Mayor Cory Booker welcomed the Nets to Newark's Prudential Center for the next two NBA seasons:
"I want to thank the National Basketball Association, the Devils, and the Nets leadership for their support, which has made Newark the new home for the New Jersey Nets. For the residents of the City of Newark, these are not just basketball games. Having the Nets call our city home signifies tangible hope, real inspiration, and many dreams coming true," said Mayor Booker.
Then he went one-on-one with Darryl Dawkins in his suit:
But I have to ask, what kind of attendance are the Nets expecting if the games are in the lobby?
Diana Taylor was walking home from a computer repair shop when two police officers abruptly stopped her on the street. Without any reason, they demanded she identify herself. Taylor provided her given name - Christopher Moore.
"You're right; I owe you 10 dollars," one officer told the other, "It is a man."
She was stopped, Taylor realized, to settle a dehumanizing bet about her gender.
As onlookers gathered, the officers went on to call Taylor derogatory names and make crude inquiries about her sex life. Then, without justification, they roughly cuffed and arrested her, taunting her the entire time. Once at the precinct, they scrambled to find something wrong on her record (it was clean) and then demanded she accept a ride home. During the two-block trip, the officers threatened to sic gang members in her neighborhood on her if she filed an internal affairs complaint.
Their threats couldn't stop Taylor. Still, it took countless calls to internal affairs before someone finally took down her complaint, and they still didn't take her seriously. The department then issued her summonses "after the fact" on false charges of littering and disorderly conduct.
This lawsuit on Taylor's behalf is the ACLU-NJ's third in as many years alleging misconduct by Newark police. We hope this case will finally penetrate the department's culture of impunity, and in particular, we hope Newark Mayor Cory Booker takes notice.
Cross-posted at Jack & Jill Politics, where founder Baratunde Thurston writes as Jack Turner - Promoted by Rosi
(Note from Baratunde: I'm a resident of Brooklyn, NY and co-founder of Jack & Jill Politics. I perform standup comedy and work by day at The Onion. Finally, GO BLUE JERSEY!)
Last night I visited Newark, NJ for the first time. I'd been through Newark on buses and trains between NYC and Philly or DC, but I had never bothered to stop. I'd become mildly obsessed with the city as my previous posts on Mayor Cory Booker and the Brick City documentary made clear. However, last night, I had good reason to exit the train station and stay a while.
These are all nice boxes one can check off on a list defining a "good progressive candidate," but these are not the things that convinced me to jump on a commuter rail and tell jokes to strangers. What stood out to me was that Rice helped start the West Ward Collective whose stated mission is:
To finish the business of the 1969 Black and Puerto Rican Convention by decentralizing the decision-making process of the city of Newark by example in the West Ward and to empower West Ward stakeholders to create a holistically stable ward for all of its residents.
The West Ward Collective is organized and run by workgroups and ward based organizations and non-profits... Each workgroup is made up of West Ward residents, community based organization leaders, ward business owners, etc. that have expertise and/or interest in working on these issues directly for the benefit of the West Ward. It is ward based.
The WWC is organized into a series of workgroups such as education, arts and culture, housing, etc and meets twice a month. It helps raise awareness of city resources within the community, and operates in the opposite direction, influencing city policy based on community involvement.
I was impressed with Rice's commitment to sharing and distributing power deeper within the community. Elected officials often use their positions to consolidate power for themselves, to make themselves indispensable to the extreme and create something that looks more like a kingdom than a democracy. Rice appears to be doing the opposite, and I was proud to support that effort in a small way last night.
Side note: I also learned that making Sharpe James jokes in Newark is still a bit risky. He has some vocal supporters who let me know my jibes and Marion Barry comparisons were unwelcome. As we often say in the business: too soon.
You can find out more about Ron Rice Jr on his website. (Incidentally, his father is State Senator Ron Rice, whom Booker defeated for mayor in 2006).
"I know I've been, I'm talking circuitous, but you understand... So all I want you to do is, you know help him," the feds say Salahuddin said to the cooperating witness -- with "him" referring to his co-conspirator, businessman Sonnie L. Cooper. "You know feed him, not a salad, you know, sometimes a man got to have a steak."
