Transcript: Mayor Adams Hosts Ethnic Media Engagement With Groovin’ Radio on 98.9 Future FM

November 2, 2024

Ras Clem: From all the way from Queens, New York, his days on the streets of Queens, New York, to becoming a member of the NYPD, he became a New York State Senator, then he went on to be borough president of Brooklyn, New York, and he is the second African American to sit in the office at City Hall as New York's mayor. We are now joined by Mayor Eric Adams. Good morning, Mr. Mayor, how are you this morning, sir?

Mayor Eric Adams: Quite well, quite well. Your sound is just a little low in your ear, and I can hear you slightly, but it's a little low.

Clem: Okay, Mr. Mayor, let me do this, and I hope you're hearing me much, much better now, Mr. Mayor. Welcome to Groovin' Radio once again, sir.

Mayor Adams: Yeah, it's great being on with you. I hope you're doing well as folks are lacing up their sneakers to do their marathon run, you know. My mother used to say life is a marathon, you just got to be prepared for each journey.

Clem: Indeed, indeed, Mr. Mayor. You know, I remember when you first announced right here on Groovin' Radio that you were going to be running for mayor. It was a joy and a pleasure to see you run for mayor and become the mayor of New York City.

It's been a journey, it's been a journey, sir, but I'm going to take you back, you know, as a state senator, as the borough president, and now the mayor of one of the largest, if not the largest city in these United States. How has it been for you, Mayor Eric Adams, since you became mayor? Let's start right there.

Mayor Adams: Yes, you know, and you're right, it has been, you know, one heck of a journey. When you think about it, I remember when I was running, you know, speaking to you guys on the radio and, you know, communicating and talking about the visions that I had for the city. And I always tell people to go back and look at my campaign and to look at all of the promises that I made.

And you can see, check off the boxes, you know, the success of them, everything from making sure our children get dyslexia screening, so that they could, you know, start out with the support that they deserve to building affordable housing. Do you know in year one, 2022, 2023, in those single years, we've built more, we've built finance and built and renovated more affordable housing in the history of the city in both those years. We turned our economy, we have more jobs in the city history, more small businesses have opened in the city history.

When I took office, we had a 40 percent increase in crime. Now you're seeing everything from our subways to shootings. Our subways right now, we have less robberies on our subway system in recorded history. The month of August, when gun violence is normally high, we had the least number of gun violence in our city recorded history in the month of August. And you're seeing everything from 50,000 illegal mopeds removed off our streets, tourism is back. And so I said all that to say, in two years and 10 months, we were able to turn this city around when many people thought it would take us five years to do so, and we were able to do it.

Living up to my promise, reducing the cost of child care from $55 a week to less than $5 a week. Wow. High-speed broadband for 90 residents in Fort, investing in our foster care children, paying their college tuition, giving them a stipend and life coaches until they're 21. All of these things that I promised on the campaign trail, we have been able to deliver for the city of New York.

Clem: Indeed. Indeed. Indeed. You know, Mr. Eric Adams, you are the second African American to sit where you sit in City Hall as the mayor of New York City. And I know this must come with challenges. What are some of the challenges you face as mayor of New York City as a African American man? Speak on that for me, sir.

Mayor Adams: Well, I think that one of the biggest things is that you are getting your message out. I hear all the time, brother, people say, when I sit down and share with them some of those successes that I just mentioned to you and others, I hear people say all the time, wait a minute, I didn't know that. I didn't know that.

And people say, well, you know, what big projects have you done? And when we start listing the big projects that we've done, you know, everything from building a multi-billion dollar life science center to the Governor's Island project, bringing in an institution and an environmental center to how we get ready to do these projects that many people failed. Many administrations were never able to do, such as Willets Point. We've been trying to develop Willets Point for almost 40 years.

We're bringing over 2,000 units of affordable housing, a new soccer stadium, a new school, new public space. This has been tried over and over again. We finally got a shovel in the ground, as you see in the community that's shaping there. And what we're doing over at Brooklyn Marine Terminal, we developed that entire area. So there's a lot of big projects we've done. But when you have a media in the city that basically sensationalizes the worst things that can happen in a city of 8.3 million people, people tend to think that, OK, the city is out of control. No. No one knows that we're the safest big city in America. Our economy has turned around.

