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"This Is The Next Mayor!" Unions Endorse De Blasio At Rousing Brooklyn Rally
By
Jade A. Williams
Published Sep 12, 2013
Modified Sep 12, 2013
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Scott Heins/Gothamist
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By
Jade A. Williams
Published Sep 12, 2013
Modified Sep 12, 2013
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Some of the city's most powerful unions convened at Brooklyn Borough Hall today to officially position Public Advocate Bill de Blasio as labor's—and New York City's—choice for Mayor. Hector Figueroa, president of 32BJ/SEIU, said that it's time to "show the city, and the nation, that the time has come for the 99%!" And George Gresham, president of SEIU 1199, said de Blasio, "stands above the other candidates the way he stands above a crowd."
Frequently referring to de Blasio as "the next mayor" or "Mr. Mayor," the diverse crowd was extremely energized. In addition 32BJ and SEIU 1199, the Hotel Trades Council, Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, and many others were representing labor.
Planned Parenthood also announced its endorsement and the Working Families Party, which hadn't endorsed any candidate for the primary, gave a full-bodied push, with WFP executive director Dan Cantor declaring, "There are two reasons we are supporting Bill de Blasio. He tells the truth, and he's a fighter for the middle class, working class and poor. That's an awfully good combination, and we're excited to get behind his campaign."
Frustrations with the current administration ran high. "Bloomberg is not for poor people. Not healthcare. He's for the rich, not the poor. Not the unions," Dinah Jones, a nurse with SEIU 1199, said after the rally. When asked about Quinn's failed campaign, Figueroa chalked up Quinn's failed campaign to her working relationship with the mayor, "We supported Quinn over de Blasio at the beginning because we had had a history [with her], working on a number of issues—prevailing wage, affordable housing, access to services by immigrants in their language. However, it was very clear that the electorate wants change."
"I think Christine Quinn is an absolutely outstanding elected official. I think that when you are Speaker of the City Council and you have the shadow of Mike Bloomberg over you, it made it extremely, extremely difficult for her, and to some degree, it tainted her," said Pat Purcell, assistant to the President of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Local 1500. "That’s unfair because she’s a really good person who has very strong values about this city. So, unfortunately, I think she got the Bloomberg guilt by association."
Some in the crowd were motivated by de Blasio's attempts to keep Long Island College Hospital open. Maribel Agosto, a LICH nurse and New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) member, said, "He was our game changer. We’re really proud of him and we’re hoping there’s no runoff."
One supporter, Tomro Fen, a retired recovery room nursing aide, cited another reason, "I'm here because Bill has a wonderful platform for animals. He’s going to retrain all the carriage horse drivers for other jobs, so they don’t lose income. He wants to get all the horses away from traffic, into pastures, it’s wonderful... I supported de Blasio from the very beginning, always de Blasio."
Clinton Hill resident Rebecca Steiner admitted she initially supported Quinn—"I thought it would be great to see a woman mayor"—but then changed her mind by the primary, "It was more about voting against other things, than voting for something. I didn’t support others on real estate, the economy, the education policies, stop-and-frisk." Steiner was optimistic about de Blasio's potential impact, "I think he’s got his heart in the right place. I think that he’ll, hopefully, even out the disparity between the rich and the poor. I think it’s very clear. There’s the highrise that’s going up in Manhattan where they literally have two doorways, one for the poor people and one for the rich people."
With reporting from Scott Heins
Tagged
32BJ
bill de blasio
brooklyn
christine quinn
Election 2013
mayor bloomberg
rwdsu
seiu 1199
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