Press Room

"The path to truly equitable education in New York City must go through more than screens. We saw earlier in the pandemic that removing screens opens up access equity, and while the new framework for high school admissions is an improvement on earlier iterations of screening policies, it represents a regression from the access afforded as recently as last year.

"Acknowledging a few more opportunities for a few more students is important. Even more important is acknowledging it is insufficient in the scope of existing inequity. It is built on an inherently flawed system, at a time when we should instead be investing in innovating and enriching all schools for all students. While the plan opens additional opportunities to some underserved students, it ultimately does a disservice to the larger communities of Black and Brown students, to lower income families and neighborhoods, and does not appear to adequately account for the needs of students with disabilities.

"Finally, the laissez-faire approach to middle school admissions will likely exacerbate longstanding issues. By not implementing citywide, system-wide standards that affirmatively advance educational justice, the opportunity for inequity will only expand in the same schools and communities where it has long persisted."

Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams, prime sponsor of the landmark legislation to ban solitary confinement in New York City, spoke in support of both his bill and protecting the safety of people on both sides of the bars at the City Council hearing of the Committee on Criminal Justice Wednesday. He also pushed back against misinformation and misconceptions about the legislation. This hearing comes as the crisis on Rikers Island continues, with sixteen incarcerated people losing their lives already this year, including two reported within the last week.

Solitary confinement is defined by the United Nations as torture, yet it is still commonly used in jails in New York City. Intro 549 from the Public Advocate would finally create a concrete, enforceable ban on solitary in city jails - not just in name but in practice - while also allowing for separation and de-escalation when necessary for safety. The bill provides due process and parameters for separation and restrictive housing without enabling the deeply damaging effects of isolation.

Public Advocate Williams said of solitary, "It is cruel. It is inhumane. It can ruin people’s lives, and too many do not survive it. Many try to mask the practice of isolation with euphemistic names like punitive segregation, but there is no difference–it is solitary confinement. Prolonged isolation that looks like, feels like and acts like solitary confinement—is solitary confinement. Physical isolation coupled with the lack of meaningful social interaction causes or exacerbates trauma, as well as other mental health issues. Solitary confinement does not only impact the individual; entire communities mourn the losses of their parents, siblings, children, and friends... No one leaves solitary confinement whole."

Under this legislation, the DOC shall not place an incarcerated individual in a cell, other than at night for sleep, for more than eight hours in any 24-hour period, or during the day for more than two hours in any 24-hour period, unless such confinement is necessary to de-escalate immediate conflict that has caused injury or poses an immediate danger to a person’s safety. The bill is co-prime sponsored by Council Member Carlina Rivera and supported by Speaker Adrienne Adams and a veto-proof majority of Council Members.

Intro 549 has been widely misunderstood and mischaracterized. As the Public Advocate noted in his statement, "To be clear, this bill ends the harmful practices of solitary confinement, but does not ban separation when it is necessary to protect incarcerated individuals and staff. If an incident of violence occurs, staff will still be able to immediately separate a person while they begin the process of assigning them to restrictive housing, if necessary. While there will be new procedures in place to ensure that we are not isolating individuals, a person who poses a specific and imminent safety risk will not be immediately returned to the general population to await their hearing. Once again, DOC can separate these individuals prior to their due process hearing, but they can no longer hold people in prolonged isolation. This bill outlines a simple procedure: separate, deescalate, and investigate."

Prior to his prepared remarks, the Public Advocate addressed the controversy around the legislation, saying “To the corrections officers, I see you. I know that there is real harm being done to you. And there's real cause for concern, which is why you are here. I have heard of officers who have had heart attacks while on the job, officers who have committed suicide, I know that female officers who have been sexually assaulted on a regular basis, and while there’s misinformation being sent around about my bill, I know that the harm is real, and I want to make sure I lift that up. I think it’s important to remember that on both sides of those bars, most of those folks look like me - primarily Black and Brown people, and they generally come from the same communities. With just a few differences of circumstances, their roles could be reversed. It’s important to point out because I know the job is tough, and I know, I don’t work there on a regular basis, and I understand that there has to be accountability. I want it always, when an officer harms someone who is incarcerated, and when someone incarcerated harms an officer."

