New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli Releases Audits

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced today the following audits have been issued:

New York City Department of Education, Non-Competitively Awarded Contracts (Follow-Up) (2010-F-26)
The New York City Department of Education must comply with applicable procurement requirements when awarding non-competitively bid contracts. In audit report 2008-N-1, DiNapoli’s auditors examined whether the department complied with requirements and found that it didn’t. When auditors followed up, they found that department officials had made significant progress in correcting the problems identified in the initial report.

Department of Health, Inappropriate Medicaid Payments for Dental Services Provided to Patients With Dentures (Follow-Up) (2010-F-33)
The Department of Health administers the Medicaid program. In audit 2008-S-125, DiNapoli’s auditors reviewed claims for a five-year period and found that dentists may have been overpaid as much as $2.9 million for services provided to patients with dentures. Auditors determined that the Medicaid claims processing system, eMedNY, lacked the controls necessary to detect and prevent such overpayments. Auditors recommended that appropriate controls be developed and implemented. When they followed up, auditors determined that department officials made some progress in correcting the problems they identified but improvements were still needed.

City University of New York, Kingsborough Community College: Selected Financial Management Practices (Follow-Up) (2010-F-39)
The City University of New York consists of eleven senior colleges, six community colleges, and several other specialized and professional schools. In audit report 2008-N-9, DiNapoli’s auditors examined whether one of the community colleges (Kingsborough) complied with requirements relating to payroll, procurement and waiving of tuition, and found certain instances of non-compliance in all three areas. When auditors followed-up, they found that officials had made progress in correcting the problems they identified.

State Education Department, St. Francis de Sales School for the Deaf: Selected Financial Management Practices (Follow-Up) (2010-F-40)
St. Francis de Sales School for the Deaf is one of 11 private schools that receive operating aid directly from the state to provide educational services to disabled students. In audit report 2008-S-160, auditors identified a number of internal control weaknesses in the areas of procurement, cash disbursements and payroll. Auditors also found that the school’s board of trustees was not providing effective oversight of financial operations. When auditors followed up, they found that officials had made significant progress in correcting the problems identified, but improvements were still needed.

Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, Natural Heritage Trust, Sources of Trust Revenues (2009-S-11)
The Natural Heritage Trust maintains over 200 custodial accounts for account holders, including the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. DiNapoli’s auditors examined whether Office of Parks revenue was incorrectly deposited into the custodial accounts of the trust. They found that more than $3.5 million in revenue was deposited into trust accounts incorrectly. Auditors recommended the Office of Parks recover the funds and improve controls over revenue.

Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Minority and Women’s Business Enterprise Reporting (2010-S-9)
State agencies and public authorities are required to promote the participation of minority-owned business enterprises (MBEs) and women-owned business enterprises (WBEs) in state contracts and procurement opportunities. Specifically, agencies must establish annual goals for such participation and make a “good faith” effort to achieve these goals. DiNapoli’s auditors examined the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s performance and found that it was establishing annual goals and making a good faith effort to reach them. However, the MTA’s goals were unreasonable, and as a result, they have consistently fallen short of their goals. Auditors also found that the MTA was not accurately reporting results of its efforts and was overstating its procurements. Auditors recommended improvements to comply with contract requirements.

200 Families on Brink of Homelessness Being Treated Like 'Rats in Lab Experiment' by Tina Moore - NY Daily News

Mayor Bloomberg's New York isn't the New York City I grew up in...

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Angie Almodovar, with daughters Emerald, 8, and Jazlyn, 1, at home in Bronx, says Homebase program was her 'only chance.'

The city has told 200 families on the brink of homelessness to fend for themselves in an experiment that has cruelly turned them into virtual lab rats.

In an attempt to test how well a one-stop assistance program is working, the Department of Homeless Services split 400 struggling families into haves and have-nots.

The "haves" get rental assistance, job training and other services through a program called Homebase.

The other half wasn't so lucky.

Those people - chosen at random - were dubbed the "control group" and shut out of Homebase for two years. Instead, they were handed a list of 11 agencies and told to hunt for help on their own.

The city will still be watching them, but for a whole different reason.

For two years, researchers will track the separate groups by their Social Security numbers to see how each "uses city services ... such as shelter, public assistance, foster care," city documents state.

Some advocates for the homeless called the $368,000 taxpayer-funded analysis a study in callousness.

