As New York gets ready to talk about making statewide reforms to law enforcement, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday, that protesters should also seek those and more from Congress.
“You want to change this country, that has to happen on the national level,” he said. “We’re in the midst of national elections, and they should put forth a federal agenda that gets to the root cause of the issues.”
Beyond such measures as barring chokeholds as restraining measures and making disciplinary records more transparent, as are being discussed in New York, Cuomo said a national agenda must also look at the issues that lead to socioeconomic inequality.
The agenda needs to address spending on public education, where the governor said more affluent districts can spend nearly three times as much per student than poor districts. It also should include reviving federal affordable housing initiatives and target childhood poverty.
“How do you still have children growing up in poverty in this country, the richest country on the globe?” said Cuomo, who served as Housing and Urban Development secretary under President Clinton. “It has to change. It can change. Look at the money the government just found when they had the battle COVID. You can be very creative when you want to. Get creative about children living in poverty.”
Monday marks day 100 of the COVID-19 crisis and day one of New York City’s reopening. With thousands having taken part in the demonstrations since last weekend, officials are concerned that the virus may spread again.
As a result, Cuomo said the state will redouble testing efforts in the city. Of the more than 225 testing sites in New York City, 15 will be dedicated to those who took part in the protests.
“I would act as if you were exposed,” Cuomo said. “And I would tell people who I’m interacting with, ‘Assume I am positive for the virus.’”
While the number of COVID-19 deaths statewide went up Saturday to 45, from 35 on Friday, the governor noted the numbers still show positive trends. For instance, only 781 people tested positive for the virus. That’s the lowest daily total since March 16. Also, of those getting tested, only about 1 percent of the results come back positive.
As New York City enters the first phase of the state’s reopening plan, the regions surrounding it are also ready to advance. The Hudson Valley region is scheduled to enter phase two on Tuesday, with Long Island entering it the following day.
As long as those trends continue, Cuomo also announced that effective June 26, schools can hold outdoor graduation ceremonies for up to 150 people with social distancing guidelines.
“Schools need to plan with the progress we’ve made so far, and if we continue this trajectory, we’ll be able to do that,” he said.
