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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Keriann Pauls, Interim Executive Director of Take Root Justice
6:00:16
ยท
151 sec
Keriann Pauls, Interim Executive Director of Take Root Justice, testified before the finance committee to request increased funding and resources for organizations providing legal support to immigrant communities. She highlighted Take Root's mission, practice areas, and budget priorities in the face of increased challenges for marginalized communities in New York City.
- Take Root Justice provides legal, research, and policy support to grassroots and community-based groups in various areas including immigrants' rights, tenants' rights, workers' rights, and consumer justice.
- The organization is seeking enhancements for initiatives such as Stabilizing NYC, Legal Services for the Working Poor, Low Wage Worker Support, and the Worker Cooperative Business Development Initiative.
- Pauls emphasized the importance of increasing funding to meet growing needs and address rising costs for staff and operations.
Keriann Pauls
6:00:16
Hi, good afternoon.
6:00:18
My name is Carrie Ann Palls and I'm the interim executive director at Take Root Justice.
6:00:23
I'm honored to be here on behalf of my organization to testify before the finance committee, the council, and my fellow members of the public.
6:00:32
We are in a moment of increased cruelty oppression targeting the very communities that make New York the vibrant city that it is.
6:00:39
And I'd be lying if I didn't admit that this is scary and chaotic but Take Root's mission and its very model is to take moments like these and work collectively with organizers mobilizing to build the kind of power needed to stand up and fight back.
6:00:54
And we are asking for the council's support to join us in this effort by increasing funding and resources, especially for organizations like ours that provide legal support for immigrant communities.
6:01:06
Take Root's talented and dedicated staff provide legal, participatory research and policy support to strengthen the work of grassroots and community based groups in New York City to dismantle racial, economic and social oppression.
6:01:19
And we approach this work holistically to meet the needs of our community partners.
6:01:24
We have a variety of practice areas including immigrants' rights, tenants' rights, workers' rights, consumer justice, equitable neighborhoods, capacity building, participatory research and policy, and coalition coordination.
6:01:38
And I'd like to take this moment to amplify Take Root's budget priorities that align with our value of working in coalition with our community partners and allies.
6:01:47
The need for legal support is increasing daily and for the following initiatives we seek enhancements to both meet this need and also address the rising cost of living for our staff and increasing costs for our operations as an organization.
6:02:02
And so Take Root's initiative priorities include the stabilizing NYC initiative, legal services for the working poor, low wage worker support, the worker cooperative business development initiative, support for the community land trust initiative, the community housing preservation strategies initiative, and other initiatives where we are working with council members directly to support their work.
6:02:27
The city council can expand the protection and empowerment of marginalized communities that are under attack by increasing funding for these essential initiatives.
6:02:36
And I'd like to say thank you so much to chair Brannan and the rest of the committee for your leadership as we And we look forward to continuing in the fight for New Yorkers together.
6:02:46
Thank you so much.
Justin Brannan
6:02:47
Thank you.