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Congressmember Jamaal Bowman reintroduced his Fair College Admissions for Students Act, which works to stop prestigious universities and colleges nationwide from giving children of alumni preferential treatment in reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision overturning affirmative action in schools.
Bowman argued that legacy admissions overwhelmingly benefit well-connected students, who are predominantly white and wealthy, in the same way “race-conscious” admissions benefit students of color, lower-middle class students, and immigrant students.
“All students deserve an equitable chance to be admitted to institutions of higher education, but many are overlooked in the admissions process due to the historically elitist and racist legacy and donor admissions practices at colleges across the country,” said Bowman. “In the wake of the Supreme Court’s shameful decision to end race-conscious admissions policies, we’re about to see colleges across the country get even richer and whiter than they already are.”
The Fair College Act would build on the Higher Education Act of 1965, which bans schools from federal student aid programs if they give special preference to legacies.
James Murphy, the deputy director of higher education policy at Education Reform Now, said in a statement that the organization worked on the legislation with Bowman and Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon.
“Providing a birthright advantage to applicants lucky enough to be born into wealth and privilege is not just profoundly unfair; it runs contrary to higher education’s mission to serve as an engine for social mobility, by providing an advantage to those who least need one,” said Murphy.
Wil Del Pilar, senior vice president for The Education Trust, said they are committed to creating opportunities in higher education for all students, but especially students of color and students from low-income backgrounds.
“This practice is historically built on systemic racism, whereby the nation’s most prominent institutions worked to diminish Jewish and immigrant enrollment, and over time included more racial minorities and others deemed unworthy of access to higher education,” said Pilar in a statement. “The Fair College Admissions for Students Act addresses these inequities by reversing historical wrongs and we are proud to support it.”
Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visitinghttps://bit.ly/amnews1.
Author’s Note: The migrants interviewed are only identified by their first names in this story. Their interviews were conducted in French and translated by an ACT employee.
African Communities Together (ACT) greets visitors with a glass of water first thing after entering its Harlem Offices, followed by offers of coffee and tea. The organization—which connects African migrants to key legal, employment, and governmental services—hopes those who seek its help feel at home. But ACT’s Community Navigator Sophie Kouyate feels New York City isn’t as apt at playing host.
“People need to understand that African communities need to be comfortable to talk to someone,” said Kouyate. “When they’re coming here, they are my son, they are my uncle. When it’s a senior, that’s papa…[the migrants that] come today, we already have something for them to eat. The bread and the mayonnaise and the egg, that’s what we do in Africa.
“They’re going to feel welcome. That’s why when we have something and [ask] them to come, they always come. Because they know we’re here for them. When you have workers [at shelters] and they don’t look like them, they’re not going to understand them.”
This Saturday marks one year since the first migrant bus arrived from Texas. Yet the situation is nowhere near resolved, with asylum seekers recently sleeping on the streets outside Midtown Manhattan’s Roosevelt Hotel, which was retrofitted into both an arrival center and shelter; the hotel’s shelter was at capacity.
Murad Awawdeh, executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition—of which ACT is a member agency—says that Black migrants, like African asylum seekers, face additional disparities even in an already difficult predicament.
“We have a racist criminal justice system, which then puts them [migrants] in line with interactions with law enforcement [which] almost always and immediately means an interaction with immigration officials,” said Awawdeh over the phone. “The historical nature of Black immigrants in New York has been one of huge importance here. And to see that Black immigrants continue to sit at the furthest of the margins, [and] continue to be the most vulnerable and marginalized parts of our community, is just unconscionable in a city like New York.
“We have so much more work to do. It’s incredibly heartbreaking to see that the vast majority of people who are sleeping outside of the [Roosevelt] Hotel are Black migrants.”
An asylum seeker named Marie Noel sought ACT’s assistance with obtaining her IDNYC card and health insurance. She says she initially left Cameroon with her brother for Brazil due to an abusive marriage, but soon found out her spouse had followed her to the South American nation. She showed photos of conspicuous burn marks all over her arm and torso from having hot water poured over her.
So Marie Noel trekked through South and Central America, entering California after reaching the southern U.S. border. On her journey, she was extorted out of at least $8,000. She ultimately landed in New York after her initial plan to stay with someone she knew in Florida fell through.
“When [I] came here people welcomed [me] and [asked] what do you need? How can we help you?” said Marie Noel. “We’re here, we need work, but everything [I] asked them they didn’t help [me] with. [I] had food and somewhere to sleep but everything else, they listened [to me] but they never solved [my] situation.”
She initially stayed at a shelter, but is now living with a host family.
Allassane, 38, also sought ACT’s help with obtaining health insurance and applying for a New York State ID. The Senegalese migrant arrived this past May after leaving his home due to a serious safety concern and is awaiting work authorization. He’s currently staying in a men’s shelter.
Buses, shelters and legal cases are only a fleeting first step for the African migrants. Asylum seekers cannot currently work until their applications have been pending for over 180 days.
