An Open Letter From Senator Adams

This was left today as a comment on an old post but I see no reason to let it linger in obscurity. Rather, we will elevate it to semi-obscurity by putting it on the main blog:

Dear Neighbors:

When I was elected in 2006 as New York State Senator for the 20th District, I was excited about the opportunity to represent a community in which various groups would illustrate for our city and state the many ways in which to celebrate the beauty of diversity. Throughout my first term in office, as I interacted with numerous residents who shared the vision of the magnificence of diversity, I identified a great strategy to transform this theoretical conception into a day of celebration.

The initial goal is the establishment of a “Celebrate our Diversity Day.”

The objective of the day is to observe and honor the multiplicity of ethnicities, cultures, religions, and lifestyles that make up our great borough.  I hope to draw meaning from the issues and themes that are important to each of them.  Our celebration will be constructed around two separate events.

The first will involve pet owners. We will invite all dog owners and non-owners to assemble in the Prospect Park Long Meadow during the hours of 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM (off-leash hours). It is my aim to construct an occasion during which dog owners and non-owners can use pets as vehicles to recognize how much we actually have in common. If brown dogs, beige dogs, German Shepherds, poodles, retrievers, etc. can play in and enjoy the park together, then we humans should also be able to share our community in mutual esteem and brotherhood/ sisterhood.

The second part of the day will involve a bike ride between the hours of 10:00 AM and 1:00 PM throughout the 20th Senatorial District. During this tour we will travel through the different communities that comprise one of the most diverse Senatorial Districts in the State of New York. We will ride through the neighborhoods of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Boro Park, Crown Heights, Flatbush, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Sunset Park, and Windsor Terrace. During the trip we will pause to enjoy the various sights, sounds, foods, and cultural manifestations that comprise this remarkable district.

The bike ride will have the significant added benefits of promoting the use of alternative transportation, encouraging fitness through exercise, and making our roadways more bike friendly. (It is important to note that these are some of the critical topics that were discussed during my first meeting with individuals who support safer biking.)

In order to make these events successful endeavors, your assistance is vital. If you are interested in aiding me to organize them, please email me at my personal email address,
VoiceofConcern-at-aol-dot-com.

The scheduled day for both events is Saturday, September 6th. I will hold a planning session in my office (572 Flatbush Avenue between Maple and Midwood Streets) on Saturday, August 9th, at 10:00 AM, and I encourage everyone interested in helping to organize “Celebrate our Diversity Day” to attend.

Together, we can make Brooklyn a harmonious and safe place in which to nurture children and families.

Best,

Eric [Adams]
NYS Senator, District #20

Admittedly, I haven't verified that Senator Adams left the comment himself. But if it isn't him it would be the first time  in the history of the internet that someone left a blog comment as someone else and acted sane.

Comments

[Senator Eric Adams]

Yes this is an event that I am putting together. I look forward to receiving input from community members. Today the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens and several other organizations have emailed me their desire to co-endorse the event.

Best

Eric
NYS Senator

[mkoslow]

Brilliant! Dogs will teach us about diversity and tolerance. Maybe we can also learn about thrift from by watching squirrels. Obese children should be encouraged to go bird watching. Sure we should all be tolerant and appreciate each others differences. But the pampered dogs in the park all have their basic needs for shelter, food, and affection taken care of by their comfortable owners. Turn them loose to fend for themselves and in a few days you'll not want them to be a model for our social relations. The expression dog eat dog didn't come out of nowhere.

The fact is that much social conflict attributed to people's "lack of understanding" of each other has more to do with the society's dismal failure to address basic needs for housing, employment, health care, and yes, community too. Unemployment and foreclosures are rising, kids are being sent to die in Iraq in a war fought for a lie. Neighborhood schools and recreational services for teens are underfunded. Isn't this what our government is supposed to be for? Address some of these problems, meet peoples' needs, and the tolerance you're seeking is more likely to follow. Ignore them and all the dog watching and bike riding in the world won't do much to help us all just get along.

[Lynn]

Elected officials and lay people must collectively address vital issues over time. This includes, but is not limited to: the war in IRAQ, adequate housing, and health care. At the same time, as human beings we also possess a NEED to substantively interact with one another, on the basis of our humanity. This type of relating can create awareness and deepen understandings of what’s important to others and why. Oftentimes, embedded in these experiences are opportunities to develop the better part of us. It’s important to take the time to nourish our minds and emotions through substantive interactions within this context, WHILE we address important issues. If not, many of us have or will become truly depleted by experiencing what some refer to as inanition. As our communities in the great borough of Brooklyn continue to evolve, bringing people together in generative ways like Senator Adams’ initiative to celebrate our diversity will help to make the difference between: caring and indifference, and tolerance and intolerance. I don’t know about anyone else, but, that’s part of the solution oriented approach, I expect my elected officials to facilitate.