Our job growth has turned around. And I think that's one of the hardest things, when you are not the image of who people think should be the mayor, because we only had one African-American that was mayor before, and now you have the second. And then you look at the diversity of my administration, you know, not everybody's happy with that, you know. Three billion dollars in MWBEs to women in minority-owned businesses.

And so, you know, everyone does not walk away pleased with what they thought we couldn't do, we could do. And we don't control the information that's flow. You know, we're up against those established, you know, outlets that is going to push the message that they want and not the message that shows the success or the balance message, I should say, that shows the success.

Do you know, brother, we're getting ready to retire hundreds of millions of dollars of medical debt for people who are dealing with medical debt. That's one of the number one causes of bankruptcy. And we're going to retire medical debt for New Yorkers so they won't be consumed with bankruptcy.

If I were to share all of these things with you and your listeners, you will all walk away saying, wait a minute, I didn't know that. I thought the city was, you know, sinking from violence, sinking from economic failure, sinking from the inability to house New Yorkers. And it was interesting, you add all of that onto 220,000 migrants and asylum seekers that was forced into this city without any financial support that we deserve from the federal government. Yet we continue to evolve and continue to move forward.

Clem: And you know, Mr. Mayor, that's where I was going to go next, because coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic and rolling straight into your administration, the city was going through some serious issues here. And then we were, the migrant thing was just thrown up on us like it came out of nowhere. What are your thoughts on this whole migrant thing, Mayor Eric Adams?

Mayor Adams: And when you think about it for a moment, 220,000 migrants and asylum seekers came into the city. And when you're asking the federal government to do more, that is not anti-immigrant. I'm pro-immigrant. This always has been a city of immigrants. This has been a country of immigrants. We've all found our way and made our way, but the migrant and asylum seeker issue is a national problem. It's not the problem of cities like Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles.

All of these cities had to take on a national problem because we did not secure our border in the fashion that I believe we should have, or took advantage of this situation. Many people didn't realize that I had no authority to stop buses from coming in. The federal law does not allow me to do that. I had no authorization to allow people to work. The federal law did not allow me to do that. I had a requirement by city law to house, feed, cook, and make sure we take care of all the needs of everyone that came into the city. We couldn't even deport those who were repeated criminal behaviors, such as dangerous gangs. We're not allowed to do that here in the city of New York.

We were saddled with this responsibility, over $5 billion in economic dollars that had to leave this city and the cost that was attached to it. With all of that, you did not see one child or family sleep on the street. We were able to keep and maintain the important programs in the city. But it has a long-term impact on our city, and we need to navigate through it. But it was extremely challenging. We were able, brother, to get 17 percent of the people who came into our care, we were able to cycle them into the next step of their journey.

If no one comes to America to live in a shelter, you came to America to pursue the American Dream, and we put in place programs, what we call 30 and 90-day programs, to have people cycle out, either go to the destinations they wanted to go to, or some wanted to return back to their homeland, or some moved on, like all immigrants have done, and found their way in this city and understand the prosperity of being in this city.

Clem: Indeed. Program note, ladies and gentlemen, you are listening to Groovin' Radio. We are in our featured segment. It is called Mic Check, Sparking Global Changes. We have with us this morning the mayor of New York City, Mayor Eric Adams, ladies and gentlemen. Mr. Adams, you stood your ground, and I'm happy that you stood your ground throughout this migrant crisis.

It is not a crisis that you went into office expecting to see and expecting to face, and it's a very tough challenge, not only for the country, but for a city like New York City, and you stood your ground, sir. And whatever it is, you're still standing up for New York City. In these challenging times, Mayor Eric Adams, and you're facing some challenging times, in these challenging times, how do you find it getting up every single day and running this city? How do you find that to be with you today, sir?

