By NYCLU
Photos: YouTube Screenshots
NEW YORK CITY – New York City Mayor Adams is reportedly considering a move to abandon the current plan to close Rikers Island and instead turn several of the borough-based sites intended to replace the jail complex into housing.
In response, the New York Civil Liberties Union released the following statement attributable to Co-Director of Policy Naila Awan:
“Rikers Island is dangerous, inhumane, and an unconstitutional nightmare. Yet, under the banner of creating more housing, the mayor is reportedly planning to evade local law in a blatant effort to keep Rikers open. This is disingenuous, would fly in the face of city law and would put more incarcerated New Yorkers – especially Black and Brown – at risk.
“New Yorkers deserve a mayor who works to create more affordable housing, strengthen mental health supports, and close the human rights disaster that is Rikers, without sacrificing one for the other.”
