Transcript: Mayor Eric Adams Appears on the Reset Talk Show on Caribbean Power Jam Radio

August 19, 2022

JR Giddings: I see we're just being joined by Mayor Adams. We will have to defer to him right now because he just has 10 minutes with us this morning. Audience, tell a friend to tell a friend to jump on right now. We have Mayor Adams here at The Reset Talk Show.

Mayor Eric Adams: Hey, JR. How were you and how's the entire team doing? It's good always being on with you. As we stated over year ago as we campaigned that this was going to be one of the major outlets that I want to do monthly check-ins to share what's taking place from my view and to really learn from you. I learned so much when you have your guests on. I go back to my executive team and say, listen, you know what I heard on Power Jam. We need to implement some of this stuff that they're saying. So I plagiarize and take a lot of your ideas. I want to let you know that beforehand, but it's good seeing you.

Giddings: Well, Mayor Adams, you're our leader. We believe in you and I know we are going to work together. We have so much to do here with The Reset Talk Show and the Mayor's Office. Mayor Adams, right now, you're being challenged with this migrant crisis. Over 6,000 migrants have arrived in New York City from Texas. What kind of services are in place to feed, clothe and house these migrants? And are there enough resources to get this done?

Mayor Adams: Yeah. Thank you. And let's be clear on something. We are dealing with a multitude of crises at one time. Polio is one of the new issues that we're facing. We're dealing with COVID, monkeypox, crime, our economy. We are dealing with several things that are taking place at one time. And I want to say to your listeners and to everyone who hears the information, there has not been one day since I've been the mayor of this city that I've felt overwhelmed or out stressed because of this crisis. I'm ready for this moment and I'm ready for this job.

Mayor Adams: And my life has allowed me to understand that don't see yourself in a crisis. You have to start with the visualization of that crisis really cycling out of it. And that's why you see this optimistic energy as I move around this city, because I know the city is invincible, we're resilient, and we have met many challenging moments like September 11th, as we come onto the acknowledgement of September 11th. People think of that day, and I do also, and I give honor to those we lost, but I also know September 12th. We got up, teachers taught, builders built, retailers sold goods.

Mayor Adams: We continued to show the terrorists and the country what we are made up as New Yorkers. And because of that, New Yorkers and Americans felt better about themselves. And so when we look at the migrant issue that we are facing — the crisis, 6,000, over 6,000 people fleeing countries trying to seek asylum, just to have the governor of Texas treat them in what I believe is undignified and inhumane fashion. Because no matter who we are, JR, we all came from somewhere. We're all migrants. To be honest, we all came from another country, another location to find life in America.

Mayor Adams: And so for him to place people on buses on a 45 hour trip without proper food, medical care, without coordinating with the cities that they passed through is just a major lack of the basic human dignity. And so we are faced with this because we have a law in this city that's called Right to Shelter. We’re one of the few cities — the states that actually has a Right to Shelter law. It requires that anyone that comes to New York City has the right to receive shelter. And we are going beyond that right. We're making sure people have food, medical care.

Mayor Adams: We're going to make sure the children are enrolled in schools. We are going beyond our legal duties to live up to our moral responsibility. And it's a herculean task. We're going to be honest with New Yorkers. We're already dealing with a shelter system that's overburdened. We reached out to the federal government and asked for their assistance as well. We're going to need help from the state. But until that help comes, we're going to fulfill our obligation.

Giddings: Thank you, Mayor Adams. It's so important that you're able to outline that for our audience. We all are migrants, and it's important that we embrace the situation. You're doing an amazing job as always. Quickly, Nicole, the mayor only has 10 minutes. Would you like to ask the mayor anything on this particular talking point? Because I have one more question for him.

Nicole Jordan-Martin: Sure. Good morning, Mayor Adams. Great to see you again. Thanks for joining us.

Mayor Adams: Thank you.

Jordan-Martin: So I'm really glad to hear from you directly on this topic because we've seen so much in the media and of course everyone has their own spin on what they think the backstory is and whether or not we are doing the right thing. So it's great to hear you talk about both our moral and legal responsibility. And one of the things that we're focused on for these families is that they have been also stigmatized as being a source of monkeypox transmission, as though they're bringing it with them.

Jordan-Martin: And so, can you share a little bit with us about how we're helping to destigmatize this group of our new community members as they try to make their way and their life here and set that up in New York City?

Mayor Adams: Yeah, and thank you for that. Because I think it is really disheartening. I should say how some of the tabloids and the news reporters in this city, they just really enjoy conflict and creating chaos out of these conversations and pitting New Yorkers against each other. And crises sell papers, crises get clicks on social media. What they did and how they responded to Gary Jenkins, who's in charge of our homeless operation among other things. 6,000 people, we had to place in housing. The law requires that it is done within a certain number of hours.

Mayor Adams: Under normal circumstances, that would be challenging. Under an uncoordinated inundation of those seeking help based on what Governor Abbott did, it made it extremely challenging. But we lived up to it. Out of the 6,000, five people stayed longer than the number of hours, not days, just a number of hours. And they turned that into some form of conspiracy. I mean, when you think about it, you have to say to yourself, as children would say, are you kidding me? Now, my person who's in charge of housing the homeless, he lived in a homeless shelter as a child. That is his dedication.

