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Erica Vladimer

@ericaforny.bsky.social

Tax Justice by day. Founding Director of Harassment-Free New York (@hfny.bsky.social) & NYS Dem Committee Member (AD76) in my free time. Always a UConn Husky. Jewish, She/her Opinions my own blah blah blah

331 Posts1098 Follower663 Folgt
Ken Tremendous@kentremendous.bsky.social · 2d ago

That's what taxes are, man. That's the definition of taxes. "You are subsidizing things you might never use" man shut the fuck up. My taxes currently subsidize like oil company exec private jets, you think I'm upset at low-income people eating inexpensive bananas?

USA TODAY Opinion@usatodayopinion.usatoday.com · 2d ago

Opinion: Mamdani's idea may sound appealing, but it's NYC taxpayers who will take the hit, subsidizing discounts they may never even use.

Melissa Gira Grant@melissagiragrant.com · 2d ago

people could respond to this framing around reporting deaths—"had significant underlying health conditions"—with more confidence if we weren't also living through a pandemic in which we have been told only people who have "underlying health issues" are "vulnerable" or "at risk"

The New York Times@nytimes.com · 2d ago

Breaking News: Two deaths in Michigan have been linked to cyclospora. Both people who had the parasite also had underlying health issues.

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · 2d ago

This article significantly diminishes the findings against Rep. Edwards: he’s a serial sexual harasser and created a hostile work environment. I won’t pretend that I have all the answers here, but I do know a censure is not enough for accountability purposes.

Taken individually, many of Representative Edwards' actions were at minimum inappropriate; a Member of Congress should not single out a staffer and isolate them from other staff, make frequent comments regarding that person's appearance and weight, send messages in the middle of the night, text staff deeply personal and seemingly romantic thoughts, intrude on personal occasions without invitation, pay for personal vacations, and spend thousands of dollars on gifts for staffers. That Representative Edwards did all these things to two young staffers, repeatedly over a sustained period, was beyond inappropriate. In his interview with the Committee, the Congressman repeatedly asserted that he knows well what constitutes "sexual harassment," and seemed to believe that by avoiding inappropriate physical touch, explicitly sexual comments, and occasionally telling the staffers that they were free to put up boundaries with him, he had immunized himself from such a charge. That is not the case. Despite the absence of an explicit proposition, a reasonable person could interpret Representative Edwards' intimate and effusive attentions, where he prioritized the personal over the professional, as thinly veiled advances. There is also contemporaneous evidence and testimony that Staffer 1 and Staffer 2 perceived the conduct as abusive. Even under the exacting standards of federal employment law, Representative Edwards' conduct at minimum exposed his office to the litigation risk of a viable sexual harassment lawsuit. 108
NBC News@nbcnews.com · 2d ago

The House Ethics Committee says it is recommending that Rep. Chuck Edwards be censured by the full House after finding that he “engaged in persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct towards two young female staffers.”

Harassment-Free New York@hfny.bsky.social · 3w ago

HFNY is shocked to see the Mayor reverse course after campaigning against the sexual misconduct by Cuomo & his enabling team. It's time to stop working with Katz, who deployed many of the same Team Cuomo-style tactics on behalf of Platner. Our statement:

Today, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani confirmed his plans to continue working with “top advisor” Morris Katz, whose counsel helped the now-Mayor call out on the campaign trail Andrew Cuomo’s repeated abuse of staff and power. Katz is currently a member of disgraced Maine Senatorial candidate Graham Platner’s inner circle, and rather than take responsibility for Platner’s actions and his own role in covering up and excusing sexual misconduct, Katz doubled down on victim-blaming and public smears of survivors. We believed the Mayor actually understood the harm that stems from an advisory team enabling and excusing a sex pest. Now, his willingness and eagerness to continue working with Katz in light of recent reporting becomes all the more distressing. Worse, in doing so, Mayor Mamdani is sending a terrible message to the workforce he leads: that he is willing to overlook egregious conduct when it concerns members of his inner circle. To that end, Katz: 1) Threatened the campaign’s political director – Genevieve McDonald – demanding that she lie to the Wall Street Journal, after she raised serious concerns about Platner’s fitness for office. Katz then smeared her on Twitter:  “There should be no place in our politics for incompetent, opportunistic operatives who violate privacy, betray trust, and prioritize vengeance over decency.” McDonald, a long time political professional with deep roots in Maine, was telling the truth. Has Katz ever similarly bullied anyone on Mayor Mamdani’s behalf? 2) Dismissed Lindsay Fyfied, whose claims include that Platner twisted her arm and locked her in a room among other abuses, with a campaign statement calling her claims “categorically false and politically motivated.” This mistreatment spurred Jenny Rancicot to come forward. 3) Denied Jenny Racicot’s allegations of rape with an official statement from the campaign calling them “coached and coordinated by out-of-state establishment operatives,” a particularly hypocritical smear against a survivor-led network of women, given that Katz is not from Maine. Does Mayor Mamdani believe Racicot, and condone the smearing of survivor-led networks?Mayor Mamdani ran for office against Andrew Cuomo, often citing his repeated violations of the New York State Human Rights Law and subsequent attempts to evade accountability as disqualifying. The Mayor routinely invoked Cuomo’s abuse of staff and power in contrast to his own principles, even inviting Charlotte Bennett as his guest at a debate and claiming to speak for her: “She cannot speak up for herself because you lodged a defamation case against her. I, however, can speak.”  When it was convenient for him, Mayor Mamdani campaigned not only against the sexual misconduct by Cuomo, but also against his enabling team and the entire system of abuse that fed the former Governor’s administration. The Mayor directly benefited from the work of the many women who spoke out against their own abuse and inadvertently helped pave the way for his successful candidacy. Harassment-Free New York is shocked and disappointed to see the Mayor reverse course now when it relates to one of his own advisors. Principled leadership requires that he apply the same standard to himself and his team as he did to his opponent.  We now ask the Mayor to reconsider his decision to continue working with Katz, by reflecting on his own words: “What I don't have in experience, I make up for in integrity. And what Andrew Cuomo lacks in integrity, he could never make up for with experience.”
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 3w ago

