Open Letter Demanding Albany Fight Back Against Trump   

To New York Lawmakers:

The first weeks of the second Trump administration have wrought unprecedented and unimaginable danger to our democracy and our communities.

The administration’s attacks are ongoing and growing. In just the first month this has included flagrant and unlawful attacks on the rights of immigrants; intimidation and raiding of our communities to ramp up deportation; threats to the rights and autonomy of states and localities to govern free from partisan bullying and retaliation; the mass firing of government workers in violation of legal contracts; the cancellation of vital research, disaster aid, and medical care that people were told they could rely on; the abandonment of environmental protections and initiatives to confront racism and discrimination; and the wholesale destabilization of the critical infrastructure of government on which we all rely.

While New Yorkers are calling out for strong, responsive state leadership amid this barrage, Albany has largely remained quiet. New Yorkers can sense your indecision. We notice your inaction. We see your timidity—no proactive agenda, no cohesive response, no outrage, no rallying of public action that addresses the unfolding constitutional crisis.

We, the undersigned organizations, on behalf of millions of New Yorkers, including hundreds of thousands of our members and supporters, join together today in this open call to demand that you step forward, protect our democracy and our communities, and lead.

We demand aggressive action to:

• protect immigrant New Yorkers and those facing the threat of deportation;
• defend the rights of trans people to live openly and securely;
• ensure abortion access and inclusive gender justice policies;
• secure our right to protest, advocate, and speak out;
• safeguard our privacy and personal data from corporate and government abuse;
• preserve our environment and protect vulnerable New Yorkers from its worst effects;
• ensure our communities are not harmed by the withdrawal of crucial federal funding; and
• secure the right of New York State to autonomy and to protect its residents.

New York has a proud history of leading the way—leadership that this moment demands. We were among the very first states to legalize abortion and affirm marriage equality. We stood up to the worst abuses during the first Trump Administration, including by passing protections for Black and Brown New Yorkers and immigrants, as well as critical reforms to our criminal legal system. And, Albany met the moment after the Supreme Court ended Roe v. Wade by delivering a bold, expansive Equal Rights Amendment—that voters just approved—protecting abortion in our state constitution and shoring up equal rights for all New Yorkers.

New York officials will be remembered for how they respond during our greatest challenges. Now is the time for bold action. New Yorkers are counting on you.

In solidarity,

#HALTsolitary Campaign
(in)Visible Legacy
4L Solutions LLC
A Little Piece of Light
Access Justice Brooklyn
ADROIT Architecture & Interior Design
Advocates for Trans Equality (A4TE)
ALAA – UAW Local 2325
Alliance for Quality Education
Amida Care
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
BeckHook Pride, Co.
Bend the Arc: Jewish Action Long Island
BKForge: Brooklyn for Reproductive and Gender Equity
BLIS (Black Liberation-Indigenous Sovereignty) Collective
Brooklyn Legal Services
Corporation A
Camp Highlight
Campaign for New York Health
Center for Constitutional Rights
Central American Refugee Center (CARECEN-NY)
Children’s Defense Fund New York
Citizen Action of New York
City Bar Justice Center
CNY Solidarity Coalition
Collar City Pride
Common Cause NY
CUNY Institute for
Implementation Science in Population Health
Day One
Decriminalize Sex Work
Dutchess County Pride Center
Equality New York
Erase Racism
Family Planning of South Central New York, Inc.
Fight for the Future
Free The People Rochester
Free to Be Youth Project-Urban Justice Center
Gender Equality New York, Inc.
Get Free
Golden Psychology
Her Justice
Hetrick-Martin Institute
Housing Works, Inc.
Hudson Valley Justice Center
Hudson Valley LGBTQ+ Community Center
If/When/How: Lawyering for Reproductive Justice
Immigrant Defense Project
Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley, Inc.
Indivisible Activate NYC
Indivisible Brooklyn
Indivisible Yorktown Heights
IndivisibleWeStand UWS
Inwood Community Initiatives
Jahajee
Jews For Racial & Economic Justice (JFREJ)
Kolot Chayeinu/Voices of Our Lives Congregation
LatinoJustice PRLDEF
Legal Action Center
Literacy Academy Collective
Long Island Advocates for Police Accountability (LIAFPA)
Long Island Latino
Teachers Association
Make the Road New York
Mekong NYC
Mobilization for Justice Inc.
Mosaico NY
Nassau County Legal Aid Society
National Center for Law and Economic Justice
National Employment Law Project
National Harm Reduction Coalition
National Institute for Reproductive Health
NEW Pride Agenda
New York Civil Liberties Union
New York Communities for Change
New York Immigration Coalition
New York Lawyers for the Public Interest
NMIC
NY 21 South Indivisible Group
NYCD16/15-Indivisible
Otsego Refugee
Resettlement Coalition
Patient Forward
PFLAG NYC
PowHer New York
Q’Lective Therapy
Queens Volunteer
Lawyers Project, Inc.
Rainbow Counseling
Reach Out America
Reproductive Health Access Project
Restoring Beauty from Ashes Advocacy & Mentoring Services
RHAvote
Right To Be
ROC Food Not Bombs
Rockland County Pride Center
Rural & Migrant Ministry Inc.
S.T.O.P. – The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project
Staten Island Women Who March
Street Vendor Project at the Urban Justice Center
Strong Economy For All Coalition
STRONG Youth, Inc.
Suffolk Progressives
Superbloom Psychotherapy
Surveillance Resistance Lab
Sylvia Rivera Law Project
Syracuse Chapter National Action Network
TakeRoot Justice
Temple Am Echad
The Ali Forney Center
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery
The Health & Housing Consortium
The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Community Center
The National Action Network Brooklyn Central Chapter
The New York State Council of Churches
The Prisoners’ Brain Trust
The Release Aging People in Prison Campaign (RAPP)
Trans formative Schools
Transgender Law Center
Treatment Action Group
True Bearing Bodywork
Turn Nassau Blue
UAW2325 – The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Criminal Defense Practice
Urban Jobs Task Force of Syracuse
Urban Justice Center
Vera Institute of Justice
WAVE Women Inc.
WCLA – Choice Matters
Westchester for Change
Women’s Diversity Network
Working Families Party of Nassau County
Yleana Leadership Foundation