According to the indictment, Salahuddin told the government informant that "it's not a deal when you are giving it all and nothing in return... that's Santa Claus... you understand... and none of us believe in Santa Claus."
Update: Here is the non-Twitter version of Booker's statement:
"My administration is committed to holding all our employees, regardless of their position, to the highest level of ethics and accountability. That is why, as Mayor, I have zero tolerance for corruption.
"My commitment to hold all City employees to the highest ethical standards is evident by our creation of Newark's Office of the Inspector General, who is specifically charged with aggressively bringing those who break the public trust to justice. To date, investigations conducted by the Inspector General have led to 19 indictments and guilty pleas. Under my administration, no impropriety - big or small - will be tolerated.
"When other law enforcement partners have brought instances of misconduct or corruption to our attention, we have fully cooperated with the investigations and parted ways with those employees.
"I do not, and never will, tolerate any abuse of the public trust by any municipal employee or anyone doing business with the City. These allegations, if proven true, are outrageous and are a violation of both my trust and the public trust. We will continue to work with authorities to get to the truth."
We're going to have a packed house. Over 175 people have RSVPed already and we're getting new rsvps every hour. Join us for this event before it sells out! If you haven't supported one of New Jersey's strongest progressive champions, please consider doing so this Thursday evening.
Newark Mayor Cory Booker will be giving the 4th annual State of the City speech tonight
Mayor Cory A. Booker will present his fourth State of the City Address before the Municipal Council and Newark residents on Tuesday, February 9, at 6:30 PM, at Newark Symphony Hall, located at 1020 Broad Street.
Mayor Booker's speech will highlight the accomplishments of his administration which are building a stronger, safer, prouder City of Newark.
Now, you don't have to go to Newark to see it because the speech will be streamed live at live.corybooker.com. Also, "Residents can also watch the speech on Newark Government Access Channel TV 78 and on the City of Newark website at www.ci.newark.nj.us"
NBC Nightly News took a look at Grio's 100 current history maker and Newark Mayor Cory Booker. Brian Williams sat down for this interview with the Mayor:Here's more of Cory Booker on the Grio's 100 list, whose members they identify as history makers in the making. In the interview with Williams, Booker said he's not going to be one of those Dynastic Mayors that stays in place for 20 years because he doesn't believe it's good for the city. On the race topic, Booker said it's ridiculous to talk about a post racial America. He said we should celebrate that. In closing, Booker said he wants to be in a trench with people as noble or more noble than him doing the work to make America real. You can click on the video to see the interview yourself and if you want, Booker will be streaming his state of the city address live at 6pm tonight.
At the National Urban Fellows Leadership Conference, Newark Mayor talked about the challenege facing elected officials to be creative in getting the message out. To that end, he explained how and why he uses social media: (h/t @mellistrategies)I've written plenty here at Blue Jersey about Booker's ability to use new media. As we pointed out the other day, the new Governor's website features social media as well. Officials have to remember however, that it's not an additional tool to spam supporters, but a potentially effective medium to engage constituents in all facets of government and campaigns.
As far as we can tell, there is nothing legally suspect with Booker accepting such a large speaking fee. But it does seem ethically dubious.
TCNJ is furloughing professors, cutting services, and engaging in other cost-saving activities that one might expect a public university to explore in such challenging economic times. And yet mayor of Newark Cory Booker, a sitting public official, accepted $11,000 for a 90-minute talk in November. Was it appropriate for the TCNJ student government to offer such an exorbitant honorarium? It's debatable. But should we expect Booker to reject such a prodigious gratuity? Absolutely.
We posted the other day about how Newark Mayor Cory Booker was being joined by Governor-Elect Chris Christie for their last night patrol of 2009. Here is some video from the night, courtesy of My 9 news:And here is video Mayor Booker put up on his youtube page:
I've written a good deal about Newark Mayor Cory Booker's use of social media to communicate. He's once again getting coverage for being responsive using the medium:
When Ravie Rave (@BigSixxRaven) tweeted at Cory Booker (@Corybooker) that her 65-year-old father needed help shoveling his driveway on New Year's Eve, the Newark mayor sprang into action.
