Press Statements

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, April 20, 2021 CONTACT Nick Encalada-Malinowski, nick@vocal-ny.org Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org  VOCAL-NY Responds to NYS Assembly Passing Legislation to Restore Voting Rights to People on Parole  A.4448/S.830A Codifies the Restoration of Voting Rights For All Formerly Incarcerated People Chipping Away at Jim Crow-Era Voter Bans  ALBANY, N.Y. — Today, VOCAL-NY released the […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, April 21, 2021 CONTACT Keli Young, keli@vocal-ny.org Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org, 203-470-9979 VOCAL-NY STATEMENT ON THE CONVICTION OF THE OFFICER WHO MURDERED GEORGE FLOYD In the Wake of the Derek Chauvin Conviction, Local Activists Will Protest at Foley Square at 6PM Tonight to Hold NYPD Officers Accountable for Killing New Yorkers NEW

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 15, 2021 CONTACT Keli Young, keli@vocal-ny.org Nick Encalada-Malinowski, nick@vocal-ny.org VOCAL-NY STATEMENT ON THE POLICE SHOOTING OF DAUNTE WRIGHT NEW YORK — Following news that Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, was shot and killed by former officer Kim Potter during a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, VOCAL-NY released the following

For Immediate Release April 2, 2021 NYS Senate and Assembly Cave to Cuomo on Down Payment to End Homelessness and Overdose in Budget Negotiations New Yorkers Homeless and Struggling with Drug Use Highlight Their Decade Long Fight for Tax Increases in Solidarity with the Needs of All of New York, Only to be Left Out

For Immediate Release April 1, 2021 Contact: Nick Encalada-Malinowski / nick@vocal-ny.org or 347-259-4835 VOCAL-NY Applauds NYS Legislature for Passage of the #HALTsolitary Confinement Act — Slams Governor Cuomo for Years of Opposition Today NYS has finally ended a globally recognized human rights abuse, but thousands were forced to suffer as the Governor refused to support

For immediate release March 31, 2021 Contact: Jawanza Williams, jawanza@vocal-ny.org, 917-488-4961 ‘No Thanks to Cuomo’ #Marijuanajustice Becomes Legal in New York After Decades-long Fight by Activists and Community Leaders Gov. Cuomo Signed the Legislation Wednesday Morning, in an Attempt to Distract From Personal Scandals and Calls for Resignation Activists Rallied Outside the Capitol Building Wednesday

For immediate release February 9, 2021 Contact: Nick Encalada-Malinowski / nick@vocal-ny.org or 347-259-4835 VOCAL-NY Civil Rights Union Launches 2021 Legislative Campaign Platform to Push New York State Legislature To Acknowledge the Humanity of Incarcerated People & Enact Immediate Reforms  NEW YORK — Today the VOCAL-NY Civil Rights Union launched our legislative platform for 2021, which

For Immediate Release January 8, 2021 Contact: Nick Encalada-Malinowski 347-259-4835 / nick@vocal-ny.org Democracy Reform in New York State Incomplete Without Addressing Felony Disenfranchisement              Albany, NY – Today, the New York State Senate will meet for the first Elections Committee agenda of the new legislative session. The agenda includes legislative

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:  Tatiana Hill 330-333-9964 / tatiana@vocal-ny.org Nick Encalada-Malinowski 347.259.4835 / nick@vocal-ny.org VOCAL-NY Slams NYPD “Community Panels”, Demands Independent Process New York City (November 23, 2020) – In response to NYPD’s “Community Panels” related to police reform, VOCAL-NY released the following statement, attributable to the leaders of of VOCAL-NY’s Civil Rights Union “Last month

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jawanza Williams, 917-488-4961, jawanza@vocal-ny.org    Mayor de Blasio and City Council Pass Budget to Maintain Police Power Over Black and Brown Communities In the Face of Mass Social Uprising, Leaders Fail to Defund Police and Deliver Investments to Communities   New York City (June 30, 2020) – In response to the