By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-09-26 20:09:12 | Updated at 2024-09-30 19:33:32
3 days ago
Eric Adams was branded a 'disgrace to all black people' Thursday as he was drowned out by furious New Yorkers gathered outside Gracie Mansion where he tried to brush off federal corruption charges in a hastily called press conference .
The embattled New York City mayor, 64, stood defiantly, with a smile on his face, on the steps of his official residence on Manhattan's Upper East Side while the protestors screamed at him, making it hard for him to get a word.
'This is not a black thing, this is a YOU thing,' one furious Big Apple resident bellowed over a megaphone.
'Your policies are anti-black, you are a disgrace to all black people in this city.'
Adams, who has faced mounting calls to step down from local Democrats including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, was joined by several respected black activists for the press conference, including Hazel Dukes, 92, who decided to shout back at the protestors when she took the podium.
'Will you be quiet?' she responded. 'Will you shut up?'
Eric Adams was branded a 'disgrace to all black people' as he was drowned out by furious New Yorkers during a press conference on Thursday
Furious New Yorkers descended on Adams' Gracie Mansion residence, telling the embattled mayor: 'This is not a black thing, this is a you thing'
When news of Adams' indictment first broke the night before, the mayor responded by claiming he was being 'targeted' because of actions he took while in office.
He cited his criticism of the federal government's handling of the migrant crisis, and while under investigation in recent months has repeatedly compared himself to the late David Dinkins, New York City's first black mayor, who served from 1990 through 1993.
While Adams has attempted to imply that issues in his tenure have been hampered by race in the same way they were with Dinkins, protestors at Gracie Mansion roundly rejected that stance.
'You are a disgrace to David Dinkins,' the protestor with a megaphone shouted at one stage during Thursday's press conference.
'You hurt our schools, our streets are dirty... this is ridiculous,' they said. 'This is not a black thing, this is a justice thing.'
As Adams proceeded on with his statement about the charges brought against him by federal prosecutors in Manhattan, he did not address the furious protests directly but thanked 'supporters of all ethnic groups' for attending.
Protestors drowned out Adams and delayed the start of his press conference for several minutes, shouting at him: 'You hurt our schools, our streets are dirty... this is ridiculous'
While under investigation in recent months, Adams has repeatedly compared himself to David Dinkins (pictured) New York City's first black mayor
When he came to speak after the protestors died down, Adams defied mounting calls for his resignation as he spoke surrounded by Black community leaders in the city, saying he 'will continue to do the job that I was elected to do.'
'My day to day will not change,' Adams said, adding that his lawyers will 'take care of the case.'
'Everyone who knows me knows that I follow the campaign rules and I follow the law,' he said.
At a press conference held just minutes after Adams held his own at the Gracie Mansion, Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District, laid out his case against Adams.
He accused Adams of failing to declare an alleged array of gifts and kickbacks on public disclosure forms, even as the mayor boasted that he 'never' accepted gifts.
Williams said Adams' close ties with the foreign governments dated back as far as 2016, and claimed he would guide city policy to help those who gave him perks.
'(Adams) crossed bright red lines' again and again, Williams said, alleging that Adams' took 'corrupt official action' while in office.
This included free trips, hotel suites and airline upgrades valued at over $100,000, with prosecutors citing a hugely discounted stay at the Bentley Suite in the St. Regis Hotel in Istanbul in July 2017 - which was valued at over $3,5000 per night but for which he only paid $300 per night.
Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, laid out his case against Adams in a press conference held shortly after the mayor held his own
Although Adams insists that he has no plans to resign after a grand jury returned a federal indictment against him, he notably may not have a choice as New York Governor Kathy Hochul has the power to remove him from office through a complex system that hasn't been attempted since 1931.
If Adams is removed, he would be replaced by ultra-progressive, Black Lives Matter activist Jumaane Williams, 48, who is currently the NYC Public Activist.
He would replace Adams temporarily, until there is a special election 80 days after the change of power, sparking fears among New Yorkers that things could go from bad to worse in the city.
If she chooses to do so, Hochul could suspend Adams for up to 30 days and then remove him 'after service upon him of a copy of the charges and an opportunity to be heard in his defense.'
A similar scenario played out in 1931, when then-New York Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt held two weeks of hearings into scandal-hit Mayor Jimmy Walker, who resigned the next year.
Hochul has so far remained quiet on Adams' future, saying only that she she is 'monitoring' the situation.
She added through her spokesman Avi Small that it 'would be premature to comment further until the matter is confirmed by law enforcement.'