He continued, "There has to be accountability and a way to keep people safe, but I want to be clear. That cannot be based in torture, and that is all that this bill is saying. We have to find a way where we’re producing safety for everyone who’s on that island, an island that is not safe, to be produced. But I want you to know that I see you, and I hear you, and I know that the pain is very real. I also want to make sure it’s clear that this bill will not solve the problem on Rikers Island. I want to be clear about that. It is dealing with one particular issue that is also very real, and that is the torture of people that we have to prevent. We have to make sure that we’re humanizing everyone. When we dehumanize people, bad things happen. I don’t want to dehumanize our corrections officers. I also don’t want to dehumanize people who are accused of a crime. Our society is going to be based on how much we do or don’t dehumanize people, even people who are accused of committing crimes."

The Public Advocate's comments as prepared are below.

STATEMENT OF PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE D. WILLIAMS

TO THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE

SEPTEMBER 28, 2022

Good morning,

My name is Jumaane D. Williams, and I am the Public Advocate for the City of New York. I would like to thank Chair Rivera and the members of the Committee on Criminal Justice for holding this incredibly important hearing.

I want to begin by calling solitary confinement what it is: torture. It is cruel. It is inhumane. It can ruin people’s lives, and too many do not survive it. Many try to mask the practice of isolation with euphemistic names like punitive segregation, but there is no difference–it is solitary confinement. Prolonged isolation that looks like, feels like and acts like solitary confinement—is solitary confinement. Physical isolation coupled with the lack of meaningful social interaction causes or exacerbates trauma, as well as other mental health issues. Solitary confinement does not only impact the individual; entire communities mourn the losses of their parents, siblings, children, and friends. We have already lost sixteen people in the jail on Rikers Island so far this year, and I am committed to doing everything in my power to end this crisis.

People who experience isolation in jails and prisons suffer socially, mentally, emotionally, and financially, both while incarcerated and after release. No one leaves solitary confinement whole. They struggle with the lasting effects of trauma and are disproportionately more likely to die by suicide or homicide. They are also at increased risk for homelessness and substance use: a 2019 North Carolina study found that survivors of solitary confinement were 127 times more likely to die from an opioid overdose within two weeks of their release.

That is why I have introduced Intro 0549-2022, which would ban the use of solitary confinement in city jails as implemented by Department of Correction (DOC), as well as provide individuals in DOC custody due process protections following an incident and prior to being placed in restrictive housing or continued use of restraints. I want to express my gratitude to Speaker Adrienne Adams and my colleagues in the City Council for sponsoring this bill. I urge Mayor Eric Adams to reevaluate his position on solitary confinement. Ending this practice in our jails is not “silly,” as he has expressed; it is life-saving, it is urgently needed, and it is long overdue.

I acknowledge that there are situations in which separation from the general population is necessary to protect the safety of those incarcerated and staff. I have worked closely with advocates to design a bill that addresses safety concerns while ending the harmful practice of solitary confinement and allows for necessary separation. We need to take care to separate and not resort to prolonged isolation, a distinction that my bill outlines.

Under this legislation, the DOC shall not place an incarcerated individual in a cell, other than at night for sleep, for more than eight hours in any 24-hour period, or during the day for more than two hours in any 24-hour period, unless such confinement is necessary to de-escalate immediate conflict that has caused injury or poses an immediate danger to a person’s safety. In this situation, a person may not be isolated for longer than is necessary to de-escalate the conflict, not longer than four hours immediately following the conflict.

In addition, my bill provides due-process safeguards for incarcerated individuals. To place a person in the confinement permitted by this law, there must be a hearing process, and the incarcerated person and their legal team must be notified. A multidisciplinary team must meaningfully review restrictive housing placements within fifteen days.

The Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association would have you believe that this bill will endanger both incarcerated individuals and correction officers. Union officials are misinterpreting the legislation because they either do not understand it or they do not want to understand it. They have also claimed that my office never reached out to them to discuss the language in this bill, which is untrue. My staff has been engaged with union representatives for months regarding solitary confinement and other issues related to the humanitarian crisis on Rikers Island. The ideas in this bill had been discussed at length with some points of agreement. Attempts to gather grassroots advocates and other law enforcement stakeholders in one room to better understand the trauma of solitary confinement and explore a better solution together were met with disinterest. However, I believe union representatives would agree that placing someone in solitary confinement as a form of correction is ineffective and irreparably damaging to the individual detained.

