VIDEO: De Blasio Confronted By Rikers Protester During Gym Workout

PARK SLOPE, BROOKLYN — A group of activists urging the city to close down Rikers Island gathered outside the Mayor's Park Slope gym Friday morning – with one protester approaching the mayor inside as he stretched wearing cargo shots.

Members of #CLOSErikers holding signs that read “10 Years Sucks” and “Torture Island is in Our Backyard" rallied outside the Park Slope YMCA during de Blasio's workout session, the organization told Patch.

Group member Darren Mack, a former Rikers inmate, stepped into the gym to try to speak to de Blasio directly about the group's disappointment in the Mayor's plan for Rikers Island.

Video shows the mayor kneeling on a blue mat and stretching as Mack attempts to hand him a copy of a report by Judge John Lippmann, which advocates police and sentencing reform and decriminalization of certain offenses. But the Mayor refused to accept the documents, saying, "We'll talk outside – not here."

Aside from the improvements presented in Lippmann's report and a shorter timeline, #CLOSErikers demands community input on the plans to close Rikers Island.

“The voices of people directly impacted by Rikers and our allies brought us to this point and it must be those same voices at the table discussing any plan to reach the finish line,” said Mack.

“We want transparency. We want inclusion. Anything less than that is not progressive. A ten year plan is not progressive. This is a fundamental issue of justice here, and it would be fundamentally wrong to delay it that long.”

"We agree that Rikers Island should be closed as soon as possible. Before we close Rikers, we need to bring down the population," spokeswoman for the Mayor Natalie Grybauskas said.

"The Lippman Commission agrees that a 10-year timeline is realistic for getting off the island. Collaboration with all stakeholders – including the state and the courts – will be crucial to achieving this timeline."

Images and video courtesy of #CLOSErikers