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REMARKS
Speaker Adams acknowledges recent deaths in New York City
0:17:20
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Speaker Adrienne Adams opens the council meeting by acknowledging recent deaths in New York City, including workers killed on the job and victims of violence. She emphasizes the need for community safety and protection against discrimination.
- Remembers Bernardo Gonzalez Perez, Officer Alexis Martinez, O'Shea Sibley, Ida Sanchez Tellow, Mildred Montesino, and John Kastick
- Highlights the importance of protecting LGBTQIA+ communities from violence
- Calls for vigilance and community safety
Adrienne Adams
0:17:20
Thank you, majority leader, and good afternoon, everyone.
0:17:24
Before we begin, I want to take a moment to remember the lives of New Yorkers who died while on the job.
0:17:34
63 year old Bernardo Gonzalez Perez, who was a supermarket worker in council member Abreu's district, was killed last month while sweeping the sidewalk.
0:17:47
Yesterday, 26 year old police officer Alexis Martinez was taken from us in the Soundview neighborhood of the Bronx.
0:17:55
Our hearts are heavy and the entire city is saddened by their losses.
0:18:01
We are also mourning the tragic loss of 28 year old O'Shea Sibley who was killed while dancing at a gas station in Brooklyn.
0:18:11
O'Shea and his friends were targeted for being gay and for joyfully and openly expressing themselves in a public space.
0:18:20
We cannot detach this violence from the climate of discriminatory and hateful rhetoric against our LGBTQIA plus communities that has been permeating throughout the city and this entire nation.
0:18:36
This cannot be allowed to continue and escalate to violence that makes all of us less safe.
0:18:42
We must work to protect each other and our communities so that all of us can be safe in the expression of our full identities without the fear or threat of violence.
0:18:55
We lost 44 year old Ida Sanchez Tellow, a pregnant mother of three children who was injured in an apartment fire in council member Vernikov's district about a month ago.
0:19:07
She was taken to the hospital in critical condition and passed away just days later.
0:19:14
We also lost 59 year old Mildred Montesino to a house fire in majority whip Brooks Powers District.
0:19:21
Mildred was a beloved mother and grandmother who worked hard to raise her two children and six grandchildren in Brooklyn.
0:19:31
Our hearts once again are with their families during this very difficult time.
0:19:37
Recently, we learned about the loss of John Kastick, a 27 year old man who was found dead in the Newtown Creek in council member Gutierrez's district.
0:19:49
His death comes more than a month after another 27 year old Carl Clemente was found in the same creek after last seen leaving the Brooklyn Mirage.
0:20:01
I want to remind all New Yorkers to please stay vigilant and keep each other safe.