To be clear, this bill ends the harmful practices of solitary confinement, but does not ban separation when it is necessary to protect incarcerated individuals and staff. If an incident of violence occurs, staff will still be able to immediately separate a person while they begin the process of assigning them to restrictive housing, if necessary. While there will be new procedures in place to ensure that we are not isolating individuals, a person who poses a specific and imminent safety risk will not be immediately returned to the general population to await their hearing. Once again, DOC can separate these individuals prior to their due process hearing, but they can no longer hold people in prolonged isolation. This bill outlines a simple procedure: separate, deescalate, and investigate. 

This bill will not be an instant solution for the increased violence, self-harm, and suicides taking place on Rikers Island. We still need to decarcerate now. We still need district attorneys to drop charges in cases where there is no evidence. We need judges to stop remanding individuals when it is not needed. We need more proactive alternatives for youth. And it would be inhumane if we did not provide people with suitable healthcare in settings that maintain an individual's dignity. This bill will succeed in triggering the transformation of the DOC into an institution that will provide adequate, humane public health resources to individuals detained while awaiting trial. It will humanize all of the actors involved and interrupt an endless chain of violence by forcing our city to rightfully invest resources in therapeutic solutions for incarcerated people. This bill will make NYC safer for everyone. That is why it currently has a veto-proof majority, including the support of Speaker Adams. The bill does not introduce new or experimental ideas, but further amplifies the current NYC Board of Corrections minimum standards and decades of academic research; it is long overdue and ready to pass today. 

I understand that corrections officers and administrators have concerns about the implementation of this bill, particularly around staffing. I agree that staffing is a problem and DOC must work harder to bring officers back to work. Our jails would have more staff on a daily basis if DOC would address the excessive use of sick leave. I would also like to note that while DOC has been vocal about being dangerously understaffed, it was still able to bring busloads of officers to this hearing. NYC actually has the highest ratio of staff to incarcerated people of any city in the country. In fact, Rikers has a higher staffing ratio than it has in decades past, even factoring in sick days and vacation days. Ending solitary is actually beneficial for officers’ physical and mental well-being: according to the Vera Institute of Justice, corrections staff often report experiencing significantly lower stress levels and increased feelings of safety after leaving solitary to work in less restrictive units, or when working in solitary units that have implemented substantial reforms. 

Like many things we once thought kept us safe, solitary confinement increases problems and violence both inside our jails and outside in the community. It is our obligation to keep New Yorkers safe on both sides of the bars, and we must continue to move away from outdated practices that just create more harm. Solitary confinement as implemented by the DOC is at odds with the ultimate goal of reform and rehabilitation, and falls under the definition of torture by the United Nations. 

As lawyer and activist Bryan Stevenson once wrote, “The true measure of our character is how we treat the poor, the disfavored, the accused, the incarcerated, and the condemned. We are all implicated when we allow other people to be mistreated.” I look forward to working with all of you in creating a more safe and just city.

Thank you.

Today, Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams spoke at the New York City Council Committees on Public Housing and Oversight and Investigations joint hearing examining the recent arsenic water crisis at Jacob Riis Houses, where he condemned the Authority’s response, as well as the longstanding patterns of mismanagement at NYCHA which have contributed to a deep mistrust among NYCHA tenants. The initial positive tests for arsenic, later retracted, came just hours after the Public Advocate unveiled his new report on NYCHA’s widespread dangerous conditions and systemic failures during a press conference and tour at Jacob Riis Houses.

“This is clearly another example of how NYCHA continues to fail their residents by creating an unsafe environment.” Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams argued in today’s hearing. “In our report, we highlight the years of water damage that has ruined many apartments and the constant heat and hot water outages during the winter months. New issues like the safety of the water supply keep cropping up while recurring issues remain unabated, and it appears that NYCHA is not doing much to resolve these problems.”

The Public Advocate also decried the failure of former NYCHA CEO and current Chair, Greg Russ, to attend the hearing, saying, “I don’t know what is more disconcerting: that NYCHA’s CEO has recently stepped down during the midst of this turmoil, or that he is still serving in the capacity of Chair, making a pretty good salary, and is not here. A Chair who resides five states away with a distance of over a thousand miles. I do think it’s disrespectful that he is not here, disrespectful to the Council, disrespectful to all of NYCHA and Jacob Riis in specific, and it’s inexplicable that he’s not here to answer questions.” Russ served as CEO during the height of the crisis before stepping down after initial arsenic results were retracted.

