Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Bloomberg Refuses Comment On NYPD's May Day Training
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Apr 29, 2012
Modified Apr 30, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Apr 29, 2012
Modified Apr 30, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
On Friday a tipster sent us an email noting that several hundred NYPD officers had been conducting training exercises on Randall's Island in preparation for May Day's protests. While the sources of other journalists confirmed that information, Mayor Bloomberg declined to go into specifics today when asked about the training by the Voice. "We are prepared for everything we can think of all the time. Our tactics are something that we don't talk about in advance for obvious reasons." Occupy's wide range of scheduled events, both "official" and covert, promise to spread the department's resources from Lower Manhattan to Midtown.
The master list of events is huge—there are teach-ins, marches over bridges, a thousand-strong "Guitarmy," markets, free food, musical performances in Union Square, and a final march into the Financial District.
But the proceedings that will draw the most attention from the police don't have thoughtful websites or donation options: will people answer the call to shut down bridges into Manhattan? How great is the chance that the MTA will be forced to cut service? Will the anarchist-sponsored Wildcat March be allowed to advance beyond East Houston? And what of the picketing of individual financial institutions in Lower Manhattan?
"[The picketing actions] are organized relatively independent of one another," a protester who refused to give their name told us on Friday. "Some of them aren't listed. Who knows how those will pan out? But the Wildcat March, there's a definite strategy forming there." The protester, however, declined to comment on that strategy.
We asked two other protesters, both of whom refused to be identified in print but have been involved in the movement since October, if they thought Occupy realistically had the ability to stop subway service from coming into Manhattan. One smiled and shrugged, while the other replied, "You'll have to see. You might find that you're more than a few minutes late to work. Why not take the day off and join us?"
Tagged
99%
general strike
may 1
May Day
mayor bloomberg
occupy wall street
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot by ICE in NYC still has bullet lodged in neck, attorneys say
Oscar Belgal, a 28-year-old immigrant from the Dominican Republic, was in solitary confinement at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Sunset Park on Monday.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Oct 12, 2026 at 11:37 a.m. ET
NY measles spread prompts 'disaster' emergency. It didn't have to be this way, health commissioner says.
The state health commissioner says the disease outbreak is wholly preventable.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
News
NY measles spread prompts 'disaster' emergency. It didn't have to be this way, health commissioner says.
The state health commissioner says the disease outbreak is wholly preventable.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
NYC wants to move deliveries onto the waterways. It's starting with a 55-year-old boat.
By
Liam Quigley
Inside the luxury Greenpoint high-rise powered by a rumbling generator for over a month
By
David Brand
Mayor Mamdani orders review of NYPD use of force policies
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .