Eric Dinowitz Urges Improvements to Early Voting Process for Future Elections

By Síle Moloney

Eric Dinowitz, Democratic District Leader and City Council candidate in the 11th District race, is calling for future changes to early voting as New Yorkers turn out to vote early in record numbers this week. “New Yorkers are proving what we’ve known all along – early voting is good for our democracy – and when given the opportunity, people will excitedly vote early,” Dinowitz said. “I am proud of the energy, enthusiasm, and, most of all, patience of my fellow New Yorkers as they wait in line for hours, sometimes even in rain. Poll workers have been friendly and

By SÍLE MOLONEY

On Monday, Oct. 26, The New York Civil Liberties Union and The Legal Aid Society filed a lawsuit against Mayor Bill de Blasio, Police Commissioner Dermot Shea, Chief of Department Terence Monahan, the City of New York, and several individual police officers for their roles in what was described as the indiscriminate brutalizing of peaceful protestors during the Black Lives Matter protests which followed the police killing of George Floyd in May 2020. The suit addresses the first month of protests between May 28 and June 28, where “swarming officers used batons, pepper spray, and other aggressive techniques to

By Eliot Schiaparelli & Síle Moloney

Norwood News, in partnership with WFUV radio and BronxNet Television, presents a five-part series on national issues affecting voters in the lead up to the 2020 presidential election, seen through the local lens of Bronx neighborhood communities. Part three looks at health. Health and healthcare were always going to be pivotal to the 2020 presidential election, even before the COVID-19 pandemic catapulted them to the top of the political agenda. According to a recent Pew research poll, 68 percent of voters said healthcare was a “very important” issue to them, second only to the economy. People are rightfully

By DAVID GREENE

Ahead of Election Day 2020 on Nov. 3., long lines of patient voters, some with kids in toe and pushing baby strollers, were seen at a number of voting centers across the Bronx during the first few days of early voting in New York State, which kicked off on Saturday, Oct. 24. On Sunday morning, Oct. 25, the wait time to vote at a temporary Parkchester polling center, a former Boltons store, located at 1380 Parkchester Road, was about two and a half hours, while the outside temperature was in the low fifties. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined about

By Eliot Schiaparelli & Síle Moloney

By Síle Moloney

An educator and social worker, Abigail Martin, candidate for City Council in the 11th District points to equality in education as being key to breaking the cycle of generational poverty. As a student advisor and adjunct professor at Columbia University’s school of social work, she helps train the City’s next generation of social workers. “I mentor them throughout their first year of social work school, and work with them in their placements,” she said. “All my students are usually placed in the Bronx so, I’ve been in a lot of public schools in the Bronx, meeting with my students

By Síle Moloney

As record numbers of New Yorkers vote by absentee ballot in the upcoming Nov. 3 election, many have been dismayed to learn that they need to pay for postage in order to return their ballot. Legislators and advocates gathered virtually on Thursday, Oct. 22, to criticize what they call another de facto poll tax on voters. The discussion was led by State Senator James Sanders Jr., Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, and Dr. Hazel N. Dukes from the NAACP NYS Conference. Prior to the passage of the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, citizens in some states had to pay a

By Síle Moloney

Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez received the endorsement of former presidential candidate and United States Senator Elizabeth Warren in her re-election bid for the New York State Assembly, it was announced Thursday, October 22nd. “I am proud to endorse Nathalia Fernandez for re-election to the New York State Assembly. She is the fighter The Bronx needs in Albany,” said Senator Elizabeth Warren. “Since taking office, she has been a powerful voice for progressive values, and I know she will continue to build on the work she has done in her next term.” “This endorsement is very close to my heart,” said

By Síle Moloney

Jessica Haller, Democratic candidate for New York City’s 11th Council District, announced a further endorsement of her candidacy for the June 2021 primary election on Wednesday, Oct. 21. The grassroots organization, 21 in ‘21, founded in 2017 which is working to elect at least twenty-one women to the New York City Council by 2021 has thrown its support behind Haller. The Board of 21 in ‘21, and membership comprises a diverse range of women and allies. Among others, these include Amelia Adams, president of Adams Advisors LLC and former political director to New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio,