream of well-wishers and reflecting on a victory that places him on the path to be the first Asian-American member of the State Legislature. (New York Times)

09/16/04
In a notable upset, Chinese businessman Jimmy Meng beat incumbent state Assemblyman Barry Grodenchik in the Democratic primary for the 22nd Assembly District seat on Tuesday night. Garnering 51 percent of the vote, Meng is en route to become the first Asian-American elected to the New York statehouse, a significant achievement for the Asian American community. The 22nd District was only created 2 years ago when Census reports revealed a need for more representation of the 53 percent Asian demographic in downtown Flushing. John Liu, the city's only Asian councilman, supported Grodenchik in the race. (Times Ledger)

09/15/04
About 100 people in the Flushing area gave commercial addresses on voter registration forms, raising suspicion at polling sites yesterday that may cast a shadow over the assembly race. The hotly contested challenge to incumbent Barry Grodenchik by businessman Jimmy Meng didn't cool off even inside polling sites. Peter Wang, who manages a bookstore owned by Meng, complained that poll monitors for Grodenchik, who wore paper badges that identified them as "Official" poll observers, were asked by the Board of Elections employed poll coordinator to settle disputes about voters' eligibility. The site coordinator acknowledged that she didn't realize the Grodenchik observers were not Board of Elections officials until Wang complained. (Newsday)

09/09/04
Incumbent Barry Grodenchik will square off against challengers Ben Singer and Jimmy Meng for the Democratic nomination in the 22nd District. Supported by the regular Democratic leadership in the Flushing area, such as Councilmember John Liu and Ellen Young, Grodenchik appears to be the top dog. Singer is a retired Flushing businessman and is endorsed by the Democratic Club of Flushing. Meng is a community leader and building supply business owner in Flushing. Having lost to Grodenchik in the 2002 primary, Meng has reportedly spent over $100,000 in the campaign this time around. (Western Queens Gazette)

 

 

New York City Council STATED MEETING - October 13, 2004


New York City Council Stated Meeting Report

Every two weeks the New York City Council meets for its Stated Meeting to introduce and pass legislation. As a regular feature, Searchlight covers these meetings and posts a summary of the bills passed.

STATED MEETING - October 13, 2004

Quote of the Day:
"Lets face it, there hasn't been an investment of this size in Red Hook since World War II. Though the property was on the market for years, no one ever stepped forward with this kind of financial commitment for that site until IKEA put their proposal - and their money - on the table." - Brooklyn Councilmember Sarah Gonzalez, voting in favor of a new IKEA store in Red Hook.

Meeting Summary:
On October 13, the New York City Council approved the construction of a 346,000 square foot IKEA store in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The giant Swedish furniture store - which expects 3 million shoppers a year - will also build a parking lot, three additional structures for other stores or restaurants, and a 6.3-acre public esplanade along the waterfront.

The proposal has divided many area residents. Supporters say people in the area - about 75 percent of whom live in public housing - need jobs; opponents fear the store will bring traffic, noise, and pollution. (Read more about the controversy.)

To address community concerns, IKEA said neighborhood residents would be able to submit early applications for the 600 jobs it promises to create. The company also agreed to pay for free weekend ferry service to the store from Manhattan and shuttle bus service from nearby subway stations. The city also has plans to extend the B-61 bus to the store.

The plan already had the approval of the city's Department of City Planning and the City Council land use committee. Councilmember Sarah Gonzalez, who represents the area and has been a strong supporter of the plan, urged her colleagues to vote in favor of it.

"After nearly two years of work, IKEA have really proven themselves to be responsive and sincere," said Gonzalez.

The council approved the plan by a vote of 50 to 1. East New York Councilmember Charles Barron voted "no."

The plan still needs federal approval and construction could begin by the end of the year.