Mayor Adams: That's a great question, because the term challenging is relative. My life has not only grown up in poverty, always on the brink of being thrown out of my home and homelessness, mom raising the six of us, for the most part, on her own. And watching her every day, in spite of the uncertainties that life brought to her, she got up every day, she provided for the six of us, maintained a home, even though the any day the marshals were on their way to throw us out, finding ways to feed us, taking the leftovers from the daycare center that she worked at as a food service worker, and wrapping up the leftovers in Tupperware bowls and recycled aluminum foil, seeing how she made it.

And watching the people on my block continue to struggle, but continue to put one foot in front of the other, and believing in our faith and place where spirituality lives. And then, as a police officer, watching people go through horrific incidents, losing loved ones to violence, uncertainties, and medical deaths, sitting in hospitals, watching people deal with these devastating issues, and then seeing them days, weeks, months later, and they still, you know, forging ahead, moving on. And then becoming a state senator and a borough president, and watching the resiliencies of New Yorkers.

And so when people say, Eric, look, you're going through this investigation, you're going through all these things that are taking place around you, the migrants, COVID, you know, dealing with, running a big city, how do you go on? I get my strength from everyday New Yorkers. Everyday New Yorkers get up and they go on. They don't sit back and surrender. We didn't surrender after September 11, 2001, when the center of our trade was collapsed before our eyes. September 12th, we got up, after losing thousands of New Yorkers. We got up. You know, there are cases throughout the years where I've met people who lost their loved ones on the verge of being married the next day. They didn't surrender, they got up. Mothers losing their children.

Jackie Rowe-Adams lost two sons to gun violence, and she turned that pain into purpose. That is what inspires me. The people I've met throughout my journey who did not surrender, and I would see them and say, wow, this would break a person. But instead of breaking them, they reached deep, they became inspired and motivated, and they turned their pain into purpose, and it led others in the process. So that's how I feel. All that I'm enduring, my faith in God is strong. My belief in the lessons my mother instilled in me is still present, and I'm continuing to do the job that New Yorkers elected me to do. And we're seeing, although people thought I would break, bending is not breaking. And so I'm going to continue to do the job I was elected to do.

Clem: Indeed, indeed. It's been an amazing journey, Eric Adams, because your story of a young African-American boy growing up in Queens, and the beating you took from members of the NYPD, along with your brother, to the point where you guys were bloodied, and you joined the NYPD, you became a state senator, you became borough president, and you're now the mayor of New York City. It's been an amazing journey. And I look around your administration, and you talk so highly about your mother. To have so many females, to have so many great women, powerful women working alongside you, Eric Adams. Do you think that has something to do with the strength that an African-American man has because you are surrounded by so many powerful women, Eric Adams?

Mayor Adams: Yes. And not only extremely, extremely knowledgeable and intelligent, but also diversity. We're seeing that that intelligence, that knowledge, that commitment, that dedication is in all cultures. As you know, I had the first Trinidadian deputy mayor, the first Filipino deputy mayor, the first East Indian deputy mayor, the first Sephardic Jewish person as a deputy mayor. When you look at the fact that the first Korean commissioner of Small Business Services, first woman police commissioner, first Spanish-speaking police commissioner, you could go through the list.

First woman who led the intelligence division of the Police Department, first woman chief advisor of Panamanian, first African-American woman to be a first deputy mayor. You go through the list and you look at the diversity of my administration and the women who have been there, even the fire commissioner was the first time a woman. You see, you have witnessed the barriers being broken. And you add it to the successes that we have had throughout the years I've been in office. We are seeing that women can not only lead, but they can lead during difficult and tough times. What Deputy Mayor Williams-Isom did during the COVID and what she did during the asylum seeker crisis. She was in charge of that whole operation with my chief of staff, Camille Joseph-Varlack. They were able to coordinate and manage the city during difficult times. It says a lot about the leadership of women and their ability to move us forward in difficult times.

Clem: You know, speaking of leadership of women, we are in some critical time here. Shirley Chisholm went to Congress in the 60s. Shirley Chisholm ran for president. Reverend Jesse Jackson, an African-American, ran for president in 1984. Barack Obama ran for president not once, but twice. He was elected twice. We are in an election cycle. And we have a woman who was once a district attorney, once a US senator. She was once an attorney general. She is the current vice president of the United States. Her background is Indian and Jamaican. She's full of flavor, Eric Adams, and she's running for president. The criticalness of this presidential election. I would like you to share your thoughts on it, sir.