Instead of waiting for the city's plows and salters to come by, Booker messaged Rave back, saying, "I will do it myself where does he live?"
Soon other followers of Booker's Twitter feed volunteered to help, and the mayor tweeted:
Please @BigSixxRaven don't worry bout ur dad. Just talked 2 him & I'll get 2 his Driveway by noon. I've got salt, shovels & great volunteers
Twenty minutes after the first tweet, Booker showed up at his door ready to clear the snow. And after they finished, they had another happy resident:
"My daddy is a happy man," she wrote. "He took pictures of his Mayor shoveling his driveway! lol"
Booker realizes he's not going to solve all of the city's problems online and it's not just that he's using twitter, it's that new media makes him more accessible to the residents. He's making sure they perform traditional functions of the city while using the medium to distribute and receive real time information about things that are going well and conversely, changes that need to be made.
This picture, snapped by Star Ledger's David Giambusso, is from last night's news conference with Chris Christie and Cory Booker. Both those guys are about to get in a car together and go on the mayor's last night safety patrol of the year through the streets of Newark.
I dunno. The governor-elect looks worried. Does he look worried to you? This is a caption contest. You know the drill - write a caption, or write thought bubbles for anyone or anything in the picture. Enjoy.
Governor-Elect Chris Christie will join Mayor Booker to ride in the last Public Safety Caravan of 2009.
They will have a 7:30 media availability and then go out on patrol. Here is a video from the end of November when Sarah Silverman went on Newark Night Patrol with Mayor Booker:
Mayor Booker doesn't use twitter to replace anything, he uses it to supplement the work he would be doing anyway and amplify the reach of the message in the process.
Newark Mayor Cory Booker went to serve food at the Salvation Army yesterday on Thanksgiving and brought along the video camera to capture this:Everyone who is there, whether they are serving or being served have a story to tell.
Newark Mayor Cory Booker puts up this message as his status on Facebook today, which has a good deal of meaning as our Legislators return to Trenton to consider legislation during the lame duck session:
Leadership is not a position or a title, it is action and example.
Now is the time for real leadership, not just people who want to hold a title while neglecting the responsibility that goes along with that title to stand up and be counted.
Within the past week, I received two emails concerning little girls and princesses.
The first was from the City of Newark, alerting me that on November 19 Newark Mayor Cory Booker would offer motivational words to Newark girls aged eight to 12 at the "Girl Power" Event at Prudential Center.
Girl power? I love Girl Power!
And, boy, do the girls of Newark will need some power to avoid the many pitfalls they face as they grow into womanhood on this city: poverty, premature sexual activity, dropping out of school, pregnancy and STDs, domestic violence. Our girls are struggling. We do need some girl power around here.
But then I kept reading: "Disney will introduce Princess Tiana, the first Disney African-American Princess." Then, the Mayor and the skater who plays the role of Princess Tiana in Disney on Ice, would offer inspirational messages and sign autographs prior to a performance of Disney on Ice's "Let's Celebrate" at the Prudential Center.
Gag me with a scepter!
The second email I received was from an organization called TrueChild, which has a mission of creating a world in which boys and girls are free from stereotypes and instead can learn, grow and reach their full potential.
TrueChild's email, titled "The Princess Plague," discusses Disney's billion-dollar, 2,000-item princess line. For the most part Disney's princesses are white, skinny and esteemed for their beauty above all other -- often considerable (at least among the more modern princesses) -- assets. Their images promote not only attributes that most girls lack (thus marginalizing those who don't fit that princess ideal), but also choices no parent should want a daughter to make. Let's face it, being pretty is great, but being smart gets you through life regardless of how you look.
I recognize that Newark is hungry for activities for kids, but promoting an African American Princess from Disney doesn't help our girls one bit. Instead, it gives them something false and superficial to aspire to, with a guarantee of failure.
