Criminal Justice Actions Needed

Vote on CBA Between City of Po and PBA, January 19 

On Tuesday, Jan. 19 the City of Poughkeepsie Common Council will vote to either ratify or reject the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the city and the PBA (police union). This binding 5-year contract in no way takes into consideration the reform and reinvention mandated by Executive Order 203, nor does it account for recent police reform laws passed on the state level. It's actually designed to prevent meaningful reform by giving the PBA grounds to sue the city over matters like a civilian review board, something PBA reps have promised to do. We cannot let the rights of tens of thousands of residents and stakeholders be signed away to appease the less than 100 members of the PBA.  

ACT NOW. Call AND write the Common Council TODAY. Members' emails and phone numbers can be found here, and you can email CommonCouncilMembers@cityofpoughkeepsie.com to reach them all.  

A document with talking points as well as a document with a  more comprehensive review of the contract are here.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Gyy7vcSpt40dkOVqP2X5TypIuoJaNAnFCCRo2biqkxY/edit?usp=sharing

  

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eJDP9QSIywvFL9BtINJppOjh39gmsBJIcyIPwWhILy0/edit?usp=sharing

If you're a city resident, if you work here, if you transact business here, if you spend time here, if you have to routinely pass through, or if you advocate on behalf of those for whom any of these descriptions apply, then you are a stakeholder, and I'm asking you to please take a few minutes out of your day to help with this effort. Thank you.

In solidarity,

Brian Robinson
CEO
Equitable Future, Inc.
EquitableFuture.org

Dutchess County Jail population declines dramatically

This report on Dutchess County Jail population statistics was presented to the Criminal Justice Council on January 12, 2021, by Gary Christensen. It shows a dramatic decline in jail population in 2020 due primarily to bail reform: Jail admissions declined 68.2 percent in 2020 compared with 2019.

The 29-page slide presentation shows an elaborate breakdown of jail admissions by jurisdiction. Especially notable are the following (from page 9):

     Jurisdiction       Decline
---------------------   -------
City of Poughkeepsie     69.1%
City of Beacon           73.1%
Town of Poughkeepsie     80.0%
Town of Pleasant Valley  87.2%
Town of Fishkill         88.1%

The technically smallest decline was for the Town of Stanford (33.3%), but it had only 6 admissions in 2019. The next smallest decline was for the New York State Division of Parole, which had a 43.2 percent decline. 

On the other hand, eight jurisdictions with single-digit jail admissions in 2019, and one with double-digit jail admissions, had 100 percent decline; that is, no jail admissions in 2020.

Contact ENJAN to get the full report: CJC Presentation Jan 2021.pdf

GUEST: Asantewaa Nkrumah-Ture

 

Activist Radio has the following guest on this week:

GUEST: Asantewaa Nkrumah-Ture, long time radical feminist, revolutionary Pan-Africanist and church sista, who has been active in Al-Awda: Right of Return, the African Anti Zionist Front in solidarity with the people of Palestine, Black Alliance for Peace and the Green Party, talks about her role in fighting racism and injustice in the American empire. 
https://blackallianceforpeace.com

Activist Radio is broadcast: Thursdays 5-6 pm from WVKR 91.3 FM at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY; Sundays 4-5 pm from WIOF 104.1 FM in Woodstock, NY; and Sundays 5-6 pm from the Progressive Radio Network at PRN.FM. It will also be posted on the ClassWars website for the next ten weeks. Simply click on the date to hear it.

https://www.classwars.org

Paul Bermanzohn Presents

"King Was a Revolutionary"
Monday, January 18 | 4p to 6p

Online via Zoom | Registration Required
http://bit.ly/kingrevolutionary

The global pandemic has revealed  the vast inequalities of this country’s society, making it clearer than ever we need a fundamental reordering of United States, and global, society. Trump’s recent attempted coup underscores the fact that we have far to go.

Although media representations make him look like a middle-of-the-road moderate, Martin Luther King Jr. worked for fundamental change. He sought to build a new world, a “Beloved Community” based on respect and trust among people.

Please join us for a short film premiere on Tuesday, January 19th!

 

Once a month on SUNDAYS @ 3PM FOR THE WINTER!

4-th Annual ENJAN Gathering

 

Your are invited to attend the 4-th Annual ENJAN Gathering of the Kingston and Poughkeepsie Chapters of ENJAN, Saturday, January 16 from 2:00--4:00 PM as a Zoom webinar. This jam-packed event will allow us to share our activities with each other and to learn about activities of allied organizations. Featured speakers include:

• Katie Schaffer: Decarcerate the Hudson Valley Coalition & Justice Roadmap
• Sharonne Salaam: Justice 4 the Wrongly Incarcerated
• Tracy Givens-Hunter: Undoing Racism Workshops
• Amy Trompetter: Protest Puppets (video)

Hosts Stephen Johnson (Kingston) and Isis Benitez (Poughkeepsie) will moderate a panel discussion on Executive Order 203 with:

• Rae Leiner, Newburgh LGBTQ+ Center
• Callie Jayne, Rise Up Kingston 
  
• Brian Robinson, Poughkeepsie Community Action Collaborative
• Louisa Fuentes, Democratic Socialists of America 
  
• Fanon Frazier, Citizen Action
  

as well as a panel discussion on community activism with:

• Rashida Tyler, Real Tenants Union
• Amanda Sissenstein, Food not Bombs
• Erica Brown, Radio Kingston 
  
• Anne Ames, Wednesday Walks for Black Lives
• David McNamara, Samadhi 
  

Registration: You can register for the webinar here. and obtain your Zoom link. Because this is a webinar, your registration link is unique to you, and should not be shared with others.