Jackson Heights Life

How sad.

More hysterical overreactions to the presence of day-laborers in the neighborhood...  Very disappointing to see police arresting people based on resident complaints rather than the letter of the law.  I wonder if this was motivated in part by yesterday's article?

"Hysterical overreaction"?  Hmmm....I wonder what one's opinion would be if he lived in the area of 69th Street and 37th Avenue/Broadway?  If one's wife had to walk alone past these guys every day?   

"Letter of the law"?  Aren't their still laws against loitering?  Littering?

Anyone living in that vicinity willing to brave the "hysterical reactions" that would ensue on this board if you report your honest opinions of the situation?

 

I'd much rather have day-laborers hanging around then the drunks that hassle me near Kabab King. 

I agree completely.

I walk down Roosevelt to the subway every morning and there is always a group of men between 72nd and 73rd street hanging around..  What exactly are they doing there?  This is at 830am, and not a day goes by that a couple of them don't catcall.  If they aren't supposed to be there, I'd LOVE to call the police on them.  I don't take the subway home when it gets too late because there are always men hanging around there then, also.  I'm simply walking by and not bothering them, so I don't know why they feel the need to talk to me.  They make kissing noises as well.  I can't imagine that any woman has ever responded to this behavior, so I don't know why they bother.

The question is not so  much whether or not these people should have been arrested it is more one of why now, all of a sudden. If the police department has been turning a blind eye to undocumented (or for that matter documented) workers lining up for work in various areas of our neighborhood for close to 15 years why all of a sudden are they cracking down ? It's too coincidental that two officers were shot yesterday by a person who was in this country illegally and suddenly there's a crack down the very next morning.

Last I checked, and I am no lawyer, the constitution grants the right to freedom of assembly. The men assembled at the intersection of 69th St / 37th Ave. / Bway were probably not loitering. This is according to my interpretation (again I am NOT a lawyer) of the city's Loitering laws, which seem to imply that you must have some form of ill intent like gambling or prostitution to be charged with loitering. You also apparently need to be in or near a school or transportation facility to be charged with loitering.(http://wings.buffalo.edu/law/bclc/web/NewYork/ny3(b).htm)

The fact that it seems like the men assembled there were challenged for their ID prior to being arrested implies to me that the police department knew there was nothing they could charge these men with. If you are challenged  for ID by a police officer and you don't present it you can be detained until the PD can verify your identity. Again, not charged with a crime, just detained. This may also explain why only a small number of people were arrested and not everyone that was there. They were not technically breaking any laws.

I am by no means defending cat calls, public urination, or otherwise unsavory behavior. But I do feel that a panic sets in especially when it comes to undocumented immigrants. One negative experience with one person of a particular nationality or skin color can sometimes taint the popular perception of everyone who resembles that nationality or skin color. I'm willing to believe that the vast majority of the men who line up as early as 4am every morning, despite the weather, to hopefully get picked up to work for little, or in some cases, no money are not all urinating, cat calling, etc.

The vast majority of these people have left their family and loved ones behind to come here and work extra hard to send money back home. As they try to improve their family's situation they contribute to our society in ways that are often over looked. We take great pride in our restaurants in Jackson Heights but often forget that the person who cooked that meal, served it to us, or washed the dishes after we were done is quite possibly undocumented. We're lucky to be able to afford to eat in this neighborhood, but if the eateries here couldn't rely on the cheaper labor, I'd imagine we'd have less dining choices at a much higher price. If you've bought fruit or vegetables at Trade Fair or any other super market chances are some portion of the local produce there has been picked by undocumented hands. If you've taken a cab home from the 74th St. station because it's too late or too cold, and you're too afraid to walk the streets  there's a decent chance that the person driving that cab is undocumented too.

So perhaps the contribution made by undocumented workers out weighs the loss in tax revenue / tax expense to have them here when you think about how much more expensive things might be if they didn't do the crap work that nobody wants. Certainly the cost to the average tax payer to pay for the police, correctional facilities, and eventual deportation is quite high, as evidenced by the fact that most detention facilities are privately run and enjoy a healthy profit every year.

We might be better served as a country to examine how we deal with undocumented workers, and rather than punish skilled and hard workers why not create a system that allows them to contribute in a productive manner, pay their fair share, and not live in fear of being arrested and deported simply for trying to make a better life.

That being said, there is no excuse  for breaking the law, and the young man from the Dominican Republic who shot those cops should be charged and deported. Many undocumented works live in fear of breaking the law because they are aware of the consequences, no one wants to rock the boat so to speak. The police in our area would better serve the community by focusing on violent crimes and endeavoring to stop the "strange men" who have been following women around the neighborhood.

Thanks for clarifying John. I'm actually quite relieved to discover my mis-perception of the timing of events as it restores some of my faith in the NYPD. However, my opinion on the issue of undocumented workers remains unchanged.

They were never put into Federal custody, which could have lead to deportation. 

I am outraged. 

Myself as well.