"These are real parents and children, not rats in a lab experiment," said Patrick Markee, a senior analyst with the Coalition for the Homeless.

City Councilwoman Annabel Palma, who heads the General Welfare Committee, said vulnerable New Yorkers "should never be steered away from the services and benefits for which they are eligible."

Starting in August, letters went out to 400 families and individuals applying to join Homebase, telling them they would be part of the study. Those picked make up about 5% of the 7,700 families that used the program last year.

The city defended the plan.

"We serve thousands of people through this program, and this study is only looking at 400 people," Deputy Homeless Services Commissioner Ellen Howard-Cooper said.

Researchers will watch both groups to see if the "control group" families find help through other agencies or wind up in shelters, officials said.

Homeless Services Commissioner Seth Diamond said the study could reveal flaws in the Homebase program, which costs $23million a year. Improved homeless-prevention programs would, in the end, keep families or individuals out of shelters, he said.

"Not doing it would risk putting the city in a position where it's building shelters and condemning communities to building shelter when there's a better way to serve people," he said.

Single mother Angie Almodovar wasn't too pleased when she got the one-page form letter in August.

"It was like playing Russian roulette," said Almodovar, 27, who is pregnant and lives in a one-bedroom apartment in Mount Hope in the Bronx with her 8- and 1-year-old daughters.

She said she has called the agencies listed in the letter, and none could help.

Almodovar lost her job at an alarm company in 2008 and ran out of unemployment benefits over the summer. She went to Homebase in August while facing eviction because she owes $3,400 in back rent, she said. "Homebase was my only chance," she said.

Researcher John Mollenkopf, director of CUNY's Center for Urban Research, is managing the study. He said for the test to work properly, it had to be random.

"By doing the research, we learn something that's going to be extremely valuable for a much larger population," he said.

Free Financial Lectures in Ozone Park this Weekend sponsored by Sen Addabbo...

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Senator Addabbo is sponsoring the first in a series of free financial lectures starting Saturday, January 16th from 11 AM to 1 PM at Christ Lutheran Hall. The hall is located at 85-15 101st Avenue in Ozone Park.

Ulrich Proves the Power of Incumbency by Andrew Petrie - Interactive Journalism I

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“We don’t consider Ulrich an incumbent.” -Nathan Smith, consultant and spokesperson for the Frank Gulluscio campaign, when asked about the election for the 32nd District Council Seat

Last winter current State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo vacated his city council seat for the 32nd district in southeast Queens to head to Albany. This set up a special election in this heavily Democratic district where Frank Gulluscio, the popular district manager of community board 6 in Queens, was expected to win easily with the full support of Addabbo and local Democrats.

But before that contest rival Geraldine Chapey managed to knock Gulluscio off the ballot, along with a number of others, after a ruling that stated the signatures he collected to get on the ballot were invalid. That’s because these special elections in New York City are supposed to be nonpartisan, and a five-point star on Gulluscio’s ballot apparently resembled that of the Queens Democratic Party.

The Gulluscio campaign howled, calling the rules “archaic,” but the damage was done. The field was splintered and Republican Eric Ulrich, only 24 years old, managed to grab the seat after winning by 752 votes.

So this November the rematch of the election that never was took place with Gulluscio squaring off against Ulrich. Many in this community debated if Ulrich was vulnerable, as he only had a few months to solidify his role in a community where he was a political minority. Nathan Smith, a consultant for the Gulluscio campaign, scoffed at the notion that Ulrich possessed any incumbent advantage and said there was no doubt his man would’ve won if he was allowed to run last winter.

“The reality is the Democratic forces were divided last February,” he said in October. “With the entire party unified now we’ll be tough to beat.”

The Ulrich campaign played down his political affiliation and ran ads with Ulrich saying, “I have always believed government is about public service, not partisanship. After all, there is no Democratic or Republican way to clean the streets.” They also tried to embrace his youth after Gulluscio supporters said his young age was a liability.

“We think the community appreciates his youth,” said Ulrich’s campaign manager, Liam McCabe, last month. “Besides, he’s a very mature person for his age. We think of him as 24 going on 30.”

An extra wrinkle as thrown into the contest too. Some Democrats may have voted for Ulrich in February after Gulluscio, their top choice, was thrown off the ballot. The thinking here was Gulluscio would have a better shot to beat an incumbent Republican in the fall instead of a Democrat. David Quintana, who operates the local blog Lost in the Ozone, said he believed that factor would equal an Ulrich loss in November.

