A Vicious Cycle: Contempt for Poverty is Violence

In celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I can’t help but remember the words of Coretta Scott King. “I must remind you that starving a child is violence. Neglecting school children is violence. Punishing a mother and her family is violence. Discrimination against a working man is violence. Ghetto housing is violence. Ignoring medical need is violence. Contempt for poverty is violence.”

As we fight through a global pandemic, those in poverty are the ones suffering the most. Those in poverty have been all but forgotten, especially in Brooklyn. Those in poverty have been left behind by City Hall which has neglected programs that would provide lifelines during COVID-19. And many of those in poverty are there because of a vicious cycle of inequality that suffocates opportunity.

We must do better. In 2021 there is no excuse for anyone to not have the access or means to feed their family quality food and to provide for quality healthcare. It is not by accident that Black people have a higher rate of diabetes, obesity, and hypertension, leading to more frequent hospital visits and higher medical bills – and putting them at higher risk to contract the coronavirus.

We can no longer put investment in our children to the wayside. We need to fund our schools fairly, and lift up those schools that have historically underperformed. We need to support and expand programs like the NYC Inclusive Growth Initiative. We need to level the playing field in both housing and income so that more people can see guns as a danger rather than a necessity. In this city, a child’s zip code is too closely associated with their likelihood of success.

But we can’t fix it by just pouring money on the problem. We must also do our best to support all New Yorkers and make them feel safe in their own communities. That begins with reforming the NYPD. Fire cops with a history of violence. In 2021, we shouldn’t even be having this discussion. We cannot begin to rebuild the relationship until there is respect and a shared sense of priorities.

In addition, our prison system is a national emergency and one of the main factors in creating a permanent lower class. We must end the private prison system. No one should be making a profit from the incarceration of human beings. We need to ban mandatory minimums and change sentencing for nonviolent offenses. We must also legalize cannabis and release prisoners facing devastating sentences that do match the crime they may have committed.

We all deserve better. Today is a day to reflect on how far we’ve come, but also to open our eyes to how far we have left to go. Like so many of our systemic problems, we can fix this. It won’t be easy, it won’t happen overnight. It requires leadership willing to do the hard work necessary to leave Brooklyn greater than we found it. I look forward to being part of that solution.