The council also passed a bill (Intro 207-A) that would require every public and private school with 200 or more students to have a nurse. Mayor Michael Bloomberg is expected to veto the bill, arguing that nurses can be rotated through smaller school. In September, the mayor also allocated an additional $8 million to increase the number of school nurses. The council says the mayor is not doing enough and has the votes to override the veto.

The next Stated Meeting is scheduled for October 27.

For an archive of past meetings and council votes, visit Gotham Gazette's Searchlight.

 

State Senate District 28 - East Harlem


GENERAL ELECTION CANDIDATES

Incumbent:
Senator Olga Mendez (Rep/Ind)

Challengers:
Agustin Alamo Estrada (Con)
José M. Serrano (Dem/WF)

PRIMARY ELECTION RESULT: Winner - Jose Serrano (Dem)

PRIMARY CANDIDATES

Agustin Alamo Estrada (Dem/Con)
Nelson A. Denis (Dem)
José M. Serrano (Dem/WF)

CAMPAIGN FEATURE:

Republican and Democratic Feud in East Harlem

Two years ago, after nearly a quarter century representing East Harlem and the South Bronx in the New York State Senate, Democrat Olga Mendez switched parties and became a Republican.

Olga Mendez, who was also one of the first Puerto Rican women ever elected to office in the United States, accused the Democratic party of not doing enough for the Latino community.

"Our needs have not been met," said Olga Mendez. "They haven't, so I do what I gotta do."

Although Olga Mendez argued that the district - where Democrats outnumber Republicans ten to one - would benefit from her move to a rival party, many Democrats were outraged.

"Instead of working with the Democratic Party to make things happen, Mendez decided to abandon the party," said Bronx City Councilmember Jose M. Serrano, who is one of three Democratic challengers and a Working Family Party candidate who are hoping to unseat the incumbent and take the State Senate seat back from the Republicans.

Beyond party affiliation, the central issue of the campaign is who can bring the most money back from Albany to the district, which includes neighborhoods in the South Bronx, East Harlem, and Roosevelt Island and struggles with issues of poverty, housing, and health care.

Olga Mendez said she stands on her accomplishments, which include creating jobs in the neighborhood, founding an organization to train small business owners, and lobbying housing developers to increase the number of affordable apartments.

"If we do not build affordable housing, there's only going to be a place for the well to do and the working poor… but nothing for the middle class," she said.

Jose M. Serrano, who has the backing of the Bronx Democratic Party and his father Congressman Jose E. Serrano, counters that Democrats must win control of the State Senate in order to help local residents.

"We need to get elected officials… who will stand up for reformation of Rockefeller drug laws, who will stand up for increased educational funding," said Jose M. Serrano.

However, two other Democrats - Nelson Denis and Agustin Alamo Estrada - said Jose M. Serrano is not the right candidate to replace Olga Mendez because he is part of the Bronx Democratic machine.

Nelson Denis, who served four years in the State Assembly and also wrote and directed an independent movie satirizing Harlem politics after he was defeated in 2000, said he wants to put an end to the "family fiefdoms" that control Bronx politics.

If elected, Nelson Denis said he would increase bank lending in order to build affordable housing, expand programs for youth, and to bring accountability to Albany.

"At the end of the day, my community, not a bunch of politicians, will turn out on election day," said Nelson Denis.

Likewise, Agustin Alamo Estrada, a retired teacher who has run for various political seats in the past, said that the Democratic Party has "too many entrenched people" and that Olga Mendez "hasn't done anything in 25 years." Estrada said he is most concerned about reducing the cost of health care, eliminating excessive fines for quality of life crimes, and lowering taxes.

"I would refuse to tax the people any more than they are currently taxed," said Agustin Estrada.

One thing all of the candidates agree on is that something must be done to fix the broken system in Albany – where legislators missed their budget deadline for the 20th year in a row, major legislation stalled, and negotiations between the two houses were gridlocked for much of the year.

But Nelson Denis admits it is difficult to change the system. In the four years that he was in office, he was unable to get any of the bills he proposed signed into law. Only legislators who are in favor with the speaker, Denis said, are able to pass bills.

