NYC NOW - July 31, 2023: Evening Roundup

Episode Date: July 31, 2023

Mayor Eric Adams has now been in office for more than 18 months, and he’s had a difficult summer and faced several controversies, from the departure of a police commissioner, to the growing call for a federal takeover of Rikers, to a campaign finance scandal. WNYC’s People and Power reporter Elizabeth Kim with David Furst. Also, to commemorate hip-hop’s 50th anniversary WNYC and Gothamist are sharing the voices of women from our area who are leaving their own mark on the genre, like MC Debbie D.

Good evening and welcome to NYC Now. I'm Sean Carlson for WNYC. Mayor Eric Adams has been in office now for more than 18 months. He's had a bit of a difficult summer, though. He's faced several controversies from the departure of a police commissioner to the growing call for a federal takeover of Rikers to a campaign finance scandal. After the break WNIC's Elizabeth Kim will break it all down. She covers City Hall for the People in Power Team and spoke with my colleague, David First. To be fair, being mayor of New York City is always a tough job. You are criticized constantly. But was there a particular turning point for Adams this summer? You're right.

The news cycle for a mayor is really tough. And it always includes some negative headlines. But I think it's fair to say that there has been a critical mass of challenges for the mayor this summer. And it really began with the abrupt exit of his first police commissioner. Kishan Sewell in June. She left amid reports that she was micromanaged. She delivered what turned out to be a pretty telling speech last year in which she talked about being second guest and criticized on how she wore her hair, on how she dressed. Here's some of what she said. Your hairstyle is wrong. You look tired, already worn out in less than a year. You should wear different clothes. You're not

qualified. Now, she never mentioned the mayor by name, but ultimately, he's responsible for the culture of his administration. That's quite an indictment coming from the first woman, NYPD commissioner, right? Correct. And Adams made a big deal about not only her appointment, but the appointment of other women in his administration. He has five women deputy mayors, for example. It's also important to note that any time a mayor loses a police commissioner unexpectedly, it's a big deal. As far as the public is concerned, it's probably the most high profile position after mayor. And Sewell, as you pointed out, wasn't just any police commissioner. She was the first woman police commissioner in New York City. And by all accounts, she was really well liked by the rank and file. Perhaps even more importantly, crime had started to go down under her leadership. So losing her was a big blow to Adams. And it raised questions about her. his management style. And there were also questions about how he engages with the public, right? He had this testy exchange with a housing activist at a town hall. Here's a little bit of that. I'm the mayor of the city

and treat me with the respect I deserve to be treated. I'm speaking to you as an adult. Don't stand in front like you're treating someone that's on a plantation that you own. What was the context? And talk about the fallout after this. That was another moment that didn't play well. for the mayor. Here we had a housing activist who came to a town hall where the mayor listens to questions and feedback from New Yorkers. And she criticized the mayor for caving to real estate interests by not freezing rents for subsidized tenants this year. Adams takes an issue with her tone. He calls her disrespectful. And then he accuses her of essentially being a racist. Later on, it was revealed that the woman was a Holocaust survivor, which then caused some people to criticize the mayor for dressing down a person who's also been a victim of oppression and violence.

So it became this very complicated moment around racial identity and the history of racism. But at the end of the day, New York City mayors have to have a thick skin. And Adams has shown that he does not take criticism lightly. Well, the uproar around that controversy has seemed to die down, and I wonder if most New Yorkers will even remember it in a few months. But were there other issues that threatened to hurt Adams in the long term? Yes, and you can take your pick among them. First off, there's Rikers. The city has had an ongoing crisis for years, even before Adams, about violence between guards and inmates, the treatment of inmates and staff corruption.

And there have been serious criticisms about how Adams is tackling the problem. Four people have died this month alone. A federal monitor has raised concerns about transparency. Basically, he's saying the city is not cooperating with his requests for information on violent incidents. The city is also no longer reporting inmate deaths to the public. But possibly the biggest blow to Adams was when the U.S. attorney, Damien Williams called on federal officials to take control of Rikers. That's something that many advocates and lawmakers have been pushing for.

It would be a tremendous defeat for the mayor, especially one who is so tied to policing and criminal justice issues. Let's also talk about the campaign finance investigation into Adams' donors, which you wrote about this week. Who is bringing the case and who is involved? This is a case brought by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg. He announced indictments earlier this month against six donors who were charged with making illegal donations to Adams' campaign using a straw donor scheme. That's when someone pays people to make donations in their own name in order to evade contribution limits.

It's also a way to exploit the city's very generous matching funds program, which awards every dollar. raised by a small donor with $8. And what did they potentially hope to gain? Essentially, influence with Adams once he became mayor. At the end of the day, it's always about money. The indictment cites a conversation between two of the defendants about a Brooklyn development project. Several of the accused happened to be construction owners, and they also happen to have

contracts with the city. Adams has not been implicated, and he's repeatedly said that he intends to cooperate with the investigation, and he also says that he has always instructed his campaign staff to follow the rules. But similar to what happened to Mayor Bill de Blasio, who faced multiple investigations into his fundraising and was never charged, the case will still cast a cloud of suspicion over the mayor, and it could distract him from governing. That was People in Power reporter Elizabeth Kim speaking with WNIC's David First. It was 50 years ago this summer that the sights and sounds of hip-hop culture burst onto the scene in the Bronx. To commemorate the milestone, W. and Mycine Gothamist are sharing the voices of women from our area who are leaving their own mark on the genre.

My name is Dr. Deborah Hooper, also known as MC Debbie D. I was born and raised until my teenage years in Harlem. All of my schooling was in Manhattan. And around 13 years old, we had a fire. unfortunately where we lived and we wound up moving to the Bronx. That's basically how it all started. I heard the music there in my bedroom and was curious as to the noise and what was going on. So I went downstairs and followed the music and that's the first time I got exposed to it. It was outside in one of the parks where the jam was held. That's what we called it at the time.

We didn't even call it hip-hop at that time. That was summer of 1977. I was 14 years old. For most kids during that particular time, you even wanted to be a break dancer, you wanted to be a DJ, or you wanted to be an emce. Because I was raised in the church, you know, ever since I was a young kid, I was used to singing on the choir. I wrote poetry. So I've always been lyrical. That's always been a part.

Words have always been a part of my life. And so I decided, you know what? I want to do that. I just wanted to try it out like everybody else. And so I got on the mic. being a woman in the early 70s doing hip hop It wasn't a major thing You know, people look at it differently today

Because it's 50 years later And so the playing field looks a lot different But back then, you know, girls got on the mic Just like guys got on the mic It wasn't that many girls But you did have girls who were on the mic At that particular time, the DJ was the central focus

Of the jams and of hip hop And so for me, getting on the mic. I just asked the DJ, could I get on? And the question usually that DJs were concerned about was, could you rhyme? Gender was never a factor. If a girl could rhyme, just like a guy could rhyme, then DJs were open to you getting on the mic. Thankfully, I passed the test. When we were kids, they told us it'd probably last about five years and it'd be over. And here we are celebrating the 50th year. And believe it or not, most of us are still alive. It's an exciting time for us. That's MC Debbie D. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WNYC. Catch us every weekday three

times a day. We'll be back tomorrow.