But Ulrich ended up winning the election by a surprisingly large margin, garnering 60% of the vote. An endorsement from Mayor Michael Bloomberg might have helped, as he also won the district in the 2009 election.

So despite the difference in voter registration and having to deal with a popular local politician running against him, Ulrich proved the incumbent advantage is real. In an off-year election cycle with extremely low turnout the 24-year-old was able to hold on to his seat and remain as one of only 5 Republicans on the city council. And since Ulrich is young enough to be a super senior on a college campus, Chapey and other Democrats may be kicking themselves for throwing Gulluscio off the ballot last winter for years to come.

Political Pirate Radio by Julie Sobel - City Hall News

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From a cluttered basement studio, Roberto Perez talks politics and aspirations...

Week after week, prominent New York officials make the long journey down to the basement of LaGuardia Community College in Queens, navigating their way through a room cluttered with boxes, file cabinets, upsidedown tables and a row of dusty computers.

There, in a cramped studio with foam-padded walls, they talk politics on a radio show called The Perez Notes, hosted by a part-time mailman named Roberto Perez.

The political web-radio program, which is accessible via Perez’s blog, thepereznotes. blogspot.com, has attracted many of New York’s political heavyweights, such as David Yassky, Doug Muzzio, Eric Gioia, Hank Sheinkopf, Joseph Crowley and Ruben Diaz, Jr.

“Politicians, they’ll go anywhere for any type of press,” Perez says modestly of his ability to lure so many leading political figures to the basement studio.

His fans give him more credit than that. “He asks really good, informative and fair questions,” said Assembly Member and Bronx Democratic Party chairman Carl Heastie, who was recently on the show. “And actually some tough questions. But even asking those tough questions, he asks them in a dignified and professional manner.”

Lynn Schulman, who was a recent guest on the Perez Notes, says it was a “pleasure” being interviewed by Perez.

“He’s very knowledgeable about politics,” said Schulman, who was beaten by Karen Koslowitz in the primary for Melinda Katz’s Council seat. “And he’s also very versed in what’s happening in the news right up to the minute. So he really keeps his interviewees on their toes.”

Schulman also noted the value of reaching Perez’s audience.

“He has a significant following that’s important, he’s had some very important people on the show, which shows the kind of niche that he has, and I think he’s got an important voice,” she said.

Perez estimates that his audience is likely a few hundred people, mainly comprised of students and political junkies. The nature and number of his listeners may contribute to the informal feel to the show. He strives to make his guests feel comfortable.

“I like to say it’s like jazz,” he says. “Just two guys on the street corner talking about things happening throughout the city.”

Perez uses no notes during the show, which he chalks up to both his voracious reading and enthusiasm for politics. He will often talk about certain politicians, most of whom are virtually unknown outside their districts, with the same enthusiasm other hosts talk about having George Clooney or Alex Rodriguez on their shows.

“There are people who don’t have the opportunity to talk to their elected officials in depth,” he says excitedly. “How many people can say that they get that opportunity? To talk to a Joe Crowley for an hour—a whole hour!—about various things.”

Born in a Lower East Side project, Perez grew up in Woodside, Queens, and has lived there ever since. He started college at LaGuardia and still thinks about returning to school to finish a degree.

While a student at LaGuardia, he met a prodessor who saw a natural radio host in the inquisitive, opinionated student. He suggested Perez listen to Howard Jordan's radio show, The Jordan Journal, on WBAI. Perez liked what he heard so much he went to the station and approached Jordan.

While a student at LaGuardia, he met a professor who saw a natural radio host in the inquisitive, opinionated student. He suggested Perez listen to Howard Jordan’s radio show, The Jordan Journal, on WBAI. Perez liked what he heard so much he went to the station and approached Jordan.

“He showed up at the radio station up at WBAI one day and he said he wanted to get involved in radio,” Jordan recalled. “I was scheduled to go on in half an hour, so I just told him to come on in.”

When Jordan needed someone to stand in for him during several programs, he picked Perez, keeping a watchful eye on Perez’s developing skills.

“He developed his own style, and it was a very interesting process, because in the beginning it was more me sort of navigating him through the process. And then after a while, as with most mentor-mentee relationships, he started teaching me a lot about the process,” Jordan said. “So it sort of inverted itself.”