Even the incumbent admits that things must change.

"This year has been the worst," said Olga Mendez, who lays some of the blame on the State Senate's 97 percent incumbent reelection rate.

The 79-year-old state senator, however, believes she is part of the solution, not the problem. "I'm unorthodox," she said. "When I make political decisions that are difficult, I say its ok, what's the worst that could happen."

But first, she must convince Democratic voters to consider her long history in the district over party affiliation.

CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES

Agustin Alamo-Estrada is a retired teacher. He is a community activist, and has run in a number of elections. He graduated from Bronx Community College and Lehman College.

Nelson Antonio Denis represented the 68th Assembly District in the New York State Assembly from 1996-2000. He has also served as member of the local Community Board, and was an editorial writer for El Diaro/La Prensa. Denis was the writer and director of "Vote For Me," a political comedy about East Harlem politics. He received his undergraduate degree in government from Harvard University and his law degree from Yale Law School.

Olga A. Mendez has represented the 28th Senate District in the New York State Senate since 1978, when she became the first Puerto Rican woman to be elected to a State Legislature on the United States mainland. Mendez received her B.S. from the University of Puerto Rico, a Master's Degree in Psychology from the Teacher's College at Columbia University, and a PhD in Educational Psychology from Yeshiva University.

José M. Serrano is currently serving his second term as representative to the New York City Council from the 17th Council District. He is the chair of the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries, and International Intergroup Relations. He received his B.A. in government from Manhattan College, and worked for the New York Shakespeare Festival.

CAMPAIGN TRAIL

10/26/04
Incumbent candidate state Senator Olga Mendez takes a personal approach to the people of her district, said to be the poorest in New York, from fielding phone calls to giving out hugs. However, this time around, Mendez faces the most formidable challenger in her 26 years in office. Jose Serrano, son of Representative Jose Serrano of the Bronx, is the Democratic opponent to the freshly minted Republican. Although Republicans have a slight upper hand in the Senate, Republican incumbents have been facing fierce opposition in this election. Furthermore, this population tends to vote Democratic 10 to 1. Mendez argues that though she switched parties her views remain the same. She insists that her switch has simply granted her more resources, money, and access in a Republican-controlled State Senate. "I've always been a goddamn liberal," she said. (New York Sun)

10/11/04
Beyond the politics, the 28th state Senate district is a series of hardscrabble neighborhoods rich in history and showing signs of bouncing back. It includes the romanticized areas of East Harlem - "Spanish Harlem" in song and "El Barrio" in lore - and the run-down sections of the Bronx around Yankee Stadium. The senator from the district for the past 26 years has been Olga Mendez, 79, the first Puerto Rican woman elected to any state legislature in the mainland United States and the longest serving Puerto Rican official in the country. Shortly after getting re-elected in 2002, the lifelong Democrat switched to the Republican Party, arguing that Democrats had not done enough for her constituents. Two forces have now dovetailed to back Democrat Jose Marco Serrano, 32, a second-term city councilman from the Bronx, against Mendez in next month's general election. Local Democrats bent on revenge have found common ground with statewide Democrats hoping to narrow the seven-seat margin that the Republican majority holds in the Senate. That has put pressure on Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Brunswick) to show he can protect potential Democratic defectors from retribution on Election Day. ( Newsday )

10/5/04
James De La Vega is seeking write-in votes for a State Senate seat in District 28. De La Vega, a street artist known for his murals in Spanish Harlem, is running against Agustin Alamo Estrada, Jose Serrano, and incumbent Olga A. Mendez. De La Vega is set apart from his opponents by his creative campaign tactics, such as his "Become Your Dream" slogan, pensive idealism, and trademark afro-wig and shades attire. De La Vega says he seeks to represent the longtime residents of the district and not just cater to the new money that is coming in and driving prices up. "My biggest fear is once all these people move into the neighborhood, they are not going to worry about the folks who have been here for years." (NY Times)

