Public advocate Williams, releases plan for A renewed deal for NYC

NEW YORK – Caribbean American, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams, has released ‘A Renewed Deal for New York City,’ an extensive plan for New York’s revitalization and recovery in the immediate and long-term aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report, which draws inspiration from US President Roosevelt’s New Deal’s principles, comes a year after the first case of COVID-19 was reported in New York City.

Williams, the son of Grenadian immigrants, said ‘A Renewed Deal for New York City’ is based on the principle that “investment and progressivism, rather than austerity and conservatism are the paths forward to recover from the devastation of the coronavirus, the resulting economic disaster, and the systemic inequities exposed and exacerbated by these compounding crises.

“In a moment of national crisis, the New Deal was an acknowledgment that investment, that bold leadership, and bold policies would lift us from the depths of the depression,” he said.

“But, in the decades since, we have too often retreated from that principle. As we face compounding crises today, we need a Renewed Deal to not only recover from the pandemic but [to] address many of the underlying failures and inequities that existed long before it,” Williams added. “The Renewed Deal is ambitious but not hypothetical. Stewardship of the city, the state, and its people at this moment demands action, and action now.”

In over 120 pages, the report outlines recommended policy and budget priorities on both a city and state level, spanning a wide range of topics.

Williams said many of the proposals included are aligned with legislative initiatives or platforms advanced by “dedicated grassroots advocacy organizations, leaders in their respective areas.”

While the Renewed Deal comes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the report notes many of the issues it addresses are “systemic and predate the current crisis.”

The New York City Public Advocate said the Renewed Deal is not an effort to get “back to normal but to advance, with a more just, equitable and thriving New York than existed one year and one week ago.”

Specifically, the Renewed Deal centers immediate and long-term recovery efforts in the areas of housing equity, education and opportunity; infrastructure and the environment; civic and community empowerment; and justice, health equity, and safety.

In the coming months, Williams said his office would work through legislative and community engagement strategies to advance the principles and policies detailed in the Renewed Deal, “combatting the notion that cuts or conservative approaches will suffice.”