In the wake of the crisis, Public Advocate Williams introduced legislation in the City Council to require the New York City Housing Authority to report on any outside legal expenditures it incurs. This legislation will provide the public with a sense of the financial cost of those failures and an accounting for legal actions NYCHA is involved in which extend beyond the scope of in-house counsel. With NYCHA facing a funding crisis, it is essential to have transparency about these kinds of expenses in order to identify patterns and prevent avoidable damage or unnecessary waste.

Read the Public Advocate's statement below, the bill on legal expenditures, and the report named for Jacob Riis' work, How the Other Half Lives in Public Housing.

STATEMENT OF PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE D. WILLIAMS

TO THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC HOUSING AND THE COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND INVESTIGATIONS

SEPTEMBER 23, 2022

My name is Jumaane D. Williams and I am the Public Advocate for the City of New York. Thank you very much Chair Avilés and Chair Brewer and members of both committees for holding this hearing and allowing me to provide a statement. 

About three weeks ago, my office and I released a report called, How the Other Half Lives in Public Housing, named after a book by Jacob Riis that was written over a hundred years ago which spotlights the inexcusable and dangerous conditions at NYCHA developments that we witnessed during our 5 Borough Tour earlier this year. We did it inside of Jacob Riis Houses. Not even twelve hours later, we learned that NYCHA discovered arsenic in the tap water at Jacob Riis Houses – even though they knew we were going to be there, and we were one of the folks that were never told of what was going on. 

According to THE CITY article, the test result that showed arsenic in the tap water was completed a week before any of the residents were notified. After being notified, many of the residents informed reporters that they do not drink from the tap water because it was either brown or smells. To this day, residents still complain about the water and let it be known that the complaints were happening well before August. However, they have not been given an explanation as to why that is. This could be as a result of aging pipes, and we all need to know what the state of NYCHA’s pipe system is through the five boroughs. It is important to note that DEP conducted tests of its water to its delivery points at Jacob Riis Houses and it came back negative for any contaminants.  

This is clearly another example of how NYCHA continues to fail their residents by creating an unsafe environment. In our report, we highlight the years of water damage that has ruined many apartments and the constant heat and hot water outages during the winter months. New issues like the safety of the water supply keep cropping up while recurring issues remain unabated, and it appears that NYCHA is not doing much to resolve these problems. 

I don’t know what is more disconcerting: that NYCHA’s CEO has recently stepped down during the midst of this turmoil, or that he is still serving in the capacity of Chair, making a pretty good salary, and is not here. A chair who resides five states away with a distance of over a thousand miles. I do think it’s disrespectful that he is not here, disrespectful to the council, disrespectful to all of NYCHA and Jacob Riis in specific, and it’s inexplicable that he’s not here to answer questions. 

NYCHA has had three chairs during my tenure in office spanning twelve years which does not help to stabilize a mismanaged agency greater in size than many cities. However, I feel strongly that NYCHA will not be able to rectify its management problems without boots on the ground. NYCHA’s employees must be made up of more New York City, in particular NYCHA, residents.

With no clear direction of what NYCHA will do next, how will they ensure that this does not happen again? NYCHA’s chronic mismanagement led to the appointment and oversight of a Federal Monitor. Our report was clear that more funding was actually needed for NYCHA, but we were also clear that the mismanagement was not necessarily attached to funding, and that mismanagement was solely the auspices of NYCHA. The Federal Monitor was not notified by NYCHA of the initial arsenic test samples. NYCHA has to have a process in place to expeditiously notify residents, the mayor, and the Federal Monitor, and other electeds, of emergency conditions irrespective of water tests that yield a positive or a false positive result.

In closing, I would like to know why a contractor who was not certified with the city to do this type of testing was hired to do the testing? That’s what we have heard, and I think that’s a question that needs to be answered. In addition to that, why did it take so long to complete the water testing and why was the first test not rushed like the later ones? Why would you wait so long to get the test completed? There was a seven-day period between when the testing company had allowed the City to release the results compared to when residents at Jacob Riis found out. It is extremely inconsiderate that NYCHA residents were the last ones to hear about this even though they are the ones directly impacted. I do have to say, NYCHA was encouraged to have meetings all throughout that process, and they refused. We need to know what is the process for informing individuals of emergency situations and whether NYCHA followed its procedures. If there is no process in place, then one has to be created and implemented immediately.  