08/30/04
The New York State League of Conservation Voters has endorsed just one challenger against incumbents from the city, who account for about 40 percent of the 212 members of the State Legislature. Of the 32 city-based races it has taken a position on, Sen. Olga Mendez (R-Manhattan) was the only incumbent who was passed. The group endorsed City Councilman Jose M. Serrano (D-Bronx) over Mendez, a former Democrat whose defection to the Republican Party has prompted a major effort to unseat her. (Newsday)

8/16/04
City Council Member Jose M. Serrano, the son of Rep. Jose Serrano, is seeking to replace Olga Mendez in the state Senate. Ms. Mendez has represented a piece of the South Bronx and East Harlem for years. But she is now considered vulnerable after switching to the Republican Party from the Democratic Party. Before he can take on Ms. Mendez, however, Mr. Serrano must first win his party's nomination against Nelson Denis, a former assemblyman. The younger Mr. Serrano was considered a shoo-in to beat Mr. Denis - until he was drawn into an emerging scandal involving his father. The elder Mr. Serrano was behind the founding and funding of a Puerto Rican cultural group called the House of Artful Expression, which thus far has little to show for the $1.7 million in public funds that the congressman obtained for it. The group is chaired by Francisco Lugovina, who is a longtime friend of the Serrano family and is the younger Mr. Serrano's godfather. Mr. Lugovina's longtime companion, Noemi Santana, is the executive director. This is now the subject of a federal probe. An angry crowd, apparently organized by Mr. Denis, protested the scandal on Tuesday largely for the benefit of the press, which eagerly lapped it up. The younger Mr. Serrano is discovering the ugly flip side of the politics of inheritance. Those who benefit from their father's name one day may find it a burden the next. (NY Sun)

8/12/04
Olga Mendez has a real challenge to win the election against Jose Serrano for the 28th District after switching partisan groups. Formerly a Democrat, Mendez says she is treated with more respect from Republicans and is now able to obtain more money for district projects by switching to the majority. Serrano said that instead of joining the majority, he wants to cause a shift in the typically Republican senate toward a Democratic majority. The thought is what has led him to run for the seat after three years of being on the City Council. Serrano also noted that even with Mendez’s shift, Senate Leader Bruno and Governor Pataki have still made cuts to state aid and social services that affect many living in this district. ( Bronx Times)

8/1/04
Pataki's veto of legislation that would raise the state minimum wage to $7.15 an hour was also a blow to State Senator Olga MĂ©ndez (R-East Harlem, Bronx). The feisty 79-year-old Puerto Rican legislator, a former Democrat, is chairwoman of the Senate Labor Committee. She was instrumental in getting the minimum wage hike passed in the Senate. Not surprisingly, she is deeply disappointed. "Now both Democrats and Conservatives want to destroy me," she said in her trademark raspy voice. "I had sent a letter to the governor asking him to sign the bill, and I am disillusioned he didn't. "I mean, I love the governor, but I thought we should offer some relief to the families of the working poor who, no matter how hard they work, still fall under the federal definition of poverty," she added. MĂ©ndez, however, does not believe all is lost. She is hoping for a veto override, to which Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is already committed. (Daily News)

7/20/04
In a sign of how fiercely Democratic leaders want their party to regain a State Senate seat, dozens of elected officials came to City Hall yesterday to endorse a Bronx city councilman for the one now held by Olga A. Mendez, the longtime incumbent senator who switched parties to become a Republican two years ago. For months, it has been well known that Councilman José M. Serrano planned to run for the Senate seat representing East Harlem and part of the Bronx. But the formal announcement yesterday on the steps of City Hall was intended as a show of Democratic force in what is expected to be a hard-fought campaign. For the Democrats, the seat is particularly important because they see it as crucial to their strategy to win back the State Senate. While the Republicans now enjoy a 38-to-24 advantage, Democratic leaders say they are well positioned this year to win three of the seven seats needed to regain a Senate majority. (NY Times)

