New York City Mayor Vows to Increase Police Presence in Jewish Neighborhoods

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said that the city will increase the number of police patrols in Jewish neighborhoods of the city and install light towers and security cameras to deal with what he called a “crisis” of anti-Semitism. De Blasio’s announcement came after the city saw a rash of hate crimes against Jewish residents, while five people were stabbed during a Hanukkah celebration over the weekend at a rabbi’s home in a suburban community. Earlier in December, a mass shooting at a kosher deli in nearby Jersey City, New Jersey, left six people dead. “In the course of this week, seven different hate crime incidents have occurred that make us feel pained … Fearing the next act of terror will not become the new normal for our Jewish neighbors,” de Blasio said. The mayor also announced that the city Department of Education will immediately implement an anti-hate-crime program in public schools in heavily Jewish communities to raise awareness of bias amongst middle- and high-school age students. The mayor held his press conference at a synagogue in Crown Heights, a Jewish neighborhood where several hate crimes have occurred recently. Rabbi Chanina Sperlin, executive vice president of the Crown Heights Jewish Community Council, said that he is waiting to see if the mayor’s actions will be effective. “It was beautiful what he said. We talked about the additional things we would like to see with the mayor to deal with the crime. When we get that, we will feel good,” he said. Other Jewish community leaders, including the Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, said that de Blasio has been ineffective in containing antisemitic violence. “It’s been stunning to me how he has moved slowly and not shown up on the ground in the communities. This has been happening in Brooklyn for a long time … This crisis has been going on for some time, and we need more police and tougher prosecution,” he said. [New York Post; AM New York; New York Times; Washington Examiner]

CASINO CONTRACTS | Three Native American tribes in Oklahoma have filed a federal lawsuit against Gov. Kevin Stitt over the renewal of casino contracts in the state. The Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Choctaw nations want a federal judge to weigh in on a dispute with the state over whether tribal casinos automatically renewed their 15-year contract with the state on the same terms on January 1, or whether, as Stitt maintains, the contracts expired, allowing the governor to renegotiate the terms of the contract to give the state a larger portion of the gaming revenue. Stitt offered eight-month extensions of the contracts to each tribe in order to allow time for negotiation, but only two of the state’s 39 federally recognized tribes accepted the offer. "The state of Oklahoma offered an extension, with no strings attached, to all tribes that operate casinos in the state, and my door continues to be open for more tribes to join who are worried about impending uncertainty," Stitt said. But tribal leaders, including Gov. Reggie Wassana of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, said that litigation is their only option. "We feel the language in the compact says it automatically renews and that’s how we are going to treat it on January 1. I haven’t seen [Stitt] at any of our meetings that we have had and it would have been good if he would have walked thru the door and said this is what I want to do. What can you do? When you are treated like a third class citizen, when you are disrespected, you are almost dehumanized, what is the tribe supposed to do?" said Wassana. Under the contracts, tribes pay the state between 4% and 10% of their gaming revenue, generating nearly $139 million for the state in 2018. [Associated Press; KFOR]

GAG ORDERS | A law passed by the Baltimore City Council in October ended the city policy of requiring citizens who receive monetary settlements because of alleged police misconduct to sign non-disparagement agreements, which council members referred to as “gag orders.” Though the law went into effect on January 1, a spokesman for Mayor Jack Young had previously said he will not enforce it because it constrains the authority of the city solicitor. (He did not sign the bill passed by the council, allowing it to become law without his signature. Young signed a separate executive order related to settlements.) But Deputy City Solicitor Dana Moore said people who talk about settlements won’t be in danger of losing them and the law will be enforced. “It is law, and I don’t speak for the mayor and I am not here to talk about the mayor or talk for the mayor, but the fact is this is the law and it is going to be complied with,” she said. [CBS Baltimore; Baltimore Brew]

MARIJUANA | Recreational marijuana became legal in Illinois on January 1 and one of the first customers at a Chicago dispensary was Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton. Stratton beat the lines that formed later in the day as thousands of city residents rushed to buy from one of the 10 retail outlets approved in Chicago. Stratton said that Illinois residents “particularly those that are black and brown, have been targeted and criminalized” for marijuana possession and usage. “I’m here to celebrate a big day in Illinois. This was the last piece. We campaigned on it. We saw it through,” she said. The first day of legalization also coincided with Gov. JB Pritzer’s pardons for more than 11,000 people convicted of marijuana misdemeanors. Illinois is the 11th state to legalize recreational marijuana. [CBS Chicago; CNN]

TEACHERS | An education plan introduced by Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam is facing criticism from teachers. Northam announced last month that he intended to seek $1.2 billion for education initiatives, aimed at funding programs for at-risk students, increasing teacher salaries by 3% over two years and increasing STEM offerings. If approved by the legislature, 38% of all new spending in the state would be for education, more than any other area. Some teachers have spoken critically of the plan, though, saying that the funding will only maintain the status quo as the number of enrolled students in the state increases. Brian Teuchke, a teacher and member of the Virginia Education Association, said that the 3% raise was far less than the pay increase needed to reach the national average for teacher pay. "We make about 40% less than our peers with the same level of education. The governor doesn't get to fund some areas that are worthy of funding, and then drastically under fund others, and then call it a win,” he said. [WDBJ]