Perez is now an assistant producer on Jordan’s show and continues to guest host. This was a wise career move, said his mentor.

“The other possibility he had was a potential political career, but I told him to stay away from that,” Jordan laughed. “That’s dangerous.”

Perez may have resisted the urge to become a politician, but nevertheless, politics has shaped his career.

Since he does not get paid to do the Perez Notes, he supports himself working as a mailman. He delivered mail in the financial district until March, when he became the union’s legislative chair. Perez says he became interested in politics after the hotly contested 2000 presidential election.

“There’s something fundamentally wrong with the way things went down,” he said. “I felt like somebody had taken the blinders off as to how the power structure works.”

He recalled working with Jordan during the election. “After that it was like, ‘Wait a minute, I need to know who really pulls the strings.’”

Perez would like to continue to develop the show, which he thinks fills a Latino media gap.

“I think there’s a niche for me,” he said. “I’ve had people tell me that. I’ve had people refer to me as the Dominic Carter of the Internet."

Times are tough, with most public universities looking for ways to trim costs. But Perez says he hopes for a larger commitment from LaGuardia.

“I think I could do a hell of a lot with more resources, I think I’ve done a lot with limited resources,” said Perez. “I think the sky’s the limit.”

jsobel@manhattanmedia.com

Rock Hackshaw on THE PEREZ NOTES on July 22nd, 2009 at 6PM

On Wednesday, July 22nd at 6PM, Roberto Perez will be interviewing City Council candidate Rock Hackshaw at 6PM.

To listen to the interview go to www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio . A bio of Rock below so that you can all get to know him a little better.

THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM so spread the news and tell a friend.

Roberto Perez

ABOUT ROCK

“The Rock” was christened HERMON EMANUEL JEROME HACKSHAW when he was born on the Caribbean island of Trinidad. He came to New York in 1973 and has lived here continuously ever since. He became a citizen of the USA in 1996, and now holds dual citizenship. His father --John M. Hackshaw-- was a well known politician, writer, community activist, trade unionist and diplomat, who spent ten years in New York, heading up the Trinidad and Tobago Tourist Board. He later spent another year in Canada, as the Labor Attache in the T&T High Commissioner’s Office.

In his own right, Rock is as accomplished as his dad. He attained an academic scholarship at the tender age of ten and attended Queens Royal College. He later taught History at the Progressive Educational Institute and was also employed at the Ministry of Works before migrating.

In New York, Rock graduated from the prestigious ivy-league institution Columbia University (BA/Political Science/1985). He then attained a Masters Degree from Fordham University in 1987 (Public Communication). He has also studied Microeconomics and Macroeconomics at Hunter College, and did post-graduate studies in Education, at Brooklyn College.

He is a licensed Social Studies high school teacher, and has lectured at various universities and institutions of higher learning, including: The College of New Rochelle, the Manhattan Institute of Management and also within New York City’s University System (CUNY). He has lectured to graduate students at Brooklyn College’s Center for Worker Education; lectured on communication theory at the Bronx Community College; and taught Reading to foreign students at the Borough of Manhattan Community College.

He is a lifelong political activist who unsuccessfully ran for the N.Y. State Assembly in 1998. He has served as a political consultant/adviser to various candidates and elected officials, and once headed up a community development organization in East Flatbush, Brooklyn.

Amongst the many other hats he has worn are coach (chess and basketball), writer, reporter, education consultant, entrepreneur, businessman, journalist, radio and television announcer, community organizer and political analyst. He has held membership in many civic, sports, cultural and social organizations; and has served on many public and private boards. He has played chess, scrabble and backgammon at the professional level/tournament circuit, and once represented Trinidad and Tobago at chess as a young man. He is a generous, humorous, loving father, who writes poetry as a hobby. He thinks that politics is “the only game in town”.

Conference on Election Protection and Reform in N.Y. State - April 16th at CUNY Law School...

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A Panel Discussion Featuring:

Sen. Joseph Addabbo Jr. (Chair of the Committee on
Elections – NYS Senate)
Susan Lerner (Executive Director of Common Cause)
Jenigh Garrett (Voting Rights Attorney at NAACP LDF)

Moderated by Esmeralda Simmons (Director, Center for Law
and Social Justice at Medgar Evers College)

April 16th, 2009 at 6pm

CUNY Law School Auditorium
65-21 Main St.
Flushing, NY 11367

THE PEREZ NOTES - Interview with Lois Marbach on March 25th at 6 pm...

