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NYPD tips for Combating Sexual Harassment on the Subways

editor — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:31:25 +0000

This came our way through Speaker Quinn’s office. Some tips from the NYPD.

Below are some important tips from the NYPD on how to stay safe and what you can do if you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted on the subway:

Do not be ashamed or afraid to report the offense to the police or an MTA employee immediately.

During off hours, wait at the marked waiting areas on the station platforms and sit in the conductor’s car when the train arrives.

Know your way around your subway stations: the locations of exits and where stairwells lead.

If the sex offense happens on a crowded subway car, if you can do so safely, step away from the perpetrator and loudly let others know what the offender is doing.

If you are in an empty car, leave the car and find one with more passengers.

If you can do so safely, use your cell phone to take a photo of the perpetrator, or make a note of any distinctive features or items of clothing.

If the perpetrator follows you off the train, call the police and stay in a crowded area.

Remain alert and awake.

For more information about the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, Right Rides and Girls for Gender Equity, please visit their websites at www.svfreenyc.org, www.rightrides.org, and www.ggenyc.org, respectively.

Weekly Fix: Shot Through the Tubes–Freedom and the Smell of Bacon

Joe A. Melendez — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:21:39 +0000

This country is very large and beautiful. I have had the pleasure of visiting many states and cities and interacting with locals. These locals have come from diverse backgrounds, from both ends of the political, social and moral spectrums. I have lived in ghettos and partied in the homes of millionaires. I was mugged at gunpoint once while walking at night in some place that I should not have been when I was eighteen. And I once slept in a motel in the middle of nowhere of New Mexico, whose crunchy pillows and eerily stained shower curtain urged me to keep a machete under my pillow (a pillow I had brought with me). These are just two of the many experiences in my life where I have felt true fear. Moments that my mind stopped panicking in order to figure out what I needed to do to survive. Those are the moments that make us better people. But that life is not for everyone. As a writer, I welcome them foolishly. As a person, I dread living them again.

So it is understandable that we have rules, laws and a system to protect the majority of people, who prefer not to be scared to death throughout their daily lives. These rules and laws are implemented using citizens who have been chosen and sworn to uphold these very rules and laws. So why is it, that despite all the dangerous places and situations that I have found myself in, that the only people that I truly fear the most, on this planet, are the ones that are supposed to protect me? I fear the law.

But I should not. We have a Constitution and a system of checks and balance that looks out for the innocent, the poor and the meek. Luckily, we have Supreme Court judges to make sure that this is exactly what happens.

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/08/17/scalia-actual-innocence/

Well in his defense, it is not unconstitutional to kill an innocent person if they were given a trial by a jury of his or her peers, regardless of their innocence. Meh, whatever, that is just one silly Supreme Court judge. He will have a spicy Latina to deal with soon enough. At least the police are still doing their jobs.

http://scienceblogs.com/dispatches/2009/08/tn_cops_plant_drugs_abuse_susp.php

OKay, to be fair. At some point in that video, the suspect did come in contact with the drugs that the police officer planted on him. Good job guys, next time just do it away from the camera. Or better yet, just make believe that those mints in the suspect’s pants pocket are really crack cocaine rocks. Haha, no that’s just stupid. No one would actually.. Oh.

http://www.wftv.com/irresistible/20435114/detail.html

It’s late August, summertime is running down. Let me just worry about the heat and how I plan on dealing with it by walking through the park and grabbing a cold, fresh lemonade from the cute little 10-year-old trying to make an honest buck. Wait what? Cops got to her too?

http://www.nypost.com/seven/08162009/news/regionalnews/sweet_lemonade_kid_lapped_184770.htm

In defense of our New York City cops, at least they did not Taze her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzHDP3gLDJw

Good job there Sheriff, you just shot a 14-year-old girl through the skull with a Tazer. At least you didn’t Tazer a 76-year-old man riding an antique tractor in a parade.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090812/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_tractor_driver_taser

Okay fine, well at least those officers did not kill an 18-year-old young man in custody.

http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/TPV3/Voices.php/2009/08/17/eighteen-year-old-boy-dies-after-jail-ho

Seriously officers? WTF? And even more seriously, WTF does it take for these police officers to get fired? Apparently, you can plant drugs, put innocent people in jail, Tazer little girls and old men. Hell, you can even abuse loopholes to steal money from tax-payers.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/special-reports/story/455950.html?storylink=mirelated

So, seriously, what does it take to get fired from police enforcement? I bet it has to be something huge and terrible. Something that has cost the lives of at least a hundred people or endangered thousands.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090821/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_deputies_investigated

No wait, I guess they simply have to go out and have a good time.

Yes, yes. Sorry, I’m depressed too now. So I want to leave you with a couple of links that can make your day a bit better. The first one includes a wonderful story by Ed Gavagan. I do not want to spoil it for any of you, so let me just say that it involves the mafia, a brutal stabbing and love.

http://www.themoth.org/index.php?id=4

For those of you who love to waste copious amounts of time on Facebook. I suggest the following link. You should have a good laugh with it.

http://www.yearbookyourself.com/

And finally, 2girls1bike… Totally Safe For Work. Totally ridiculous and awesome.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b36Yi-Pb1wM#t=02m25s

Until the next fix…

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Joe A. Melendez is a columnist for Bayridgistan.com. He also runs http://www.whiskeyandbeans.com and http://www.redmeatreviews.com . To contact Mr. Melendez please email: joeamelendez@whiskeyandbeans.com

68th Precinct Community Council Meeting– meet the police in your neighborhood

editor — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:21:44 +0000

Don’t just Complain about the cops… complain to the cops about the cops. Or at least let them know what you’re thinking. They can’t meet the community halfway if we don’t make at least some sorta step in their direction. So let’s pick their brains…

68th Precinct Community Council Meeting

(June 16, 730 pm)

The stationhouse is at 333 65th street (between 3rd and 4th avenues).

You can find the 68th Precinct’s crime statistics by going to their website (click here) and then clicking the “Crime Statistics” link (it’s next to the Deputy Inspector’s head). This will download a PDF of the most recent compstat crime statistic report. It’s a pretty simple looking document. Something like… this–

This is what the CompStat report looked like when we downloaded it on June 4th, at 8:35pm

Here’s a list (which you can also view at the 68th precinct’s website) of who sits on the Community Council.

President: Francis Proscia
Vice president: John Imbriale
Treasurer: Laura Grassi
Recording Secretary: Ilene Stacco
Corresponding Secretary: Mary Rendiro
Sergeant at Arms: George Samara

And here’s some important phone numbers for the 68th Precinct.

Precinct: (718) 439- 4211
Community Affairs: (718) 439-4228
Crime Prevention: (718) 439-3455
Domestic Violence: (718) 439-4216
Youth Officer: (718) 439-4254
Auxiliary Coordinator: (718) 439-4223
Detective Squad: (718) 439-4236

And in case that doesn’t swing your civilian stick quite enough, here’s some contact info for the Civilian Complaint Review Board. Our take is that the folks at 68th are pretty responsive to feedback from the neighborhood, though. If you hear any different…. now you know who to talk to