Leadership Transition & 10-Year Anniversary
Yesterday, our co-founder and executive director gabriel sayegh announced his bittersweet decision to transition out of his role as Katal’s executive director, effective at the end of the year. It was also announced that Katal’s organizing director, Melanie Dominguez, and our advocacy director, Yonah Zeitz, will become Katal’s co–executive directors (check out Melanie and Yonah’s bios). Check out the full transition letter here.
As you know, 2026 marks the 10-year anniversary of Katal’s launch. Last week, gabriel wrote this reflection letter: “Reflecting on a decade of organizing and building power.” Together we’ve done some amazing things over the past decade, among them developing new leaders, strengthening movement infrastructure, and winning big fights that improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.
To celebrate our 10-year anniversary and the exciting organizational transitions, we’re holding an event in NYC on Thursday evening, November 19th. Come celebrate with us – we’d love to see you there. Stay tuned for tickets information and more event details!
Oversight Hearing on Mental Health in NYC Jails & Upcoming Shut Rikers Meeting on Wednesday Oct, 21st
Yesterday, the New York City Council Committee on Criminal Justice held an oversight hearing on Mental Health Care in New York City jails. Today, Rikers is the largest mental health facility in New York City and among the largest in the country. Roughly 60% of New Yorkers held at Rikers have needed mental health services, 22% are diagnosed with a serious mental illness, and 25% suffer from an opioid disorder. The conditions at Rikers are horrific and life-threatening for incarcerated people, and proper care isn’t being delivered. Here is the press release we issued after the hearing with quotes from our members.
See Katal’s written testimony for yesterday’s oversight hearing here.
Last week, news broke that Luis Alberto Lopez Castillo, 20, died in Queens Criminal Court while in DOC custody. Mr. Lopez Castillo is at least the 8th person to die in DOC custody since Zohran Mamdani became mayor in January 2026. Our member Scott put our this statement:
“My condolences to Luis Alberto Lopez Castillo’s family; he was only 20 years old and had his whole life ahead of him. No matter what brought him to Rikers, he was someone’s son, someone’s brother, a family member, and there is no way he didn’t make it home to his family. This is the 8th person to die this year while in the custody of the NYC Department of Correction. We are 10 months into the year and already 8 people are dead. This is unacceptable. Why are we still going through all of this when Rikers was supposed to be closing?”
Check out Scott’s full statement here and see coverage of this death in the NY Daily News. We’re continuing to organize to demand the mayor and city council cut the budgets used for caging people – the DOC budget is bloated, wasteful, and must be cut, shut down Rikers, and invest in things that produce real community safety: housing, healthcare, including mental health, education, and jobs.
Join us on Wednesday, October 21st at 6 pm in downtown Brooklyn for our Shut Rikers Meeting. We’re coming together with neighbors to collectively build community-based power to shut down the jail complex once and for all.
To attend our next Shut Rikers meeting on Wednesday, October 21st from 6:00 – 7:30 pm, register here.
If you have any questions, please contact Melanie at Melanie@katalcenter.org.
Authoritarianism, the elections, and what we can do about it
Next Tuesday, we’re co-leading a nonpartisan training about the growing authoritarian attacks on elections in the U.S. – and what we can do about it. It’s on Tuesday 9/29, 1:30 – 3pm EST.
This training is geared for executive directors and senior leadership of groups working in harm reduction, drug policy reform, and criminal justice reform. It is nonpartisan and safe for 501c3 organizations.
- What: The growing authoritarian attacks on elections in the U.S.: Nonpartisan Election Defense Workshop for Groups in the Criminal Justice, Drug Policy, and Harm Reduction movements
- When: Tuesday September 29, 1:30 – 3pm EST
- Where: Zoom – Register here
- Sponsored by: Drug Policy Alliance; Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice; Freedom Trainers, National Harm Reduction Coalition, National Homelessness Law Center; VOCAL-US, 22nd Century Initiative (list in formation)
If you have any questions about the training, please contact gabriel at gabriel@katalcenter.org
Thursday, October 8th: Statewide Criminal Justice Reform
Our next NY Statewide Criminal Justice Reform Call is on Thursday, October 8th, at noon! Register here to join.
On the October call, the upcoming November election, what to expect in the upcoming 2027 legislative session, and as usual we’ll hear from organizers and advocates working on criminal justice reform across the state.
Register here to join us on October 8th, from noon to 1 p.m.
If you have any questions about the statewide call or would like to be a presenter, please contact Yonah at Yonah@katalcenter.org
Opposing Removing Race and Ethnicity Questions from the Census
Right now, the U.S. Census Bureau is accepting public comments on a proposed regulation that would:
- Remove race and ethnicity questions from the 2030 decennial census questionnaire and other questionnaires used to enumerate the population; and
- Exclude certain immigrant residents from the population counts used for congressional apportionment.
The public comments period is open until Tuesday, October 13th, 2026. Here is where you can submit a comment.
We’re asking folks to click “Comment” and explain why race and ethnicity data must remain part of the census. This proposal is not a neutral administrative change. It would weaken civil-rights enforcement and make racial inequality harder to document, challenge, and remedy.
For more information about this, check out this article by Vernellia R. Randall, “A Colorblind Census in a Racist Society: We Cannot Eliminate Racial Disparities by Refusing to Count Them.”
Quotes of the Week
“What time is it on the clock of the world?” – Grace Lee Boggs
“Organizers have to have vision. You imagine something first – some form, some shape, and you put it out there. You see if people want to help fill it up. Sometimes you can, sometimes you can’t.” – Dan Leahy
For printing and distribution, download the Katal Weekly Update PDF version.
Katal works to develop intergenerational leadership and organizing capacity to build community-based power and win systemic change for equity, health, and justice.
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Email: info@katalcenter.org
Phone: 646.875.8822