Adams Uses Cartoon To Cartoonishly Misrepresent NYPD Reform: Critics
NEW YORK CITY — Asinine. Insane. Beyond the pale.
Those are the words Public Advocate Jumaane Williams used Thursday to describe what he deemed as Mayor Eric Adams’ fearmongering campaign against an NYPD reform bill that requires cops to report low-level stops.
Adams has vocally opposed the so-called “How Many Stops Act” — which passed the City Council with a veto-proof majority — because, he contends, it will burden NYPD cops with unnecessary paperwork.
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But the mayor amped up his opposition Thursday with the release of an anti-“How Many Stops” cartoon video and a contention that the successful manhunt for a serial stabber would have been hampered by the law. Williams said Adams had crossed a line with what he deemed fearmongering.
“It is asinine and insane,” Williams said. “It is beyond the pale of anything that I’ve heard from any previous mayor.”
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LIVE: @NYCSpeakerAdams joins @BLACaucusNYC to highlight Council legislative achievements that have advanced safety, health, and equitable opportunities for Black communities and communities of color across our city. https://t.co/as38Ff4Osv
— New York City Council (@NYCCouncil) January 18, 2024
Adams’ position, as outlined in the video, is that having NYPD officers report low-level stops will have them doing paperwork instead of police work.
The video shows a cop surrounded by more and more paperwork while a criminal outside commits crimes.
“I love this new law,” the criminal says as he speeds off in a car.
Do we want “New York’s Finest” doing paper work or police work? pic.twitter.com/gQj8Hk60Yu
— Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) January 18, 2024
Hours after the cartoon’s release, Adams and NYPD officials contended during a news conference about the arrest of a suspected serial stabber that the bill would have hampered the search.
One NYPD official said the bill would require cops to ask the names of people they talked to during the manhunt — a step she contended would alienate the public.
The bill’s text does not require cops to report the names of who they talk to, only peoples’ apparent race or ethnicity, gender and age, along with the reason for the encounter.
Williams, who appeared in a subsequent news conference alongside Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, said cops can log that information in a matter of seconds.
He said the bill would provide important transparency on what kinds of New Yorkers that NYPD officers are interacting with. He said “misinformation” by Adams ultimately harms the public.
“Mayor Adams is threatening the public safety of New Yorkers, I think to protect his own ego,” he said.
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The anti-reform video by Adams also attracted criticism and snark online.
The account for Transportation Alternatives noted that the NYPD cars in the cartoon are illegally parked on the sidewalk.
“I mean, just look at this ridiculous copaganda from Eric Adams,” another person tweeted.
And yet another user tweaked Adams’ question about whether New Yorkers want cops doing paperwork or police work.
“And by Police Work, I Mean Playing Candy Crush on Subway Platforms,” tweeted New York Times Education Pitchbot.
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