Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Attends FDNY Open House with Commissioner Nigro

May 2, 2015

Commissioner Daniel Nigro, FDNY: Well, welcome to our 150th anniversary of FDNY. And we welcome the mayor here to the busiest firehouse in the city, known at the fire factory. And what’s the meaning of today? 250 facilities of the FDNY – every firehouse, every EMS station is open to our neighbors. We want the to celebrate with us. We want to show them what it is we do. We want to welcome them into our firehouse, our home. We want to show them what a great job it is. Of course, we’re using it as a recruitment tool. If you have what it takes to be a firefighter or an EMT, we want you. Think of it as a great career. It is a great career. So, we welcome all of you.

[…]

Mayor Bill de Blasio: First of all, I want to commend Gale Brewer for her fashion sensibilities – very stylish red with the red fire helmet. You’re going to see these all over Manhattan. It’s going to be a fashion trend now. So, I want to thank Commissioner Nigro, Chief Leonard, and, of course, Borough President Gale Brewer all for not just being her, but for the power of this idea.

I remember when I first talked to Dan Nigro about becoming fire commissioner. He talked about the importance of bringing the fire department closer to the communities they serve, and bringing communities into the firehouses. I remember you telling me about your early experiences here in Harlem and in other communities, and the idea that when that bond is there, when the community has a chance to know the firefighters individually, and the firefighters get to know the community residents it makes the whole situation better for everyone. So, I think this is a very powerful way to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the FDNY.

As New Yorkers, we are born proud of the FDNY. Wherever you go in the world, people know what an extraordinary organization this is and all the good that the FDNY has done over 150 years. So, our pride is great today on the 150th anniversary. I’m even more proud of the fact that this agency gets better every year – the talent is greater than ever, the training is better than ever. Our firefighters, our EMTs are asked to do more and more sophisticated work than ever before, and they’re doing it with tremendous ability. And the relationship between the FDNY and the community is deepening. There’s a lot to celebrate today, and I’m thrilled to see so many young people – so many kids here. They’re learning about fire safety, which is very important. There’s a big emphasis on smoke alarms and really making sure every household has one – that’s very important. But we also can see that today kids are getting inspired who will one day be members of the FDNY. And that says something great about our future.

So with that, we’re happy to take questions about this or any other topics. 

Question: [inaudible] say a little bit about the charges against the police officers in Baltimore.

Mayor: Well, as I’ve consistently done, I respect the choice of any prosecutor anywhere – here or anywhere else – to do as they see fit. And then, of course, there will be due process, as is necessary in this country. So, I don’t offer a value judgment. I respect that the prosecutor made her choice, and now there’ll be due process, going forward.

Question: Mayor, on Thursday after the press conference, I spoke to some civil rights activists who heard your comments about civil disobedience – they told be about Selma, they told me about Stonewall. You said that arrests are scheduled with the police and they’re choreographed, and they said that’s not what history shows. What do you say to those folks who [inaudible]

Mayor: I think we’re talking – I would argue that they are being ahistorical. We’re not in Selma in the 1960s. We’re not at the Stonewall in 1969. It’s a very different reality. As someone who has been participating in civil disobedience since the 1980s in more than one location in this country, there’s an understanding of how it’s done today. And we have seen numerous protests – think about in front of the UN, in front of City Hall, One Police Plaza – where, you know, members of Congress were arrests, and other elected officials, and it’s all done in a mannered and choreographed fashion. That’s what civil disobedience is today. It’s not the 1960s anymore. I think last night went very, very smoothly – two major protests in this city – tremendous coordination between the protestors and police – no violence, no unruliness – there were only a handful of arrests. And that’s an example of talking about – the right to protest is sacred, but there’s a way to do it that minimizes arrests and minimizes disruption. 

Question: What’s you comment on the progress being made on the broken windows [inaudible] between Bratton and the speaker of the City Council [inaudible]

Mayor: Nothing different from what I said the other day. I think the core concept of broken windows and quality of life policing is necessary to ensure safety and keep us a safe city –

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: – let me finish my sentence [inaudible] and to keep us on the path to even lower crime. I’ve also said broken windows is a living, breathing idea. We’re going to constantly looking at if there are revisions we can make. The City Council’s offered some important ideas, and we’re going to be reviewing them. But that has just begun. There were some reports – which I was very clear two days ago – were patently inaccurate, suggesting there was some kind of deal [inaudible]. And obviously the commissioner is offering his own analysis about something often [inaudible]

Question: [inaudible] specifically Bratton and the City Council meeting sometime next week.

Mayor: I think that’s good. I think that’s valuable. [inaudible] as well. But the point is, it’s the beginning of a set of discussions to see if there are [inaudible] and that – I just want to emphasize – I get concerned when something’s presented as, you know, a finished product when we’re only at the very beginning of the process. 

Phil Walzak: Couple more, guys.

Question: Would you veto a bill that decriminalizes quality of life offenses?

Mayor: I don’t deal in hypotheticals because we don’t have such a bill before us. I’ve made very clear that I believe quality of life policing works and has to be constantly updated. I’m going to use an example I’ve used – I don’t know if you’ve heard me say this, so I’m going to say it again – we obviously last year made a major decision to decrease marijuana arrests for possession of low – of quantities – small quantities of marijuana. That’s a 65 percent decrease so far in marijuana arrests. That was a revision of the broken windows strategy, or quality of life policing strategy. We made another revision last year – we increased the number of the amount of enforcement and arrests related to Vision Zero, and we had new laws like the law related to respecting the rights of pedestrians and yielding to pedestrians in crosswalks. So, broken windows as a strategy is constantly an evolution. If the council comes forward with ideas, we’ll assess them at the time.

Question: Is a neutered Dean Skelos good for New York City?

Mayor: Well again, I’ve really tried to respect the due process matters this country. So, there are reports of something that’s going to happen next week, but we don’t know if that’s happening for sure. And even if it were to happen, that would, of course, be due process. So, let’s wait to see if we actually see these developments before we [inaudible]

Phil Walzak: ABC-7, last call.

Question: Could you talk about that NYU student that is being held in South Korea?

Mayor: As you may know, I went to NYU myself. So, obviously it’s personally troubling to think of a student – obviously a very young person – in a repressive country and potentially in danger. So, we’re very, very concerned – obviously want to make sure the authorities are doing everything they can to [inaudible] in South Korea and get him home. 

Phil Walzak: Okay. Thank you, guys. 

Mayor: Okay. Thanks, everyone.