Westchester NOW

The first meeting of the ad hoc New York State Human Rights Coalition/Alliance was held in Manhattan in February, bringing together over fifty people representing a wide array of communities and interests.

There was a wide consensus among the participants that our state government should do a much better job enforcing human rights across New York. There was a sense of empowerment and excitement about gathering together in some formalized way to become a potent political force that advocates with the Governor, the Legislature and the Division of Human Rights to make human rights an appropriately high priority at the state level.

Kathryn Lake Mazierski, the president of NOW-NYS, and David Raff, our attorney in the lawsuit against the state Division of Human Rights, spoke about how proposed legislation could mitigate huge delays in the adjudication of cases. Ross Levi from the Empire State Pride Agenda shared his experiences with New York State government and discussed the difficulties of enforcement of the recently-passed Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act. The issue of gender identity is an example of a community that is not protected under the NYS Human Rights Law. Other discussions centered around the need to provide educational support to the state legislature, since there is no committee on civil rights in either the Assembly or Senate.

The next meeting will be held June 9th in New York City (time and place to be determined) with conference call capability. Any individuals or groups interested in becoming involved in this project can contact us at info@westchesternow.org.

For more information about Westchester NOW, e-mail us at info@westchesternow.org!