Mayor Adams: And so we must not allow people to stigmatize these families. These are human beings. And I say all the time, I'm a Christian. And if Matthew, Mark, Luke and John was on Earth right now, they'll be with people who are seeking assistance, those who are here in the city seeking assistance and those who are coming to this city. So we're going to make sure they get the medical care they deserve. They're not bringing monkeypox here. They're not bringing COVID here. They're not bringing polio here. These are all things people are putting in the universe to attempt to take us off focus.

Mayor Adams: And we're not going to allow that to happen. We're going to stay focused. We're not going to be distracted. Look at some of the things they did in the past when other asylum seekers or immigrants came to this country and how they stigmatized and put negative things out in the universe to demonize those who came here. We are not going to fall into that trap. We have a responsibility to take care of our fellow human beings, and that's what we're going to do.

Giddings: Thank you for that.

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Giddings: Thank you for that, Mayor Adams. In conversations that we have, I always tell you that The Reset Talk Show, this platform, is your secret weapon. So when all the negative things are out there and you come to The Reset Talk Show and we break it down and have the message come directly from you, we are north of a million. And pretty soon, we'll be over a million. I think that's going to help to give you some leverage in this city. So by the next…

Mayor Adams: JR, before you do that. Because that's very important what you are saying. What my team and I are doing, we are removing ourselves from the traditional outlets that I believe distort and attempt to report who I am through their lens. I'm the second African American mayor in this city's history, the most important city in the most important country on the globe. Listen, when I talk about dyslexia, I'm not talking about it from a textbook. I'm dyslexic. When I'm talking about crime and how we need to put preventive things in place so children are not given criminal activities, I know it because I was arrested.

Mayor Adams: When I'm talking about living on the verge of homelessness, I know what that is of living on the verge of homelessness. So we have a unique opportunity of the mayor that lived the lives of the people who are living that life right now. And they are attempting, they being the traditional media in this city, they're attempting to depict me through their lens and they're trying to define me through their lens. They can't define me through their lens because they did not live the life that I live. They have not been in the communities that I have been in.

Mayor Adams: And so their lack of understanding who I am as an individual and my commitment distorts the stories and they attempt to continually try to define me through their definition of who I'm supposed to be as mayor. I know who I'm supposed to be as mayor because that's why I got elected mayor because people know my commitment to improving the lives of the people of this city who have been marginalized.

Giddings: Absolutely, Mayor Adams. And The Reset Talk Show and yourself, we believe. We believe together. So do you have time for one more question?

Mayor Adams: Yes. Yes. Yes.

Giddings: Okay. So Mayor Adams, what's your take…

Mayor Adams: I took your time, so I got to give you your time back.

Giddings: Mayor Adams, what's your take on the new bill that was signed into law for climate change? As you know, climate change affects us all, whether it's heat, storms or surges.

Mayor Adams: It's so important and hats off to President Biden and Democratic Conference there. Hakeem Jeffries who is a Democratic leader of the conference, Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of Congress, and Chuck Schumer. When you look at the lineup, we have some amazing Democrats that are pushing our agenda forward. I cannot tell you how helpful they have been throughout the entire COVID crisis. I really take my hat up to the delegation and we have to deal with this climate issue, but there are many aspects of it. Number one, we have to deal with the environment in many ways because we realize that all of these storms that we're seeing.

Mayor Adams: We're seeing the coastal surges. We are a coastal city, and so we have to make real changes on how we live life in this country. But we also must not leave people out of the jobs opportunities that is associated with this bill and the economics that comes with it. As we talk about battery storage, as we talk about solar panels, renewable energy or wind farms. As we talk about those things, yes, they're good for the planet and Mother Nature, but they also must be good for the mothers who are trying to provide for their families by having good paying jobs that is associated with it.

Mayor Adams: And that is our focus and that's what we're doing here in the city. And so I commend the federal lawmakers being led by the president of the United States and understanding we need to focus on this as well as what he has done with the Inflation Reduction Act. Lowering the price of prescription drugs, healthcare, and combating the climate crises, these are real issues. All of us know our paychecks are hurting because of the cost of items that how much they have gone up. I think this is going to jumpstart our economy in the future and is going to place more money in the pocket pockets of hard working New Yorkers. And so I really commend the president for focusing on this important issue.

Giddings: Well, Mayor Adams, I want to thank you because I didn't want to go to healthcare because I was still only 10 minutes and I don't like to break the protocol, but thanks for reaching out and informing the audience about healthcare. But I'm going to lean on you for a minute because you mentioned Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, and of course, we know Hakeem Jeffries. We would like to get them to this platform. So anything you could do to assist us to get them to this platform, we would really appreciate you. I mean, our listenership will just keep growing and you and I, we have this relationship where it's about taking care of each other and this platform is major. So I think we can do this together,

Mayor Adams: Done. Done. I am going to personally reach out to them and ask them to come on. I think that this platform is so significant. As I stated, our message has been distorted and you allowing people to have a clear message on this platform does so well for us. And I'm going to reach out to all of them. I'm sure Congressman Jeffries would love to come on and share what he is doing in Washington and the same with our senator. And so we're going to make that happen. We're going to get him on and speak directly to the people. This is an opportunity to speak directly to the people. And I say yay to that and you have my number one commitment that we're going to make that happen.

Giddings: Thank you, Mayor Adams. I know you have to jump off. We will talk soon. I can't thank you enough. Like I said, we have to get these numbers to three million.

Mayor Adams: Yes. Thank you, brother. Good to see you all.

Giddings: All right. Have a good afternoon.

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