If Newark really wants to help its girls, it needs to have pro-girl programs independent of corporate sponsorship. The only gender-specific thing I've seen in the Newark press releases in recent years is the rededication of Boys' Park to be named, again, "Boys' Park." This took place earlier this year, despite the cries of the National Organization for Women and other advocates (in fact, the city wouldn't even meet with NOW about it).
The way to motivate girls is not by giving a speech and signing autographs at a Disney event celebrating a title that no one in the U.S. actually even holds. It's by investing in programs that cultivate girls' intellects, creativity and physical strength.
OK, maybe I'm asking too much from this city. But, at the minimum, let's not sell out to Disney and pretend we're helping our most vulnerable and precious community members, when in fact we're perpetuating stereotypes that fail girls every time.
Most of Blue Jersey knows Newark Councilman Ron Rice pretty well. Aside from being an occasional front-page blogger, we know that he has championed progressive ideals for years. He joined Mayor Booker in going against the establishment in 2002 and again in 2006 when he was elected to the Newark City Council, now representing the city's West Ward.
As an early endorser for Barack Obama for President, he joined Mayor Booker in being an Obama surrogate throughout New Jersey - widely increasing his profile. He was an early and strong endorser of Sen. Frank Lautenberg's re-election campaign during the 2008 Democratic primaries - working hard to deliver a a strong turnout for Lautenberg in Newark's West Ward.
Many of us admire his strong independence - in 2007, Ron supported and worked hard for his father - State Sen. Ronald Rice - who was successfully re-elected to the state senate despite opposition from the entire Newark political establishment.
Right now, Ron is working hard to re-elect Jon Corzine as our Governor and elect Loretta Weinberg as our first Lt. Governor.
His progressive ideals, commitment to justice and his depth of integrity are the reasons why Ron Rice has a following, not only in Newark, but across New Jersey. Just last month he was the keynote speaker at the Lacey Township Democratic Party's Annual Fish Fry in Ocean County - where over 150 people gave several standing ovations for the rising star city councilman.
Now the primary reason for this blog post - one week after the election, Ron will be having a major re-election reception at The Spot in Newark with a great host committee.
I've had the pleasure of working for Ron since before he was elected to the city council. I remember writing press releases for the launch of his campaign in 2005 to dropping door hangers at 3am on election eve in May of 2006. I can tell you first-hand there are few elected officials in New Jersey who match Ron's integrity. Ron represents a new generation of leadership in New Jersey politics.
This major re-election event will be a great time to not only meet the rising star councilman but mingle with a fantastic host committee.
The event is affordable and will be a great way to get ready for the 2010 municipal elections. Over 150 people have already RSVP'ed to help kick off Ron's re-election...we hope that you will be able to join us!
The RNC is sending robocalls from Rudy Giuliani and John McCain into the homes of NJ Voters. Here's the Rudy call:
Hi this is Rudy Giuliani. I'm calling because I care about what's going on in New Jersey. The Trenton Democrats broke their promises and raised billions of dollars in taxes. Business, jobs and families have been driven out of the state. Special interests dominate Trenton and corruption continues to fester at taxpayers expense. Business as usual can't be allowed any longer. We need your vote to get New Jersey back on the right track. On Tuesday, November 3, let's replace the Trenton tax machine for the real change NJ needs. Vote Republican
This is John McCain calling with an urgent message. Trenton Democrats broke their promises and raised millions of dollars in taxes. As a result, businesses, jobs and families have been driven away. These corrupt special interests will continue to dominate unless you take action. This is an extremely close election and your vote will make a difference. On Tuesday November 3, vote Republican for the real change NJ needs.
And the RNC isn't alone, Rosi got a robo-call from Cory Booker the other day. Let us know in the comments if you've gotten any robo-calls.
Commenting on the national popularity of Newark Mayor Cory Booker following his appearance on the Tonight Show last night, Steve Adubato offered this comment in an AP story:
The only time a Newark mayor made national headlines before Cory Booker was when they were indicted or went to jail," Adubato said.