7/13/04
Olga Mendez, who has served in the senate since 1978 and whose district includes parts of the Bronx and Washington Heights as well as her East Harlem base, hasn't submitted a single required campaign filing since September 2002, records reveal. State board of elections officials have hit her campaign with judgments of $500 apiece—the maximum allowed by law—for each of seven reports never submitted. She has paid one of those judgments so far, a total of $522 including court costs. Actually, late filing isn't that uncommon among state legislators, who often figure the worst that can happen to them is a mild fine. But in Mendez's case, interviews with campaign donors and records from other committees show that even the reports she did file during the 2002 election year had major gaps, failing to disclose more than $100,000 in contributions she received from individual givers and political action committees. (Village Voice)

7/07/04
A number of politicians from East Harlem called yesterday for Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell IV to resign in the wake of rape allegations against him…John Ruiz, a Democratic Party district leader in East Harlem, said yesterday that he was abandoning his candidacy for a State Senate seat to run instead for the Assembly and challenge Mr. Powell. "We're asking that Mr. Powell step down from his seat," Mr. Ruiz said after a news conference in front of the assemblyman's office in East Harlem. "With all the problems he is having right now, he should take time to address those problems. We need a representative who wants to do the job and who will bring integrity to this office." (NY Times)

7/05/04
Senators were notified late last week to return to the Capitol on [July 19th] for a special session. The betting here is that a range of liberal bills, including a hike in the state minimum wage and expanded rights for migrant farm workers, will be passed. Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, a one-time conservative, is expected to push for a series of Democrat-backed measures in order to boost GOP chances in two hotly contested New York City Senate races. Bruno, who last year backed the biggest tax hike ever and did a 180-degree turnaround to back a gay-rights bill, is fighting an uphill battle to help Democrat-turned-Republican Sen. Olga Mendez of Manhattan win re-election. (NY Post)

6/22/04
One sign of how squabbling among Democrats might hurt the party's chances can be found in the contest to unseat Ms. Mendez. There are already three Democrats in various stages of unfurling their candidacies. One is Nelson Antonio Denis, a former assemblyman who spent the last two years working on an independent film. Another is John Ruiz, a district leader and firefighter. And there is also José Marco Serrano, a city councilman who represents parts of the Bronx and is the son of Congressman José Serrano. Mr. Paterson and other Democrats say they fear the impact of an expensive race fought along geographic lines. After the 2000 census, the district represented by Ms. Mendez changed from an exclusively northern Manhattan district to one with nearly 60 percent of its residents in the Bronx. That has set the stage for some intense Bronx-East Harlem rivalry between Mr. Serrano, who is from the Bronx, and the other candidates, who live in Manhattan. (NY Times)

6/10/04
At a May 18th meeting of Community Board 11, Robert Gary Stopper allegedly directed homophobic remarks at City Councilmember Phil Reed. A letter written by Geoffrey Eaton, Reed's chief of staff, said that Stopper is a "high level person in the John Ruiz for State Senate Campaign," and condemned Ruiz for being present at the meeting and doing nothing when the remark was made. Ruiz, in turn, defended Stopper and downplayed his role in the campaign. Further, he said that he had filed a complaint with the Manhattan District Attorney, saying that Eaton had broken the law by falsely accusing him of homophobia on official City Council stationary. (Gay City News)

5/29/04
Former State Assemblyman Nelson Antonio Denis declared his candidacy for State Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2004. He declared in typical Nelson Denis fashion, at the Yorkville Democratic club at 225 East 93rd Street. The club endorsed Mr. Denis by an overwhelming vote over Jose Serrano Jr., from the Bronx, and East Harlem District Leader and former fireman John Ruiz. (EastHarlem.com)

