Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Delivers Remarks at Heavenly Visions Church, Holds Press Availability

March 9, 2014

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Muchas gracias. Thank you. Thank you so much. First, I want to give honor to God. Without Him, this day would not be possible.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Buenos dias a todos.

Translator: Good morning to all.

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: It’s a great honor to be here with you today.

Mayor: And Bishop Rodriquez is right – this is the best place to be.

[Applause]

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Because there's such love and spirit and energy in this room.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And I have to tell you, Bishop Rodriguez has been a true friend.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I have turned to him for spiritual guidance.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I have turned to him for guidance on what the community needs.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And he's always been there for me.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: We have such great spiritual leaders in the room today.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Bishop Calisto Rodriguez.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Pastor Francisco Peralta.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Pastor [inaudible] Peralta.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Pastor Maria Rosa.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: And Pastor Navarro.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: It’s an all-star team.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Is that how you say it – equipo de estrellas?

Translator: Yes.

Mayor: Okay.

[Laughter]

Muchas gracias.

[Laughter]

We also have a great leader who watches out for the Bronx every day in Albany – State Senator Gustavo Rivera.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Brothers and sisters, it’s not easy to work in Albany, but he does a great job for us.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Now, I want to talk to you about our children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I want to talk to you about our future.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We saw these wonderful young people who provided the dance presentation. – thank you to all of them.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Doesn’t that inspire you about what our future could be?

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Now, when you see those children who inspire you, you know they got love.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: You know they got support.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: You know they were shown that they could do great things.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And we know that our young people will do the right thing if we give them the opportunity to do the right thing.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: But what does the history of this city show us?

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Too many children didn’t get that chance.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Too many children didn’t get that support.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: The education they got wasn’t good enough.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: It didn’t start early enough.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: The school day didn’t go long enough.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And then we should not be surprised if they couldn’t reach their full potential.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Because we didn’t help them reach their full potential.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And that needs to change now.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: This is a decisive moment.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: In our time, we get to fix this problem.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: In our time, we get to fully embrace all our children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And we start by giving them pre-k because that will give them a strong start.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Children who get that early start go farther.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Because that’s when their minds are developing, when they’re three years old, when they’re four years old – that’s the best time to reach them.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: But what do we do today, not only New York City but all over America?

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: It’s hard to get any pre-k seat.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: It’s even harder to get a full-day pre-K seat.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: So, think about the children in your life.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Think about your sons and daughters.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Your nieces and nephews.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Your grandsons and granddaughters.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Think about the fact that today, our city doesn’t reach them when we could best help them.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And then join with me in the resolve that we will fix it right now.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: We know how to teach children well through pre-k.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We know how to do it.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We have the classroom space to accommodate all our children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We have good teachers looking for the chance to teach who can’t find a job.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We have the right curriculum to help lift up our children early.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: So, the space is there.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: The teachers are there.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: The curriculum is there.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: What's not there?

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: The money.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And we've said to our friends in Albany –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – help us help our children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: There are 20,000 children in New York City today who get full-day pre-k.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: If Albany will support me, by this September, it will be more than 50,000 children who get full-day pre-k.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: By the following year, it will be over 70,000 children who get full-day pre-k.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: And then every year from that point on, over 70,000 New York children will get full-day pre-k.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: If you know that will make your lives better –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – if you know that will make our futures better –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – tell your representative in Albany, we need help now.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Gustavo Rivera knows it.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Let all the others know it.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: You don’t just want it.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: You don’t just like it.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: You need it.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: You need it for your children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: You need it for your family.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: And there's a second part to my plan.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: It’s afterschool.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Because as parents – look, I say as parents we are the first and last teachers of our children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: No one knows our children better than us.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: My two children, Dante and Chiara –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – are the light of my life.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: They are my reason for living.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I would do anything to help them.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And I know what they need.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And my wife Chirlane and I have done everything to provide for them every step along the way.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And everyone in this room can say the same thing about your own children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: We want our government to be as good as the effort we make for our own children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We want our schools to do all the things we would do for our own children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And the first thing we do is keep our children safe.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: So, when I say afterschool –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – think about safety.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Think about your children being in a safe, secure place after the school day ends.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Think about your children learning more.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Think about the tutoring and the help with homework.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Think about all the ways they’ll be enriched with arts and culture.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Think about them getting intellectually stronger every day.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: That’s what afterschool is.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: My plan will provide afterschool for every middle school student in this city.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Families will choose.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: But if you want your child in middle school –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I’m sorry – if you want your child in afterschool –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – if your child is a sixth-grader, a seventh-grader, an eighth-grader –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – and you want them in school for three more hours each day –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – so they’re safe, and they’re getting stronger intellectually every day –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – call your representative in Albany.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Tell them you don’t just like this plan –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor:  – you don’t just want this plan.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: You need this plan for your children.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: I’ll finish with this thought.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We have so much to do to fix our schools.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I believe nothing is more foundational than pre-k.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I believe it’s the beginning of fixing our schools.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I believe afterschool strengthens our efforts to fix our schools.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And then there's so many other things we have to do.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We need to get the best teachers.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We have to keep training them to be better all the time.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: But then we have to keep them in our school system.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: We have to work with every kind of school.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: I believe that every kind of school can help us make our children stronger.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: All the different kinds of public schools.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: The charter schools.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: The religious schools –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – and the religious schools are going to be part of our pre-k plan –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – and part of our afterschool plan.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

Mayor: Because we’re all in this together.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: Anything that uplifts our children is good for all of us.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: And so if anyone says to you that one thing won’t be enough –

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: – say to them it will take many things to fix our schools.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: But we must start now.