On Wednesday, March 25th at 6PM, Roberto Perez will be interviewing Political Consultant Lois Marbach.

To listen to the interview go to:

www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio.

THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM so spread the news and tell a friend. A bio is below for those of you who want to know more about Lois.

LOIS MARBACH has been an active community organizer in Queens County since the early 1970's. She was a co-founder and co-coordinator of a women's center in Flushing from 1975 to 1979. From 1976 to 1983, Lois was a Consciousness-Raising Coordinator for the National Organization for Women, Queens Chapter. In 1980 she was NOW's Legislative Coordinator. In 1986 Lois was a candidate for Queens Borough President in the Democratic Primary, receiving over 25,000 votes, 38%. of the vote.

Lois was the Queens coordinator of volunteers for the presidential campaign of Mondale-Ferraro. Starting with the mayoral campaign of Carol Bellamy, Lois has been a consultant, and the Queens coordinator, for the Primary election campaigns for: Carol Bellamy, David Dinkins, Liz Holtzman, Karen Burstein. In Mark Green's race for Public Advocate, she was a consultant for both the Primary and General elections.

Lois is a member of the following: National Association of Political Consultants, NOW, National Association of Female Executives, NAACP Flushing branch, ACLU, NYPIRG and the Board of Directors of the Queens Women's Network, NYS NARAL (National Abortion Rights Action League), Treasurer of the Queens Womens-Political Caucus, Chairperson of The Queens Coalition for Political Alternatives, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Eastern Queens Democratic Club, member of CB#ll, founder of the Oakland Gardens/Terrace Community Council, past Vice-Chairperson of NYS New Democratic Coalition, past Chairperson of Queens NDC, working group member of the Majority Coalition for a New New York, a founding member of Queens Women for Equality and founder of the Democratic Alliance. Mayor David Dinkins appointed Lois a Trustee to the Queens Library Board and a member of the NYC Commission on the Status of Women.

In November 1987, Lois was honored by the Korean-American Small Business Service Center of New York, Inc. for her work with new immigrants and her support of the small business community. She was the 1986 recipient of the Aaron Weiss Humanitarian Award for working with and bringing together diverse groups of people. In the spring of 1990 the National Women's Political Caucus honored her for her strong sense of fairness for all people and in particular her commitment to the goals of the women's movement. In December 1991 Lois was the recipient of a Community Leadership Award from the Flushing NAACP. In February of 1997 Lois was honored by the Queens Lesbian and Gay Pride Committee, at their annual dinner, for championing equal rights for Lesbians and Gays. She is the subject of biographical record in several prominent publications, including The Marauis Who's Who of American Women; 2,000 Notable American Women, published by the American Biographical Institute; and in The Fourteenth Edition of Community Leaders Of America, also published by the ABI.

She has been a guest lecturer, at many classes and organizations on various government concerns. She has organized major city-wide conferences, such as the Spring 1993 Conference On Crime And The Elderly, which was co-sponsored by the NYC Department For The Aging and the NYC Police Department.

She is the owner of Promotional Strategies, through which she does political consulting, establishes direct mail and target marketing strategies, creates promotional videos, incentives and award campaigns and organizes special events. Promotional Strategies also develops and maintains computer mailing lists and prime voter lists.

Interview with Pedro Espada on THE PEREZ NOTES at 6 pm on March 18th...

This week, on Wednesday, March 18th at 6PM Roberto Perez will be interviewing Pedro G. Espada...

To listen to the interview go to:

www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio

THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM so spread the news and tell a friend.

For a bio of Pedro Espada click here...

Photo from Village Voice...New York - Espada: Now That There's No Downside, A Loyal Democrat - Runnin' Scared blog...

Interview with City Councilman David Yassky and with NY1 Political Commentator Gerson Borrero on The Perez Notes on Wednesday March 11th at 6pm...

On Wednesday, March 11th at 6PM, Roberto Perez will be interviewing City Councilman David Yassky who is running for City Comptroller at 6PM.

At 7PM he will be interviewing El Diario La Prensa's Gerson Borrero who is also a Political Commentator for NY 1.

To listen to the interviews go to:
www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio.

THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM so spread the news and tell a friend.

Federal Stimulus Package Town Hall Sponsored by Senator Malcolm Smith at York College on March 12th...