5/27/04
City Council Member Jose Serrano Jr. has agreed to run against Olga Mendez in the Senate district that covers the South Bronx and East Harlem. Ms. Mendez is a former Democrat who switched to the Republican Party when she endorsed Governor Pataki in 2002. She has become an endangered species. Bronx Democrats have already unified behind Mr. Serrano's candidacy, including the borough president, Aldolfo Carrion; a former borough president, Fernando Ferrer; county leader Jose Rivera, and Mr. Serrano's father, Rep. Jose Serrano. The younger Serrano does not have to give up his council seat to run. (NY Sun)

5/27/04
Any lingering hopes among Democrats that state Senator Olga Mendez would quietly retire this year were dashed yesterday, when she announced her re-election bid. A Democrat for most of her 26 years in office, Ms. Mendez recently switched to the GOP, spurring hopes among Manhattan and Bronx Democrats that they might recapture her district, which includes the heavily Democratic neighborhoods of East Harlem, Roosevelt Island, and parts of the Bronx. One theory making the rounds was that Ms. Mendez, 79, only switched to the Republican Party last year in order to give her salary a final boost, as a member of the Senate majority, before retiring this year. That thinking turns out to be wrong. (NY Sun)

5/27/04
Bronx Democrats are likely to endorse City Councilman Jose Serrano (D-South Bronx) in the Democratic primary for the Bronx-Upper Manhattan state Senate seat now held by Republican Olga Mendez. (Daily News)

5/15/04
Former Democratic District Leader and Community School Board # 4 member, Felix Rosado has decided to run for State Senate. He will join former fire fighter and current District Leader, John Ruiz, and former State Assemblyman, Nelson Denis in seeking to win the September 2004 Democratic Primary. (EastHarlem.com)

5/11/04
Forget about President Bush. The Republican local Democrats want most to get rid of this November is state Sen. Olga Mendez of East Harlem, the longest-serving Puerto Rican legislator in the country. (Daily News)

12/4/02
Saying that the Democratic Party has taken Latino voters for granted for decades, state Sen. Olga Mendez jumped yesterday to the GOP side of the aisle. (Daily News)

Learn More:
• Albany's Dysfunction
• Blame Albany
• How Albany Controls New York City
• Will Albany Scandals Lead to Reform?
• Albany Rules?
• Upstate Downstate Debate

Eye on Albany Campaign 2004 home

State Assembly District 62 - Staten Island (South Shore)


GENERAL ELECTION CANDIDATES

Mario Bruno, Jr. (Con)
Vincent Ignizio (Rep)
Emanuele Innamorato (Dem)
Robert Straniere (Ind/WF)

PRIMARY ELECTION RESULT: Winner - Vincent Ignizio (Rep)

PRIMARY ELECTION CANDIDATES

Incumbent:
Robert Straniere (Ind/Rep/WF)

Challengers:
Mario Bruno, Jr. (Con/Rep)
Vincent Ignizio (Rep)
Emanuele Innamorato (Dem)

CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES

Mario Bruno, Jr. is the assistant commissioner for after-school programs at the city's Department of Youth and Community Development.

Vincent Igniziois currently the Chief of Staff for Councilman Andrew J. Lanza and the second vice-chairman of the Republican Party on State Island. He was also chief of staff for former City Councilmember Stephen Fiala.

Emanuele Innamorato (no information available)

Robert Straniere has served in the New York State Assemby since 1981. He is the Assistant Minority Leader of the assembly’s Republican Conference.

CAMPAIGN TRAIL

09/30/04
Twenty-three year incumbent Robert Straniere lost the Republican nomination to Vincent Ignizio. Despite Straniere's attack against the proposal by the International Speedway Corp to build a NASCAR race track on a 680-acre industrial site on the West Shore in Bloomfield, Ignizio seized the bid. The proposal did not seem to influence voters since it is unlikely that Straniere, a minority in the Democratic-run state Assembly, would have been able to challenge the proposal. Ignizio also opposes the track. ( Staten Island Advance)

