Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Delivers Remarks at the Bethesda Healing Center

December 15, 2019

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Thank you so much. First, I want to give honor to God. Without him this day would not be possible. It is a joy to be back at Bethesda. Good things happen here right?

Audience: Yes.

Mayor: I think the name Bethesda Healing Center is exactly right because whenever I come here, I feel immediately calm and peaceful and feel like the issues we all face in life are being addressed right here, amen?

Audience: Amen.

Mayor: This is a very special place. I want to thank Pastor Dwight and his leadership, spiritual leadership and community leadership, taking on the issues that we face around us – healing the community too. Let's thank Pastor for all he does.

[Applause]

This place that is so filled with love and faith has built up over years and years. I know she's not here but I am so thankful to Bishop Lazarus-Rose for what she has created, what she has built, God bless her.

[Applause]

And I special thank you to Pastor James Osei-Kofi for his leadership, thank you brother.

[Applause]

We are also joined by a great leader from this community, a great fighter for this community, in the City Council. I've known her for many years, I supported her when she ran for City Council because I knew she would make a difference, fight for the rights of working people and she has done that. She would fight for folks who live in public housing and she has done that. She has been their champion. Let's thank her for all she does. Council Member Alicka Ampry-Samuel, thank you.

[Applause]

Today is the Sabbath, today was meant to be a day of rest wasn't it? A day of rest given to us by our Creator. Now modern society doesn't seem to want to let it be a day of rest. Have you noticed more and more stores open and activities and all the things that make it hard to actually rest on Sunday? But I think scripture couldn't be clearer about the meaning of the Sabbath. In fact, one could say that the Sabbath is the world's first labor law, protecting working people by giving them a day off.

[Applause]

And as we talk about the needs of so many hard-working people, like people right here today – how many people work hard right here in this beautiful church? You ever had to work two jobs to make ends meet? Anybody? Okay. People work hard. They deserve a chance to rest. The bible tells us that and in so many ways our society is going in the other direction, giving us less and less peace, less and less rest. Amen? You feeling that in your lives?

Faith leaders understand this. And that is why so many faith leaders have joined us in working for a very essential idea. The idea that everyone should be guaranteed time off each year and that all that hard work should mean something. You should be rewarded with the fruits of your labors.

[Applause]

Everybody who works hard should have a chance to be with those they love. Right? To be with those they love. Do you ever feel like you don't have enough time with your family? Do you ever feel that? Raise your hand if you have ever felt that. Do you ever feel like you can't even go out, have a little bit of quiet time with your spouse, you ever feel that? Don't have enough time for your children, ever feel that? How about this one, do you ever feel like you don't have enough time, just to spend a little time alone with yourself and recharge? You ever feel that?

Well, if you have felt those things then you are like most people, who more and more worry that we are missing out on the things that really matter. And that is why we have put forward an idea in this city, the first in the nation – this has never happened before in the United States of America, to guarantee hard working people a right, that they are guaranteed in every other advanced, industrialized nation on this Earth, only one denies people the right to paid time off, denies people the right to paid vacation. Only one country fails to recognize the hard work of working people. I'm sorry to say brothers and sisters, that's the United States of America. I am sorry to have to tell you that. But this city has often led the way, haven't we? We have often been the trail blazer and the trend setter. So, we have before the City Council right now legislation that says simply, if you are a working person, if you are working all year long, you deserve paid vacation, two weeks paid vacation every single year.

[Applause]

I want to tell you something that I think will shock you. It shocked me when I first heard it. Almost one million New Yorkers, working New Yorkers, don't get a single day of paid vacation each year. Not a single day, no paid personal time at all. They are working harder and harder and our humanity is being stripped away, our chance to live the lives that we deserve to live. This is what modern life is doing to us but we can do something to fight back and make it right and pass a law that protects all of us.

Now have you heard about the idea of the Doubting Thomas? We are familiar with Doubting Thomas from scripture, but, in our society, there are many Doubting Thomases. When you talk about change, when you talk about progress, when you talk about giving something to people who have been denied their rights and opportunities, those voices come up very quickly, say oh no, no, you can't do that. You can't make that change. That's too much. They will always tell you it's too much. Every single time we have fought to raise the minimum wage, we are told that the economy will be crushed, that we will lose jobs, that the sky will fall. But every time we've actually raised the minimum wage, there's more money in peoples' pockets and they spend it in their community and there's more jobs and the economy gets stronger.

So, I say that for a purpose. We finally got – we fought very hard here in this city, we led the way – we finally got the $15 minimum wage in our state.

[Applause]

But the Doubting Thomases said for years and years that it would destroy us all, set us back. How many of you spent time earning less than $15 an hour? Anyone here, you ever earn less than $15 an hour? And you were not being paid what you deserved. We fought against those Doubting Thomases and won. For years and years in this city, there were almost a million people who didn't have paid sick days. And if they got sick or their child got sick, they were out of luck. They either just continued to get sicker or if they took a day to take care of themselves or a loved one, they lost a day's pay. Anyone here ever work without paid sick days? Raise your hand if you ever had to work without paid sick days. We fought for that here in this city. They said, oh it would destroy businesses. Guess what? Paid sick days is the law of New York City. It's keeping us healthy and the economy is stronger than ever because people are healthy.

[Applause]

They can go to work and they can take care of their loved ones. So that's why paid personal time, paid vacation days matter because we know what they do for human beings, it gives you a chance to live better and to actually receive that which you deserve because you have worked hard. I don't know anyone who works as hard as New Yorkers. Hardest working people anywhere. And folks who feel stressed – I am going to ask you one more question. Who feels like life has gotten more stressful? Raise your hand if you feel life has gotten more stressful? Wouldn't some time off help you to calm down, have some more peace in your life?

This is what we are fighting for. So, I will conclude with this very simple idea. And I am going to be, you know when you stand at this pulpit and you are obligated to tell the truth right? To speak truth that may be in convenient, correct? White collar workers, people who work on Wall Street, people who work for insurance companies, they wouldn't dream of taking those jobs if they didn't get paid vacation time. So those who are doing well expect paid vacation time. Right? They think it's their right. They would be appalled if they walked into the door at Wall Street and they walked into at an insurance company who said oh by the way you never get any time off paid. If you want time off, you are going to have to pay for it yourself. They would walk right back out the door. White collar workers think it's their right. Shouldn't blue collar workers have the same right?

Audience: Yes.

Mayor: Shouldn't the people who actually even workers longer and harder hours, the working people, shouldn't they get the same right as those who are doing very, very well for themselves? If you believe that whether you work at a corporate office or a fast food restaurant, you deserve paid vacation days? If you believe that then we need you. We need you to tell the City Council, to tell your elected officials how much it matters to you. We are going to have postcards out here when you leave today. We will ask you to sign up, we want to hear your stories, we want to hear about what it means to you to have the right for some time for yourself, for some time for your family, for some actual recognition of all that you do. I want to thank you. I want to thank you for all you do for this city. Hard working people don't get thanked that often do they? They don't get appreciated that much do they? I want to say to every one of you here, thank you. New York City could not be the greatest city in the world without each and every one of you.

[Applause]

Thank you for your hard work, thank you for all you do for your community. Thank you for all you do for your family. But I don't want to just thank you with words, I want to thank you with deeds. I want to make sure you have the right to paid vacation days because you deserve it.

[Applause]

I am grateful this is a season of gratitude. I am grateful to all of you. I am grateful to this wonderful church and I wish everyone a joyous, peaceful, loving holiday season, a very, very merry Christmas. And in the year ahead, let us all work for justice and fairer city for all. Thank you and God bless you.