Lastly, knowledge and information is power. NYCHA cannot render its residents powerless to determine what are the necessary steps to take for their health and the health of their family. Residents can make informed decisions, but they first need to be informed. I do have to say as well, that I know this is a systemic issue. Having been through three different people in charge, it is clear that just removing one person is not going to fix the system. It is deeply entrenched systemic problems that are happening with NYCHA. 

Thank you.

"One year after Hurricane Ida struck, families are still grieving, communities still rebuilding from the flooding that destroyed homes and took the lives of thirteen of our neighbors. It is maddening to know that one year later, if Ida were to strike our shores today, its impact would be much the same.

"The city, state, and federal government have not taken the necessary steps, with necessary urgency, to protect New Yorkers from climate catastrophes that are no longer once in a century, but regular occurrences. In addition to providing all possible aid to people still reeling from the devastation of last year, the government must take immediate steps to develop the infrastructure needed for when, not if, the next storm hits. Some of the efforts announced by the city today are promising, but must be accelerated. We must codify, not condemn, units created out of desperation in a housing crisis, and protect them from the climate crisis. And I ask the Council to pass our emergency alert and flood prevention legislation.

"We cannot wait another year, for another catastrophic event, before we summon the courage and conviction to pursue long-term solutions."

“Today, Michael Nieves became the 13th person to die in city custody this year – the 29th since the beginning of 2021. 

“This is not the first time that officers stood by passively during a suicide attempt. While some corrections staff are working intensely to improve health and safety on the island, others are actively undermining these efforts. 

“Regardless of declining staff absenteeism rates, city jails have no business operating as the City’s de facto mental health facilities. But because we fail to adequately fund mental health treatment year after year, more than a thousand people with serious mental illness are currently incarcerated. 

“Our visit to Rikers earlier this week made clear to us that, despite some improvements from the nightmare we witnessed on the island a year ago, clearly conditions for people on both sides of the bars are neither safe nor sustainable.  

“Those in charge of the wellbeing of detained people must be held accountable when the basic standards of human decency are not met. The City must renew and expedite its efforts to close the jail facilities at Rikers.  

“Urgent change is needed at the Department of Correction. But no reforms will repair the loss for Michael Nieves’ family, or twelve other families this year alone." 

Today, the New York City Council will vote on major legislation aimed at supporting maternal health and wellness and particularly targeted at reducing Black maternal mortality and pervasive maternal health disparities. The legislation, sponsored by Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams and co-prime sponsored by Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson, would create a maternal health bill of rights, and ensure that all pregnant people in New York City have access to that information when they need it most. The legislation is expected to pass, after being approved by the Committee on Health on Wednesday.

In the United States, Black women are three times more likely to die during childbirth than their white counterparts – in New York City, Black women are eight to twelve times more likely to die. This is often rooted in medical personnel overlooking, minimizing, or dismissing the health concerns of Black patients. Action on these issues is decades overdue, and while the current administration has taken some steps to address this inequity, maternal mortality and morbidity remains a problem – especially for Black women and pregnant people. Today’s vote is a massive step forwards for all pregnant people in the five boroughs, and towards building a safer and more equitable New York City.

“Birth equity is a social justice issue — and it’s one that’s especially urgent and deadly in New York City,” said Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams. “This public health crisis is both under-acknowledged and under-addressed, but today, City Council will take invaluable and concrete steps to protect pregnant people in New York City. Through the creation of a maternal health bill of rights with dedicated and sustained outreach to inform people of those rights, we are ensuring that these rights are upheld and New Yorkers are empowered to demand what they deserve. New York City cannot end the maternal mortality divide alone, so we are also calling on the federal government to pass and enact the Momnibus Act to save lives across the country. Thank you to Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson for your partnership on both this bill and this issue, and to the City Council for taking up these bills.”