09/29/04
If Vincent Ignizio wins the State Senate seat in the 62nd District, he will be, at 30, the youngest lawmaker in the State Legislature. Ignizio is running on the Republican ticket in a traditionally Republican assembly district, the South Shore. Being the youngest, Ignizio says, would allow him to serve as a "role model" for his generation and bring a fresh perspective to a Legislature usually entrenched with incumbents. ( Staten Island Advance)

09/26/04
Vincent Ignizio upset twenty-three year incumbent Robert Straniere on September 14 for the state Senate Seat in South Shore, Staten Island. The surprise victory also brought to light mounting tensions within the Republican party in a bastion of Republicans and voter dissatisfaction with a stagnant status quo. Straniere was opposed by Ignizio and Mario Bruno, who is continuing on the Conservative ticket. Ignizio is expected to beat the Democratic candidate Emanuele Innamorato (New York Times)

09/03/04
Opposition to the proposed NASCAR racetrack and the preservation of Camp St. Edward were the main courses yesterday at a community breakfast sponsored by Assemblyman Robert Straniere. Following a discussion of the just-ended legislative session's successes and failures, Straniere (R-South Shore) once again denounced plans for construction of a 80,000-seat track on the former GATX site in Bloomfield. ( Staten Island Advance)

08/5/04
Assemblymember Robert Straniere was one of 26 Assembly Republican incumbents who will not be endorsed by the New York State United Teachers Union. All 26 assemblymen were endorsed in the 2002 race. (The Associated Press State and Local Wire)

07/25/04
For a time, not very many years ago, Staten Island Republicans seemed to operate as one big happy family. But the party that was lorded over by Guy V. Molinari is split by a bitter feud. And that feud is playing out in an Assembly race in the central and southern portions of the borough, the 62nd Assembly District, an area that is the Republican bedrock of New York City. There, the incumbent assemblyman, Robert A. Straniere, who is also the assistant minority leader, is facing two challengers, each of them backed by a different and prominent Republican leader. One of Mr. Straniere's challengers is backed by Mr. Molinari, a former Staten Island borough president and longtime paterfamilias of the island's Republican Party. United States Representative Vito J. Fossella, one of the borough's best-known politicians, supports the other. The race has caused the fissures within the party to become more pronounced than ever. More than anything, the race has been portrayed as a contest between Mr. Molinari and Mr. Fossella to determine who has the superior political muscle. For the most part, the candidates suggest that the race is more about who is best qualified to deal with the issues that they say trouble Staten Islanders the most: the fast-paced development of the borough, the need for more mass transit between Staten Island and Manhattan and the need for additional classroom space. (New York Times)

07/18/04
Straniere, who is being challenged this September by Bruno and Ignizio, cites the building of a NASCAR speedway as being a “scheme park.” Borough President James P. Molinaro has taken a “wait-and-see” approach. Many Staten Island residents like the idea of a racetrack. (The New York Times)

04/22/04
Robert Straniere, who has lost favor with the Republican Party after an unsuccessful attempt running for borough president, will face two challengers in this year’s fall election: Ignizio and Bruno. If the party remains divided, then a faction could throw in support of Councilman Thomas Ognibene of Queens, who is planning to challenge Mayor Bloomberg in a Republican primary. (The New York Sun)

04/20/04
An $85,000-a-year administrator of city after-school programs has been granted a leave of absence to run for state office - after departing his duties at least twice since 2001 to work in Republican campaigns. Mario Bruno, 39, an assistant commissioner for youth services, was tapped Thursday by Conservative Party leaders to run for a Staten Island Assembly seat. Bruno owes his revolving-door public post - which has survived city deficits, downsizing, attrition and layoffs - to his role as a political operative for Republicans, City Hall insiders acknowledge. (Newsday)

04/04/04
Mario Bruno was granted a waiver by Mayor Bloomberg to stay on the city payroll while he runs for a seat on the state assembly. He has taken off an average of eight weeks a year, and left the payroll in order to manage the campaign of Borough President James P. Molinaro. (The New York Post)

 

 



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