Press Room

"Throughout my time in office, I've prioritized and pushed for the expansion of the Summer Youth Employment Program — opposing cuts from each of the last two mayors — because it is among the most critical investments we can make in our youth and our city. Each time we secured more spots, it meant more young people who could earn both a valuable paycheck and invaluable skills and experiences. Finally reaching 100,000 job opportunities will essentially constitute a universal summer youth employment program, with every young person who wants a job receiving one, and I’m so glad that the mayor and speaker have made this a priority so early in their terms and in the budget process. 

"The Summer Youth Employment Program is a critical investment in public safety and a foundational part of combating gun violence at its root and uplifting young people and their communities. Data shows that the number one way to cut violent crime arrests among young people is a job, and today’s commitment will have long term positive impact on the lives of the youth who apply and on their communities. 

"I hope to continue working with the mayor, speaker, and Council to expand youth employment opportunities, including through passing my Youth Employment Education legislation, and opening new paths for young people in our city to thrive."

"It should be clear after almost two years that not only will we not be returning to the old normal, we should not be trying to. Forcing people to return to the office in person five days a week, with no flexibility, shows no acknowledgement of what we’ve learned throughout the pandemic, nor the new normal that we should pursue. It is true that commuting across the city to a physical workplace has benefits for small businesses and our economy. At the same time, the option of remote work has been transformative for many working New Yorkers and their families.

"My office, which went fully remote amid the Omicron surge, will be returning to a hybrid model in two weeks. I encourage other government agencies on the city and state level to set an example of responsible workforce leadership by adopting hybrid models wherever possible. As COVID-19 cases thankfully drop across New York, the way forward is to forge a new normal, in line with the science and with the needs of New Yorkers, with an eye toward the future for both the risk of new surges and the potential for a new transformative economy that centers working people."

"I’m grateful that the president is prioritizing public safety and the gun violence epidemic. I was glad to have the opportunity to briefly share my perspective and plan for public safety with him, one built on over a decade of community engagement and moving from proposals, to pilots, to programs that have become an essential part of our city’s efforts and a model for the nation. It was encouraging to hear him discuss some of these issues in a way many of us have for years, often facing resistance.

"It sends an important signal for the president to use this visit to meet not only with law enforcement, but with community organizations doing the work on the ground of preventing violence and saving lives. Now, we must go beyond the signal, and move quickly to structuralize these strategies and fully integrate these programs and philosophy into the work of redefining public safety. Last year, the White House committed crucial, first-of-its-kind funding to community-centered violence prevention, and that commitment must continue and grow. Collaboration across city, state, and federal government is vital to address both prevention of violence on the streets and prevention of the trafficking that bring guns to communities.

"We know which strategies can work to keep communities safe, and which approaches helped to bring crime to historic lows prior to the pandemic in spite of resistance and fearmongering. As we face a real, tragic increase in violence now, it is essential that we learn the lessons of the past and advance a model of public safety where everyone has a role to play in violence prevention and we work to address its root causes in communities. With executives on the city, state, and federal level appearing to value and validate this approach, I am hopeful that we can all move forward together in protecting, promoting, and producing true public safety."

New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams today announced activist, strategist, organizer and CEO Ifeoma Ike, Esq. as his nominee to the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board (COIB). Ike, if confirmed, would be the first appointee by a Public Advocate following the 2019 Charter revision restructuring the body.

“New Yorkers made it clear in 2019 that independent oversight and accountability should be top priorities in government, and as the ombudsman of the City I’m honored to nominate Ifeoma Ike as the first ever COIB appointee by a Public Advocate,” said Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams in announcing the nomination. “Her experiences both in government and in communities across our city, her passion and expertise in fighting for justice, make her well-suited for this role. I know that she will bring a new voice and perspective to the Board in pursuit of radical transparency, holding city government accountable to the people it serves and the legal and ethical obligations we all have as public servants.”

“I’m humbled to be considered to serve on the Conflicts of Interest Board,” said Ifeoma Ike, Esq. “This important board seeks to ensure integrity across our agencies and departments exists, and that the public has trust in the governance which they support with their tax dollars and livelihoods. I look forward to the next steps of this process and to once again serving our great City.”

Ifeoma Ike is an equity strategist, lawyer and CEO of Pink Cornrows, a social impact consultancy firm. With a full career committed to service, her professional resume includes serving under the de Blasio administration as the Deputy Executive Director for NYC’s Young Men’s Initiative, as a Senior Policy Advocate with the Innocence Project and Counsel on the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, as a Congressional Black Caucus Foundation counsel Fellow and as a member of Obama for America’s voting rights counsel. Ike has also been an adjunct at Lehman College in both the Political Science and Africana Studies Departments. She has led efforts in civic engagement, international human rights, and justice reform, as well as launched spaces to prioritize the needs of systematically marginalized people, including two congressional caucuses to center policies impacting the quality of life for Black lives.

Ike earned her B.A. and M.A. in applied communication theory and research from West Virginia University, J.D. from CUNY School of Law, and LL.M. with highest honors from The George Washington University School of Law.

​​The Conflicts of Interest Board is an independent city agency tasked with administering, enforcing and interpreting the City's Conflicts of Interest Law and the City's Annual Disclosure Law. Under its previous construction, the Board consisted of five mayoral appointees– but after voters approved a charter revision in 2019, one appointment each was given to the public advocate and the comptroller for the upcoming term.

New appointees, once confirmed by the New York City Council, will begin their term on April 1, 2022.

"Friday’s tragedy has taken another life today with the passing of Officer Wilbert Mora. I pray for his family as the city stands with them in mourning, in opposition to this gun violence, and in commitment to ending it.

"In this moment of tragedy, I want to extend gratitude in grief to Officers Rivera and Mora for their service and bravery. They responded to an urgent call for help from a fellow New Yorker, and I know that when the next call comes, NYPD officers will face great risk to answer it - we cannot forget that.

"When gun violence strikes, the pain and trauma resonate around and remain with a neighborhood, a community. Like law enforcement officers, the community has a role in preventing gun violence, and like the communities they serve, law enforcement feels the tragic impact of that violence.

"As elected officials, we have a moral obligation to do all we can to combat this violence in all its forms and save lives. As New Yorkers, we have a moral obligation to support one another in hardship and loss, and to unite in the shared goal of protecting, promoting, and producing public safety."

"Today we honor Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a righteous agitator and an inspiration to myself and so many others in our work toward justice. We cannot allow some to sanitize Dr. King's legacy, to misrepresent his message or his methods as a revolutionary for a just and equitable society. This is especially important as we continue to confront many of the issues he led on and the obstacles he fought against, despite the decades that have passed.

"Dr. King championed voting rights as fundamental and foundational to equality, yet across the country those rights are again being stripped from marginalized communities while the same segregationist tactics are employed to block progress in the Capitol. 

"He fought for Fair Housing legislation to help marginalized people access quality, affordable housing, but here in New York, the eviction moratorium has expired in the middle of the winter and a pandemic surge, without Good Cause protections to keep people in their homes.

"We need courage to continue to push for progress along the moral arc toward justice, to bring about the dream Dr. King envisioned rather than the nightmare he feared. Dr. King said that “a genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus,” and it is that kind of clarity of leadership we need today as New Yorkers navigate compounding crises and ongoing uncertainties. In lifting up his name and legacy today, we must also work to live up to and advance that legacy."