The first bill being voted on by the New York City Council today is Intro 86-A, a landmark piece of legislation that will establish a maternal health bill of rights and ensure a standard set of care for all pregnant people in New York City. It will require the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), together with the Commission on Human Rights, the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, and community organizations, to create a public education campaign in facilities that provide obstetric and gynecological care informing patients about the City Standards for Respectful Care at Birth, the right to be free from discrimination in relation to pregnancy, childbirth or a related medical condition, and health care proxy forms.

The legislation will also require DOHMH to inform patients about the right to reasonable accommodations in the workplace, and New York's paid family leave program through promotional materials at their locations. Information is essential to body autonomy and empowering people to seek the care they deserve, and anyone giving birth in New York City should know the rights and options available to them.

The Council will also vote on Resolution 92, which calls on the United States Congress to pass and President Joseph Biden to sign the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act of 2021. The federal legislation would provide grant funding for maternal health research, fund community based organizations focused on Black maternal health, and invest in a wide range of tools to improve maternal health outcomes, particularly in underserved areas and among marginalized groups. The Act also would also ensure continuity of health insurance coverage for the duration of labor, delivery, and postpartum care.

Resolution 244, which calls on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to increase funding for By My Side, a doula program under Healthy Start Brooklyn, will also be voted on by the City Council. By My Side and Healthy Start Brooklyn bring care to communities too often underserved, and lower the economic barriers that have prevented some pregnant people from seeking critical care. With greater funding, By My Side can provide doulas to all low-income birthing people in New York City – a critical advocate in the delivery room, especially for New Yorkers of more color – and expand their prenatal, obstetric, and postpartum care.

This critical legislation comes amid a years long push in the Office of the Public Advocate to end the maternal mortality crisis in New York City, and only months after the Public Advocate shared his own family’s struggles with maternal health.

This winter, after a long fertility struggle, a difficult pregnancy, and premature delivery, the Public Advocate and his wife welcomed their newborn daughter, Amani Elisadora. They have shared their story publicly in recent weeks and months in the hopes that it helps other New Yorkers feel supported, heard, and receive the care they need.

Last year, the Office of Public Advocate released an extensive report on the maternal mortality crisis, entitled Equitable Pregnancy Outcomes for Black and Brown New Yorkers, which analyzes systemic issues and outlines potential policy solutions.

“We are in a state of emergency in our country when Black women are still three times more likely to die during childbirth and the mortality rate is even higher for Black women living in New York City,” said Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson. “Black birthing individuals in our city and across the United States, deserve to receive culturally sensitive, patient-centered care that is attuned to their unique needs free of bias and racism that has resulted in the deaths of too many pregnant people. With today`s legislation, we are saying enough is enough, and that New York City will take action to ensure birthing persons are aware of their rights and are protected under the law. Thank you to Public Advocate Jumaane Williams for his partnership in pushing Intro 86-A forward, Speaker Adrienne Adams, the Women`s Caucus, and our doulas, midwives, and birth workers for their advocacy in ensuring all birthing individuals in our city receive the unbiased maternal care that they deserve before, during, and after childbirth.”

"Reproductive rights are human rights and we all, by birthright and citizenship, deserve to experience those rights equitably and humanely," Shawnee Benton Gibson, activist and Co-Founder of the ARIAH Foundation. "The enactment and application of this legislation is one part of a comprehensive plan to save the lives of black mothers, birthing people and babies across New York City who are most impacted by the scourge of maternal morbidity and mortality. As a reproductive activist and advocate, I see this legislation as one of many pathways toward activating and elevating birth equity and restorative justice. We must continue to repair the ruptures in the reproductive healthcare system so that the quality of care for BIPOC community members is aligned with what they desire and deserve."

"As a black mother, pre and post-natal care aren't the same for all mothers," said NYC Council Majority Whip Selvena N. Brooks-Powers. "Creating standards of care, similar to a healthcare bill of rights, ensures that all patients, no matter race or creed, are treated fairly and equitably, provided vital information through a public education campaign. I applaud NYC Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, my City Council colleagues, and the courageous advocates for continuing to safeguard all mothers' healthcare."

“I’m proud to join my colleagues today as we vote on a bold legislative package that will give New Yorkers and their families safe birth options for New Yorkers and their families, including access to doulas and appropriate communication about the risks of c-sections,” said Council Member Carlina Rivera. “Pregnant people shouldn’t have to fight for what’s essential to their health. This package is a blueprint for equity and accountability – now let’s get it passed.”