As part of his efforts to bring government directly to his constituents, Senator Malcolm Smith has arranged together with his fellow Senators, a number of town hall forums regarding the Federal Stimulus Package...

Here, you will find out how your community may benefit from the stimulus package, what projects are eligible for funding and other information you may need to know regarding this important topic.

Please join him at the first event in Queens:

Thursday, March 12, 2009

6:00 - 8:00 p.m. - York College - 94-20 Guy R. Brewer Blvd. - Jamaica, NY 11421 - (Room 3D01)

Invited guests include: Members of Congress, the NYS Assembly and City Council, the Queens Borough President and members of Governor Paterson's Economic Recovery Cabinet, including Chairs and Commissioners of various State Agencies.

RSVP: Please contact Senator Smith's office at (212) 298-5585

Interview with Camille Rivera - Assistant Political Director - Local 32bj SEIU on The Perez Notes on Wednesday March 4th at 6pm...

On Wednesday, March 4th at 6PM, Roberto Perez will be interviewing Camille Rivera who is the Assistant Political Director for local 32BJ SEIU.

To listen to the interview go to www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio. THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM so spread the news and tell a friend.

Interview with Azi Paybarah on THE PEREZ NOTES at 7PM on February 25th, 2009...

Azi Paybarah, ever the gossip, in the Fresh Meadows parking lot of The Queens Tribune. Photo by Shams Tarek (www.shamstarek.com).

Roberto Perez will be interviewing the New York Observers Azi Paybarah tomorrow night.

To listen to the interview go to www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio.

THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM so spread the news and tell a friend. Azi will be giving us all a post election analysis so tune in.

Azi Paybarah bio from Wikipedia...

Azi Paybarah is a New York-based journalist who focuses primarily on local politics. A former reporter for the New York Press and editor of a blog hosted by the New York Sun entitled 51st State, Paybarah has recently returned to his former home at The New York Observer, where he writes frequent pieces for their daily blog, The Politicker.

Azi attended the University at Albany, and spent the next few years in the state capital working on campaigns prior to moving back to New York City.

Citizenship Now - Sponsored by CUNY, Senator Joe Addabbo and SEVA Immigration Community Advocacy Project - February 28th

Click on image to enlarge

BECOME A U.S. CITIZEN TODAY!

FREE Application Assistance by Experienced Professionals
Saturday, February 28, 2009 - 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (Doors close at 2 p.m.)

Punjabi Palace - 91-52 Lefferts Blvd - Richmond Hill, NY
Light refreshments will be served.

To RSVP, please call Pete at Senator Addabbo’s office (718) 738-1111

Interview with Austin Shafran on THE PEREZ NOTES at 6PM on January 28th

On Wednesday, January 28th Roberto Perez will be interviewing Austin Shafran. Austin formerly worked for Political Consultant Hank Sheinkopf and is currently the spokesperson for the New York State Senate and Majority Leader Malcolm Smith.


To listen to the interview go to www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio. THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM so spread the news and tell a friend.

Numbers Growing, South Asians Take New Approach to Political Organizing by Betwa Sharma - City Hall News

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The number of South Asians in New York City has more than doubled over the last decade to 250,000, but the number of South Asians in local elected office remains the same: zero.

Swaranjit Singh, a 55-year-old Sikh from Bellerose, is hoping to change that.

The real estate broker is running for the Council seat currently held by David Weprin (D-Queens) under the slogan, “Fresh Face, New Voice.”
Like other Sikhs, Singh wears a turban and has a beard, which, he said, leads many people to confuse him for a Muslim. The confusion, according to him, is because South Asians are still the new immigrants on the block and voters still know little about the community—and that makes winning an election even more difficult.

“The intolerance towards Muslims is very troubling,” Singh said. “But if anything, Barack Obama’s example has taught us that an election is won on the issues.”

Singh received early backing from his fellow Sikhs, but in a problem that plagues many potential South Asian candidates, most of his early financial supporters were from Richmond Hill, which lies outside his Council district, making their donations ineligible for matching funds.

Candidates naturally rely on their own ethnic group for their base of support, but for South Asians often the same support is not extended to a different ethnic group within the larger community. Ethnic divisions, geographical dispersion, the general adjustment problems of immigrants and a relatively short history in the United States leave the community politically frail, and the kind of necessary cohesion hard to achieve.