The migrants repeated their desire to legally earn money at any capacity. Allassane said he was open to any legitimate employment, and saw himself working as a deliveryman. Back in Senegal, he was a car salesman. As for Marie Noel, she fantasizes of one day opening a hair salon in New York City and living in her own apartment. She’s even excited about paying her taxes. The American Dream, she calls it.
Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member and writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visitinghttps://bit.ly/amnews1.
The passage of the Clean Slate Act, which works to automatically seal people’s conviction records after a certain time period, earlier this year was just the tip of the iceberg for criminal justice advocates. They are determined to fight discrimination against formerly incarcerated New Yorkers on all fronts—especially housing.
The Fair Chance for Housing Campaign supports a city council bill that would end housing discrimination against people with convictions in New York City. They gathered at Foley Square in Manhattan last Wed with local electeds.
Ward was deeply involved in illegal activities as a teen and was sentenced to 24 years in prison by age 20. He has been out for the last 14 and a half years, he said. Since then, he has achieved numerous accolades, a prestigious position, a high level of education, and taught at institutions.
“I’m someone who came out, did the right thing, contributes to our community, and yet, I didn’t put my name on the housing application that my wife applied for because I knew that if I did, they probably wouldn’t allow me to live there,” he said, about a lease situation with his family in 2016. “Because I have a conviction record.”
His organization runs several supportive and transitional housing locations around the city for formerly incarcerated people, including Long Island City, Harlem, and the Bronx. They have extensive rehabilitative services for people once they’ve been released, emergency housing for those with nowhere to go, and reintegration plans for people willing to commit to programming. “Central to the work is believing in people’s capacity to change and transform their lives,” said Ward.
Ward believes that once someone does the work, they deserve a fair shot at life, and a conviction history shouldn’t deter that.
From 1980 to 2021, there were about “6.6 million New York criminal cases impacting nearly 2.2 million people that ended in a conviction,” said research collected by the Data Collaborative for Justice (DCJ). New York City accounted for 53% of these convictions in 1980. The rate has steadily decreased to 33% by 2019, the report says. The drop-off was significant in 2020 and 2021.
From 1985 to 2021, 42% of convictions involved Black people, yet they made up 15% of the state’s population in 2019. New York City has a conviction rate that is 5.7 times higher for Black people than white people, the DCJ concluded.
Ward added that a high percentage of Black and brown people released from state prisons are entering city shelters because of these convictions and not qualifying for housing. He said the shelter system here is “unfit” and “uninhabitable” because of unaddressed conditions. “This issue behind Fair Chance for Housing is also a racial justice issue, and that’s why it’s so fundamentally important,” he said.
Kandra Clark, vice president of policy and strategy with Exodus Transitional Community, runs a supportive housing program for formerly incarcerated people similar to Fortune Society. “It is so sad to see how many New Yorkers face housing discrimination daily. People with conviction histories are perpetually punished, making their families more likely to experience intergenerational homelessness,” said Clark in a statement. “We must break this cycle of poverty and provide families the opportunity to flourish in their homes and communities.”
Clark said that Fair Chance is just “smart legislation” that should be passed immediately. Plenty of electeds in the city and state agree.
East Harlem’s Assemblymember Eddie Gibbs is the first formerly incarcerated person elected to the state assembly and was a huge proponent of getting Clean Slate passed at the tail end of the June legislative session. He said, in a statement, he wholeheartedly supports the Fair Chance Housing Act and that it would allow people with conviction histories to access stable housing.
“An individual’s conviction history doesn’t solely affect them. It can affect their family as well and lead to a never-ending cycle of instability,” said Gibbs.
Councilmember Carmen De La Rosa said someone’s past should not determine whether or not they live in dignified and affordable housing. “The Fair Chance for Housing Act alleviates an already difficult process while working towards our goal of securing permanent housing for all New Yorkers, especially for the disproportionate numbers of formerly incarcerated people of color,” she said in a statement.
Ward concedes that there may need to be provisions in the bill, similar to those in Clean Slate when it comes to certain sexual or egregious conviction records, in order to get it passed.
Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visitinghttps://bit.ly/amnews1.
Baba Moshood Afariogun presented his 29th fashion show in Brooklyn this weekend. To honor close to 30 years of bringing creative Afrikan style and fashion to Brooklyn, hundreds of people turned out to be dazzled by an array of local designers showcasing their latest lines. A packed crowd at Bed Stuy’s Restoration Plaza cheered on a dozen or so models as they quick-changed into the most spectacular garms.
Bill Moore photos
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams came through to applaud his mom Pat, as the popular fashionista popped on the Afro-centric glamor and walked the stage.
State Senator Kevin Parker presented Moshood with a proclamation, and Assemblymember Stefani Zinerman once again came out to support the annual fashion show, which is something of a local legend by now.
Bill Moore photos
Fashion aficionado Kunle Ade, son of King Sunny Ade, brought his Naija band, who kept things Afro-juju lively and folks dancing for over four hours; and Lookman Afolayan Jr., from Buka’s restaurant, kept people filled up on jollof rice and puff puff. All in all, a good time was had by all!
