NYC NOW - November 21, 2023 : Evening Roundup

Episode Date: November 21, 2023

New York Congressman Dan Goldman joins a bipartisan group of lawmakers in Florida this week to discuss gun control. Plus, tensions are rising at Columbia University from protests over the Israel-Hamas war. And, the New Jersey State Attorney General is investigating the mayor and police chief of Clark, a small town in Union County. Also, WNYC’s Karen Yi reports on what it’s like for kids navigating a new language at New York City public schools. And finally, a look into the NYPD’s new robots patrolling the Times Square subway station.

Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. I'm Jene Pierre. The majority of school shootings are done by people under 21 years old who have some sort of connection or affiliation to that school. New York Congressman Dan Goldman says he thinks gun control opponents in Congress might agree to some smaller steps to reduce gun violence. like raising the purchase age and expanding red flag laws. He joined a bipartisan tour of Florida's Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School this week. Goldman and other lawmakers were there with families of the 2018 Parkland shooting victims to discuss school's safety and how to prevent future tragedies.

We are focused on saving as many lives as we can with common sense legislation that we don't need to get into the second amendment issues. We don't need to start to roll back. people's access to guns if they are qualified. Gun violence has emerged as the leading cause of death for children in the U.S. for two years in a row. Columbia University is reeling from a month and a half of protest over the Israel-Hamas war.

WMYC's Ramsey-Khalytheid has more on the tension at New York City's only Ivy League school. Demonstrations and confrontations have been a regular occurrence at Columbia since the October 7th attack by Hamas. 7th attack by Hamas militants. Student activist Dean Halim says many pro-Palestine students are masking

up at protests to avoid online harassment. It's about protection. It's literally about people wanting to make sure that them and their families are safe. It's about them not wanting to get fired from the jobs that they want to provide for their family. A student hanging posters of hostages held in Gaza was recently assaulted with a broomstick. And a conservative nonprofit has used an electronic

billboard truck to single out students seen as unfairly critical of Israel. Colombia says safety on campus is a top priority. In New Jersey, the state attorney general is pursuing corruption charges against the longtime mayor of Clark and has called on the police chief to be fired. It's a big investigation in a small town in Union County. WNYC's Nancy Solomon has the details. Investigators started with allegations about public officials making racist and sexist comments and paying a $400,000 settlement to science. a whistleblower in the Clark Police Department. Attorney General Matt Plattkin says they then

discovered the mayor was running his own private business out of town hall. Plattkin has begun a long list of reforms and more investigation into the police department. To ensure that anyone who comes in in the park, whether they live there, whether they're shopping there, whether they're dining there, is treated with the dignity and respect that they deserve. Plattkin is also calling for the Clark Police Chief and head of internal affairs to be. be fired. Stay close. There's more after the break.

Migrant children enrolled in New York City public schools face many barriers to learning English. That includes a shortage of bilingual teachers. WNYC's Kerrangu reports on what it's like for kids navigating a new language. Nine-year-old's Valesca Cardona says she may not know how to say all the days of the week yet in English or how to say certain fruits, but she's figured out how to make a friend. I'm going to say, Hi.

And I said, why are you friends? What is your Paizca? Valesca is a fourth grader with long black hair and a big, toothy smile. She and her mom are from Venezuela and arrived in the city

about a year ago. Every Wednesday, she goes to an after-school program at the Salvation Army in Times Square. That's helping her learn English through music. Valiska is one of thousands of migrants.

children who recently enrolled in New York City public schools. She, like many newly arrived kids, missed months of education as they made their way to the U.S. Some have missed years. Many are traumatized by their journey here. They're also figuring out how to ride the subway, dressed for the cold weather, and learn a completely new language, all while still trying to be a kid. I am. I am. Seven. Seven years old. Your school. Seven-year-old's Hes-Sniker Garcia's is filling out a worksheet with the names of fruits in English and Spanish, while one of the older children takes a private singing class.

He says he knows all the colors in English and how to count to 200. His sniker and his family have been in New York for about a year after coming from Venezuela. He says his teacher doesn't speak Spanish, so he's recruited an unafeited. official in-class translator. His friend and classmate, Jerry. He has Jerry sit close to him in case the teacher says something he doesn't understand, like...

His niker says he goes to Jerry and asks him, hey Jerry, what's that? The gold standard for non-English speakers is a bilingual program, in which students get partial instruction in English and their home language. But only one in five English language learners in New York City schools are enrolled in these programs because of an ongoing shortage of bilingual educators. That means most newcomers end up in English-only classrooms,

and picking up a new language isn't easy. It takes time. Tatiana Klein is a bilingual education professor at City College. They're just kids, you know, and they've been through so much. But at the end of the day, they want to sing, they want to play. They want to connect with each other, right? So I think by creating those links and what they're doing is that they're creating a feeling of safety and a feeling of community.

But the city's new policy forcing migrant families to leave or reapply for shelter every 60 days could undermine that. A spokesperson for city schools says they don't track students' immigration status, but work with all kids to make sure they have what they need to succeed. For us right now, the most important thing is. their heart. Jeanette Frazier runs the Children's Aid Program at Central Park East to school. She works with about 40 migrant children and says right now she's focused on getting the students to feel safe. A lot of them have nightmares. They say they can sleep at night. We see it when we have

our drills and when they hear the sirens. We saw that a lot of the babies, they wouldn't move. They would not move. After music class at the Salvation Army, the kids and their parents sit down for a home-cooked meal, like one big extended family. Nine-year-old's Valentina Garcia says she feels happy. She's devouring a steaming beef stew that reminds her of home. It's also a chance to spend time with her childhood friend, Valesca, who she calls her sister, but who is staying in another hotel shelter in Queens, where families can't. have visitors. Many migrant families living in shelters say they don't have existing family networks here, and creating community like this is hard. And these spaces will become even more

important now that the city has told 1,500 migrant families and their kids, including Valentina, that they have 60 days to leave their shelters. That's WNYC's Karen Ye. There's a new sheriff in town, And it's an NYPD robot. WNYC's Bahar Oostodon visited the 420-pound robot that's patrolling the Times Square subway station. This is Times Square 40 seconds street. It's just after midnight. Millennials are stumbling home from the bar,

slices in hand, and they're stopping to take a selfie with the penguin-shaped robot. They're a little perplexed. It's just like a moving, like call box or that's not Robocop. I'm just happy that that's not what's happened. Oh my God, it's moving. The robot is still being escorted by two uniformed police officers.

It has 360 degree cameras and it talks. Hello, I'm a K-5 robot. I am here to patrol and record video for your safety. And a button to call 311. This call may be recorded for quality services. Prime name is the least the help and now. In September, Mayor Eric Adams announced that the city would be leasing the robot from the security and robotics company Nightscope for $9 an hour. We're going to keep us safe no matter which way we do it.

The robots patrolling the Times Square subway station between midnight and 6 a.m. Maggie Malone says that doesn't make her feel safer. I don't feel like it's safe at all. I'd rather have a person than a machine. 19-year-old Elias Ferris says he wouldn't use the robot even in an emergency. I feel like I'm more likely to call 911 if I feel like I'm in trouble, then I would like run up to the robot and like smack it on the face. The robot was supposed to be walking its beat solo this month,

but police say the timeline's been pushed back to give the robot more time to learn its way around. That's WNYC's Bahar Osteron. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WNYC. Catch us every weekday, three times a day. I'm Junae Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow. Thank you.