[Translator speaks in Spanish]

[Applause]

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: With your permission –

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: – I need to speak a little bit of Spanish.

[Applause]

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: The value of pre-K –

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: – and the programs for afterschool –

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: – it is simply undeniable.

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: This is a matter of equality.

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: We don’t want to punish –

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: – the success of those who earn more.

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: We want them to help others to also reach success.

[Applause]

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: We ask for your urgent support –

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: – to establish universal pre-K.

Mayor: Muchas gracias.

Translator: Thank you very much.

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Translator: May God bless us all.

[Applause]

. . .

Question: Mr. Mayor, you got a standing ovation. How does it feel?

Mayor: Listen, I appreciate so deeply the support we're getting for the pre-K and after-school plan. There's just a lot of folks at the grass roots level who are working every day to get this done.

And a lot of the clergy are in the forefront of this. You know, we met with a group of clergy leaders yesterday with Reverend Sharpton. A lot of clergy leaders here today from the Latino community, a lot of whom I have worked with and for many years.

And, you know, I think what's happening is that people are thinking about what this means for their lives and for their families. And it's crystallizing the support. It's becoming a much more urgent thing. You could see the energy in that room. So it's very gratifying. It's giving me a good feeling about where this is all going.

Question: How does this help you?

Mayor: Well, I think one of the things that I really believe in my heart is that public debate leads the decision-making, meaning what public opinion moves, that's what affects the elected officials, that's what effects the final decisions, in Albany, in Washington, anywhere.

And what you've seen on this issue – you've seen it on a number of other issues in recent years – is when public opinion moves forcefully, leaders catch up. I think what's happening here is a growing consensus about the power of pre-K and the power of after school to be transcendent in children's lives. And it's very personal for people. So it gives me a lot of hope about the outcome.

Question: Mr. Mayor –

Question: Can you just tell us how you chose this church?

Mayor: I've known Bishop Rodriquez a long time. I know he reached out to some of the leaders to figure out what was the right location. Obviously, you needed a big congregation. We thought it would be a very supportive environment for the issue we want.

Question: Mayor, do you support the public advocate in terms of charter schools and the lottery system [inaudible]?

Mayor: I haven't seen her lawsuit. My understanding is it is in disagreement with the decisions we made on the publications that had been approved by the Bloomberg Administration. And obviously we believe that the decision we made was sound. There were 45 proposed co-locations rushed by the Bloomberg Administration. I've been very plain about this. It was a rush by them to take advantage of the last weeks and months of their administration. One could say that that could have been done differently, should have been done differently, but they did it.

And so we have to then assess the educational soundness of those decisions. We have to put forward a set of objective criteria and decide if we thought those co-locations made sense according to our view of educational policy. We decided 36 of the 45 did make sense. We decided that 14 of the 17 charter schools that were proposed for co-location did make sense. We decided nine did not make sense because it would have displaced special ed kids or that would have, for example, put an elementary school into a high school building. And we don't think that's good educational policy.

So we feel very good about the decision we made and the criteria we've used. And if the public advocate wants to file a lawsuit, that's her right, but we think our decision will stand in court.

Question: Mr. Mayor, did you [inaudible]?

Mayor: Oh, I've said many times, I will visit the stables. I just want to be clear that my decision on the issue is something I obviously thought about for a long time.

As I said, I used to be someone who thought the carriages were part of life in New York City. And I've traveled my own journey, coming to the view that it really didn't make sense any more. I saw that a lot of other major cities around the world have banned the horse carriages. So I'm firm about the fact that we have to make this move.

That being said, the reason I want to visit the stables, and we'll do it when the schedule allows, is because we want to work with the folks who operate those horse carriages and get them new opportunities in other types of related work. For example, the antique replica cars, electric cars, that we want to establish as the alternative to the horse carriages. That's a great employment opportunity for these same folks. And we want to work with them on that. And we want to make sure we're listening to their concerns as we do it, but I'm clear about where we need to go.

Unknown: Last question is,

Question: What about the illegal dirt bikes that descend on Upper Manhattan when the weather gets nice? What is your plan to control it?

Mayor: I don't know if I understand the particular challenge with the dirt bikes. I do know that our view on, for example, the motorcycle issues we experienced last year. I'm assuming it's very similar reality – that everyone has to follow the law in this town. Part of why I believe so deeply in the work that Commissioner Bratton is he is a believer in the broken windows theory and I am, too.

And that says, whenever there's disorder, whenever there's smaller things that break the law, it leads to bigger things that break the law. And that's unacceptable. If, with the dirt bikes or the motorcycles or anything, people are breaking the law and harassing their neighbors, the NYPD will step in. And we will do it aggressively because that's how you keep order.

Thanks, everyone.

Marti Adams: Thank you.