Mayor Adams: Well, I think it's an amazing journey as we talk about journeys. And I see symbolism in everything we do. It says a lot for Jamaican heritage. Last time I was at Jamaican Police Association second annual dinner, and I saw all those men and women in uniform who have given their lives to protect the people of this city.

And then her East Indian background as well. It says a lot to that entire community of what's possible in this great country that anyone could do it. And so I endorse the vice president. And I'm asking everyone, most importantly, to get out and exercise your right to vote. That's the foundation of this country, a fair and free election. And I'm encouraging people to look at her journey and the journey of others to use it as, as I say, inspiration of how you want to move forward in your lives. Nothing is impossible in this great country. This is the country where dream is attached to our name. And we should all pursue the dream that we have in the American dream.

Clem: Indeed. Caribbean nationals are fully behind Kamala Harris's run for president. And I am sure that Caribbean nationals are fully behind Mayor Eric Adams. And it brings me to this question. Mr. Adams, what are the future plans for Eric Adams?

Mayor Adams: Well, you know, every time I finish praying, the last message I say is that I will be done. Let that will be done. God, God knows the future for me. I turn on my GPS, my God position, the satellite. He is in control of my journey, and he's in control of how I will move forward. And I think it is crucial that we put God first in our lives. I look forward to finishing out my term for running for re-election. And whatever God has planned for me, I'm going to be ready to face that moment.

Clem: You know, Mr. Adams, I thank you so much. But before you go, sir, I just want you to understand this, that your accomplishments, your accomplishments should be plastered all over the city. Because oftentimes, you know, people like to ask the question, what have you done for me? What have you done for us? And you have done so much since you have stepped into City Hall. And I think New Yorkers should fully understand who Eric Adams is.

I think New Yorkers should fully understand what Eric Adams has done for this city so far, and what Eric Adams continue to do on a daily basis. I commend you, sir, because with all the legal troubles that you're going through, you get up every single day and you toiled New York City. You walk around New York City, you ride around New York City, and you continue to beat the pavement for us. It's amazing that you can find the strength to do so. And you said you have put your hands in the life of God. Yes. And trust me, Mr. Adams, it is going to work out. It is going to be well, my friend. It is going to be well. So continue to do what you're doing. And we commend you, sir, on the journey. Your final thoughts before you go this morning, sir.

Mayor Adams: Well, I think it's wrapped up in what you just stated. I am hoping that everyday New Yorkers who are going through stuff would grow through stuff. You know, don't only pray to get over what you're going through. Pray to get the wisdom of why you are going through it. Life is just, you know, in accumulations of lessons that teaches us on how to take us to the next level. And every new level is a new devil.

You're going to have to face it, approach it, and move forward. And just continue to root your faith in your spirituality. My spirituality is in Jesus Christ. But others have spirituality rooted in other areas, and I respect that. But your spiritual growth is part of your physical growth and the growth that will take you to the next level. And I just hope New Yorkers continue to be inspired in everything they do. We're going to recover this city and bring it in the right direction to make it a place where you can build the foundation and raise healthy children and families and take advantage of what we have done in this city to assist New Yorkers.

Clem: Indeed, you know, mentioning powerful Black women and powerful women on a whole. I would like to thank the Bullseye Marketing and Promotion Team, [Ms. Andrea Bullings.] I would like to thank your team, Mr. Eric Adams. And you stood up to this promise of joining us this morning.

Oftentimes when we say, you know, we're going to make a stop at City Hall this morning, they'll say, oh, you're going to get the mayor on. Yes, I thank [Ms. Andrea Bullings.] And I thank your supporting cast of wonderful and powerful women who made this possible for you to join us this morning, Mr. Mayor. God bless you. We're praying for you. And we are standing with you, sir. And all the very best, my friend.

Mayor Adams: Thank you very much. And keep grooving. Yes.

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