All these factors played a part in Rene Lobo’s unsuccessful Council runs in 2001 and then again in 2005, when she and her Bangladeshi opponent split the vote of the Hillside Avenue Bangladeshis in their race against James Gennaro (D-Queens).

An Indian immigrant and a community board member, Lobo rattled through the hurdles of running for office as a young South Asian woman: “You’re a minority within a minority,” she said, recalling the difficulty of getting support from Bangladeshi mosques. “They would ask me, ‘Why are you in the mosque?’ It was so demoralizing.”

The South Asians are a relatively small and dispersed group, and prone to increased fragmentation when neighborhoods are carved into voting districts. But the main problem is the prevailing apathy in the community towards electoral participation.

“People don’t realize how important it is to vote,” said Lobo.

CUNY law students Gurpal Singh and Ali Najmi and friends have launched Desis Vote,
a voter registration drive geared toward increasing political participation among South Asians.

An Asian community expert at Queens College, Madhulika Khandelwal, attributes this indifference to an outlook prevalent in the South Asian community that keeps them from seeing their long-term future in the city.

“Many people see the city as a stepping stone to a better life,” Khandelwal said of the community. “The goal is to suburbanize.”

Because of this, Khandelwal said, relatively few South Asians buy homes in the city, leaving them without a stake in the future of their neighborhoods. There are few specifically tailored organizations that focus predominantly on voter registration and electoral participation, especially on the local level.

In an effort to change that, Gurpal Singh, 32, and Ali Najmi, 24, friends who met at CUNY law school, launched Desis Vote, a voter registration drive. Working with a few volunteers they organized countless voter registration drives throughout last year and got 836 “Desis,” or South Asian immigrants, registered.

After discovering the deep divide between Sikhs and the Guyanese population in Richmond Hill, Singh and Najmi created the South Asian and West Indian Leadership Cabinet Committee (SAWI) to build bridges between these two groups. Among other activities, SAWI organized an intense debate between Serphin Maltese (R) and Joseph Addabbo (D), along with a town hall meeting to address common concerns.

“Our goal is to transform the South Asian community in Richmond Hill into a powerful voting block,” Najmi said.

Singh and Najmi confess that galvanizing the rest of Queens and eventually the entire city will take years of community organizing. The plan for 2009 is to conduct more voter registration drives, awareness campaigns and candidate forums, as well as to concentrate on the fundraising necessary to support their efforts.

But Najmi and Singh said they are not fixated on getting a South Asian elected. Instead, they see Desis Vote’s focus as generating sustained electoral participation which will enable them to create a voting block which will be able to influence all local elected officials. While seeing one of their own on the Council or in the Legislature would be welcome, they say, more important will be getting their voices heard by everyone in the Council and Legislature.

“It is not who represents you,” Singh explained, “but how you are represented.”

Photo by Betwa Sharma

Interview with Doug Muzzio on THE PEREZ NOTES - January 14th at 6 pm

On Wednesday, January 14th at 6PM Roberto Perez will be interviewing Professor Doug Muzzio. The Professor is one of the top political analyst in the country.

To listen to the interview go to www.lagcc.cuny.edu/webradio. Professor Muzzio's bio is below for those who want to know a little more about his work.

THE PEREZ NOTES airs every Wednesday from 6-8PM, so spread the news and tell a friend.

A specialist in American public opinion, voting behavior and city politics, Doug Muzzio has had extensive political, governmental, and media experience. He is the co-director of the Center for Innovation & Leadership in Government and the founder and former director of the Baruch College Survey Research Unit, both at Baruch College's School of Public Affairs.

Muzzio is also the political analyst and on-air commentator for WABC-TV New York and has done polling and political analysis for ABC-TV and other news organizations for more than two decades.

His governmental experience includes: twice-elected trustee of the Pequannock Township (New Jersey) Board of Education; chief-of-staff to New York City Councilmember At Large Antonio Olivieri; consultant to the New York City Charter Revision Commission; research director for the Dinkins mayoral campaign; consultant to City agencies and not-for-profit organizations, including the New York City Sanitation Department, the New York City Board of Education, the New York City Parks Council, the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, and the Hispanic Federation of New York City. He is in the fourth year of developing and delivering cultural diversity training programs for the New York City Police Department.

He is currently writing a book, The Reel City: The American City in Cinema, 1896-2001 on the images of the American city in movies.

Doug Muzzio was born, raised, schooled, had children in, and has always worked in New York City. He gives instruction in the art of speaking Brooklyn.

