New Yorkers Must Oppose Economic Development Policies that Give More Power to Billionaires and their Corporations over Our Communities’ Future

As New Yorkers we believe every person has the right to good union jobs, safe and dignified affordable housing, strong and stable communities, a great public education, and a voice in our democracy. Because of these values, we must oppose Governor Cuomo’s failed economic development policies that give more power over our communities’ futures to billionaires and their corporations.

Cuomo’s plea for Amazon to come back to New York and the open letter that appears in the New York Times today does not accurately reflect the desires of immigrant communities, working-class communities, and communities of color. Amazon left the first time around because of fierce vocal opposition, and that opposition still remains. We defeated them recently, and we will do it again.

The Amazon HQ2 plan was a perfect example of the Governor’s failed economic development policies. It was a backroom deal that cut out communities and handed a $500 million grant and $2.5 billion in future public money to the wealthiest man in the world. Other than the union construction and building services jobs that were already in place from previous plans for the site and that were grandfathered into the deal, Amazon made little commitment to local hiring and promised just 30 jobs for public housing residents. Their presence in Seattle drove up rents and homelessness to unprecedented levels. A similar headquarters in Long Island City would have done the same in Queens, accelerating the displacement of our communities. Furthermore, Amazon refused to stay neutral to unionization efforts or to stop their collaboration with ICE, which is incompatible with the values of the people of New York.

The State of New York has allocated tens of billions of dollars to corporations in the name of economic development, but communities and workers across the state continue to suffer from disinvestment. While Governor Cuomo said that Amazon leaving was the greatest tragedy since he’s been in office, our communities face real tragedies every day that continue to go unaddressed by the administration:

• Students are suffering from crumbling schools, outdated textbooks, and crowded classrooms while the state owes our public schools billions of dollars in aid. The Governor refuses to comply with a lawsuit that would force the state to release that aid to our public schools.
• Nearly 100,000 New Yorkers sleep in shelters each night, a number that has risen 36% on Governor Cuomo’s watch. Nearly 100,000 rent stabilized apartments have been lost.
• Public housing residents are living in deplorable conditions while State funding for public housing continues to decline. Plans like NYCHA 2.0 and NextGen NYCHA are inadequate solutions to New York’s ongoing public housing crisis.
• Riders can no longer depend on the MTA to get to work, school, and critical appointments. Cuomo has presided over disinvestment in the system that now requires $40 billion to pay for repairs and modernization.

We are a diverse coalition of New Yorkers who believe that we need ‘bottom-up’ economic development designed for the benefit of our communities, not for billionaires, corporations and real estate speculators. Cuomo’s failed economic development policies have extracted our wealth in exchange for false job promises. Look no further than the Buffalo Billion project, which has been riddled with corruption and cost the state nearly $1 million per job.

We are committed to the establishment of a new equitable economic development agenda that redirects the billions of dollars currently spent on tax breaks and subsidies for corporations towards deep, community-led investments in our neighborhoods. We need investment that creates good union jobs, real affordable housing, fully funded schools, and modernized public infrastructure.

Rather than pursuing economic development policies that lead to displacement, we demand policies that create housing stability and security. We call for Universal Rent Control that gives people, not the real estate industry, the power to determine where they live — no New Yorker should live in fear of a rapid rent increase or an eviction.

We will continue to hold Amazon accountable and defend our communities from their monopolistic practices, their tax avoidance, and their collaboration with ICE. We will continue to stand in solidarity with Amazon workers facing brutal working conditions and union busting bosses.

These fights won’t be easy. But we know New Yorkers will stand with us in our fight for a state that works for all of us.

Signed,

1. Adhikaar for Human Rights & Social Change
2. ALIGN-NY
3. Alliance for Quality Education
4. Arab American Association of New York
5. Art Against Displacement
6. Association for Neighborhood & Housing Development (ANHD)
7. Bad Barcode
8. BAJI — Black Alliance for Just Immigration
9. Brandworkers
10. BYP100 NYC
11. CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities
12. Carroll Gardens Association
13. Center for Popular Democracy
14. Centro Corona
15. Chhaya CDC
16. Chinatown Art Brigade
17. Citizen Action of New York
18. Coalition for Economic Justice Buffalo (CEJ)
19. Community Development Project at Urban Justice Center
20. Cooper Square Committee
21. CUFFH-Churches United for Fair Housing
22. Daily Kos
23. Damayan Migrant Workers
24. DRUM — Desis Rising Up & Moving
25. Ebbets Field Tenants Association
26. Equality for Flatbush (E4F)
27. Families for Freedom
28. Fifth Ave Committee
29. Food and Water Watch
30. Freedom to Thrive
31. Fuck Off Amazon
32. FUREE — Families United for Racial and Economic Equality
33. GAP — Global Action Project
34. Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition
35. Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Network
36. Hate Free Zones Queens
37. Housing Justice For All
38. Human-Scale NYC
39. Hunters Point Civic Association
40. Indivisible Brooklyn
41. International Socialist Organization
42. Jackson Heights Immigrant Solidarity Network
43. JFREJ — Jews for Racial & Economic Justice
44. Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club
45. Jobs with Justice
46. Justice Committee
47. Justice for All Coalition
48. Laundry Workers Center
49. Legal Services Staff Association, NOLSW/UAW 2320
50. Long Island Activists
51. Long Island City Coalition
52. Make the Road New York
53. Met Council on Housing
54. Mi Casa No Es Su Casa: Illumination Against Gentrification
55. Mijente
56. MinKwon Center
57. MORE (Movement of Rank and file Educators — UFT Social Justice Caucus)
58. Movement to Protect the People (MTOPP)
59. Movimiento Cosecha
60. MPower Change
61. New Economy Project
62. New York Communities for Change
63. No IDC NY
64. NOT ONE MORE BLOCK
65. NY Progressive Action Network
66. NYC Democratic Socialists of America
67. NYS Tenants & Neighbors
68. Our Movement The Future
69. Partnership for Working Families
70. Party for Socialism and Liberation Queens
71. People’s Climate Movement New York
72. Persist NY
73. Picture the Homeless
74. Primed Out NYC
75. Progressive Hacknight
76. Queens Against Amazon
77. Queens Neighborhoods United
78. Queens United Independent Progressives
79. Retail Action Project
80. Riverside Edgecombe Neighborhood Association (RENA)
81. Rockland United
82. Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus
83. SANE Energy Project
84. Shetu NYC
85. Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Buffalo Chapter
86. Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) National
87. Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) NYC Chapter
88. Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Rochester Chapter
89. Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Westchester Chapter
90. Socialist Alternative
91. South Asian Diaspora Arts
92. Southwest Brooklyn Tenant Union
93. Take Back 20
94. Teachers Unite
95. Tenants Political Action Committee
96. Tech Workers Coalition
97. The Brooklyn Anti-Gentrification Network (BAN)
98. The Illuminator
99. Tompkins County Worker Center
100. True Blue New York
101. Ugnayan Youth for Justice & Social Change
102. Upper West Side MoveOn/Indivisible Action Group
103. VOCAL-NY
104. Westside Neighborhood Alliance
105. Woke Foods
106. Working Families Party
107. Yalla Brooklyn