FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, May 5, 2025
Contact: Contact: Yonah Zeitz | 347-201-2768 | yonah@katalcenter.org
Follow on socials @KatalCenter | #ShutRikers | #CutShutInvestNY
Katal Center Responds to the NY Daily News Story about the Adams Administration is Exploring Alternative Options for the Sites of the Borough-Based Jails
New York, NY: On Friday, the NY Daily News published an article about how Mayor Eric Adams is “exploring abandoning current plan to shut down Rikers Island.” Over the years, Adams has trashed the city law to close Rikers by 2027 as an example of “not real policies,” and he repeatedly called for a “Plan B” – even though the city passed a law to close Rikers in 2019.
Statement from Ziyadah Amatulmatin, member of the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice: “As someone who has had loved ones detained at Rikers and has bear witness to the horrible conditions they’ve experienced while detained there, it is absolutely disgusting what Mayor Adams is doing. Throughout his term as Mayor he has failed to address the crisis at Rikers, and under his watch nearly 40 people died in city jails. As this crisis continues to grow, he is now outright abandoning the city’s plan to close Rikers. He is laughing in our faces and completely disregarding the lives of the thousands of people currently detained at Rikers who are trying to survive it every single day. We’ve been sounding the alarms since day one that this Mayor is not committed to shutting down Rikers. However, with this latest revelation, we need all of our elected officials to wake up and act with urgency! The City Council must stop allowing the Mayor to skirt the law and use every drastic measure needed to hold Mayor Adams accountable to shutting down Rikers once and for all.
New Yorkers deserve a Mayor who will work to meet their needs and demands. Our communities need affordable housing, strengthening of mental healthcare, rehabilitation of incarcerated loved ones, and shutting down the human rights disaster that is Rikers Island. The people have spoken, and we will not settle for less.”
Background: #ShutRikers is a campaign of the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice. Katal and our allies are working to cut the correctional populations and the budgets used for caging people; shut down Rikers Island; and invest in real public safety: housing, health care, education, and jobs.
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