Queens’ King-Sized Political Battle by Nicole Turso - CUNY Graduate School of Journalism

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MAIL-STROM: Queens residents have been bombarded by increasingly nasty compaign mailings from state Senate candidates Serphin Maltese and Joseph P. Addabbo Jr.

While fierce rhetoric is flying across the country in the presidential race, the mud is being slung at point-blank range in a corner of Queens where two veteran lawmakers are engaged in an increasing ugly battle for a state Senate seat.

The 15th Senatorial District race between 20-year Republican incumbent Senator Serphin Maltese and his Democratic challenger, City Councilmember Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. is being watched around the state because of its potential to tip the state Senate in favor of the Democratic side of the aisle.

“They seem desperate,” Kate Battiato, a registered independent from Ozone Park who mailbox has been stuffed with increasingly nasty campaign literature from both candidates.

“Councilman Addabbo will do anything to win…even if it means violating the law,” declares one Maltese flyer that calls the councilmember “perverted” and depicts him thumbing his nose at voters. Maltese’s ads also attack Addabbo for “mud-slinging.”

‘Getting Nastier and Nastier’

Addabbo’s campaign literature includes unflattering images of the incumbent, with the headlines, “How could he?” and “He’s not voting for us.”

“It’s getting nastier and nastier on the other side,” said Addabbo. “These mailers are deceitful. This is well beneath the senator and I’m disappointed in him.”

Addabbo said Maltese’s mailers include doctored photos of the councilman and incorrectly characterized his voting record in the City Council. Maltese has accused Addabbo of being involved in the City Council slush fund scandal uncovered in July – a charge Addabbo refutes.

High Road Pledge

Maltese and his camp offered no comment, despite repeated interview attempts.

Addabbo insisted he’s taken high road by attacking only Maltese’s legislative voting history, and will continue to run what he calls a positive campaign.

“I use his negatives to promote my platform,” said Addabbo. “A campaign built around negative campaigning doesn’t work. I’m hopeful on November 4th that positive campaigning beats negative campaigning.”

Joseph Addabbo, Serphin Maltese Duke it Out Over Voting Block by John Lauinger - NY Daily News

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As far as debates go, this was a bare-knuckle brawl the likes of which Queens voters haven't seen in recent memory.

Republican state Sen. Serphin Maltese faced off on Thursday with his Democratic challenger, City Councilman Joseph Addabbo, at a forum hosted by a key immigrant voting block of South Asians and West Indians.

But in trying to woo the strategically crucial voters, many of whom said they felt ignored by government, Maltese talked himself into a vulnerable spot - and Addabbo pounded him.

After a spat over state education spending, they were asked what can be done to improve J and A subway stations.

Maltese said he has gotten a grant for almost $2 million to repair five Metropolitan Transportation Authority stations in the 15th Senate District, which runs from Maspeth to Howard Beach.

"Since I have seniority in the Senate, I am able to secure money for the district," said Maltese, whose reelection bid is one of a handful of races that could decide which party controls the Senate.

He had previously told Queens News that during his almost 20 years in the Senate, he has brought $34 million in member-item funding into his district.

Sitting feet away from Addabbo at the debate, Maltese called his opponent a "neophyte - someone who would not command the funds I do."

"You don't need seniority to deal with the MTA," Addabbo shot back.

Then, the two were asked how they could bring funding into the South Asian and West Indian communities in areas such as Richmond Hill and Ozone Park.

Maltese noted he has funded 235 neighborhood groups. But only one - the United Hindu Cultural Society in South Ozone Park - was from those ethnic groups, he acknowledged.

Maltese put the onus on the South Asian and West Indian communities, charging them with "not communicating your needs and your wants to me."

"I ask you, respectfully, tell me your needs," he said. "I want you to knock on my door. I want you to request funding - you deserve it."

Addabbo pounced.

"It's not going to take me 20 years to get funding into your community - that is an absolute disgrace," Addabbo thundered.

He glared at Maltese.

"You should know the groups in your community that need funding," Addabbo charged. "You have not funded United Hindu for seven years now."

Maltese responded by saying he has previously secured a $55 million grant to City University of New York's LaGuardia Community College.

He termed it CUNY's largest member initiative (with funding provided by an elected official) ever, at a school where, he noted, many of his younger constituents take classes.

jlauinger@nydailynews.com