Mamdani: "The first album I was ever given was a clean version of 'The Blueprint,' which is unfortunate. I learned about the importance of freedom of expression."

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · 4w ago

Not directly related to this (interesting & important) thread- but I wanted to point out that most of the 11-min video is DARVO in action. As @charlotteclymer.bsky.social mentions here, Platner Denies, Attacks his “alleged” victim, and Reverses Victim & Offender by claiming he’s being set up.

Charlotte Clymer@charlotteclymer.bsky.social · 4w ago

Most of his 11-min video is spent denying the allegation as totally false, portraying himself as a "regular person" and a victim against "large forces" and as a defender of the people. Here's what I think is his strategy...

Craig Johnson@cajohnson-craig.bsky.social · 4w ago

if you got taken in by Platner: 1) center the experiences of those he hurt 2) admit you were wrong 3) spend the next few days figuring out how to not get taken in by a guy doing *exactly* the same thing next time, because there will be guys doing *exactly* the same thing for the rest of your life

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · 4w ago

This this this this www.thehandbasket.co/p/graham-pla...

We didn’t need a rape accusation to know Graham Platner was unfit

Despite months of red flags, his allies insisted he was the vision of positive masculinity the party needed.

thehandbasket.co

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · 4w ago

Hi, rape should not be the floor when supporting a candidate for office. Anyone who stood by Platner after the first round of credible allegations needs to not only rescind their support now but also make amends for the damage they’ve caused by sticking with him beforehand. That is all…for now.

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · 4w ago

Hi, rape should not be the floor when supporting a candidate for office. Anyone who stood by Platner after the first round of credible allegations needs to not only rescind their support now but also make amends for the damage they’ve caused by sticking with him beforehand. That is all…for now.

Amanda Wallwin@wallwin.bsky.social · 4w ago

Reminder that accusers don’t actually “press charges,” that’s a choice made by prosecutors, that it is far from a sure bet that a prosecutor will do so even if that’s what a survivor wants and that most rape survivors choose not to report because of the legal system’s hostility to survivors.

🇺🇸Jackie S.🇺🇦🙏4️⃣☮️@kaysgramma.bsky.social · last mo.

Sorry, but this is getting ridiculous Platner has been in the news for months. Why didn’t this come up soon? Platner should call on his accuser to press charges. If true, let him rot in prison. Republicans not only demand criminal charges, they ignore them when their candidate is found liable

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · last mo.

Look, this is a fair article when it comes to legitimate questions about Schumer's leadership. But how do you write about the DSCC failures and only mention Gillibrand once, and in passing? Not even a mention that Schumer appointed her, and she's clearly failing at her job.

Akbar Shahid Ahmed@akbarshahidahmed.bsky.social · last mo.

“‘A lot of Democratic senators are starting to think about what a different kind of leadership model would look like,’ one Democratic senator said of Schumer.” www.notus.org/democrats/ch...

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · 2mo ago

How about affordability AND impeaching Trump (+admin officials) Affordability AND prosecuting ICE officers The name of the game needs to be “Affordability AND…” If Jeffries doesn’t want to walk and chew gum at the same time (bc let’s be clear- we know he can), we need a Dem leader who will.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2mo ago

Hakeem Jeffries doesn't rule out impeaching Trump if Democrats retake the House majority, but says Democrats will be focused on affordability

Erica Vladimer@ericaforny.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Not allegations. He was found liable for sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll. Name it, use up your skeet characters, your lede word count, whatever. Just please stop minimizing sexual violence.

Zeteo@zeteo.com · 2mo ago

Donald Trump turns 80 today. From discrimination lawsuits to allegations of sexual misconduct, his eight decades have been defined by scandal, controversy and abuse of power. Read 80 things you should know about the sitting president of the United States zeteo.com/p/donald-tru...