5+ mon, 4+ day ago (181+ words) Espaillat's support of the state assemblymember comes as more of the city's Democratic establishment lines up behind him for November's election. The democratic socialist says he'd strengthen "co-governance," but hasn't provided many details about how. The new tally comes as the Democratic Party continues to wrestle with the implications of Mamdani's historic upset win. Fresh off his win in the Democratic mayoral primary, Zohran Mamdani criticized the city's wealthiest residents during a Sunday appearance on Meet the Press. "He's a snake oil salesman," Adams said. "He would say and do anything to get elected." The likely Democratic nominee for mayor appeared on WNYC's "The Brian Lehrer Show" Wednesday. New York City is headed toward a general election unlike any in recent memory. "He won," Cuomo said about Mamdani, even as the contest headed to a ranked choice count. Vying to…...

6+ mon, 3+ week ago (309+ words) A months-long investigation into decades of sexual assault allegations on Rikers Island was a finalist in the audio reporting category. Gothamist, WNYC investigation named finalist for Pulitzer Prize Published May 5, 2025 Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations A Gothamist and WNYC special investigation into decades of sexual assault at the Rikers Island women's prison was named a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in audio reporting. The investigation found that more than 20 women said the same officer sexually assaulted them while they were held at the Rose M. Singer Center. Their allegations spanned decades, but many of the women only knew him by the nickname "Champagne." In a nearly hour-long special episode of the NYC Now podcast, Gothamist and WNYC reporters spoke with multiple women who say they were assaulted by "Champagne" and were able to piece together clues, find and…...

1+ mon, 1+ week ago (513+ words) Published Oct 21, 2025 at 4:25 p.m. ET Modified Oct 21, 2025 at 4:58 p.m. ET More than two dozen federal law enforcement officials descended on Canal Street in Chinatown on Tuesday afternoon, detaining at least four people as part of an apparent raid that later escalated into street clashes with bystanders. Two Gothamist reporters witnessed the activity, including agents restraining several individuals and questioning one man who was later released after showing identification. Officials make an arrest during Tuesday's raid. By late afternoon, the operation expanded east toward Walker and Lafayette streets, where additional arrests were made. A crowd of bystanders began chanting and banging on unmarked vans as agents loaded detainees inside. Federal agents were seen using batons and threatening pepper spray as they attempted to control the crowd. One officer appeared to pull a woman by the hair while dispersing people from the street. "I…...

1+ week, 18+ hour ago (190+ words) Published Nov 23, 2025 at 2:37 p.m. ET Gotham FC is getting the Key to New York City after winning the National Women's Soccer League championship Saturday night, city officials said. Mayor Eric Adams announced a City Hall ceremony and fan procession to honor the team on Monday, Nov. 24. The celebration will start at 10 a.m. and feature players, coaches and city officials. Fans can request up to two free tickets online starting at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Only 500 will be available, first-come, first-served, according to City Hall. A fan march will begin on Barclay Street and head up Broadway to City Hall. City buildings will also be lit sky blue through Monday in tribute to the team. Phil Corso is the evening news editor at WNYC/Gothamist. Got a tip? Email [email'protected]. The meeting between Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump centered on talks about affordability and…...

1+ mon, 1+ week ago (343+ words) Published Oct 19, 2025 New York Comic Con has come and gone, but there is another comic book storyline brewing in our own backyard: The push to co-name a street on the Lower East Side for Jack Kirby. He's the co-creator of some of Marvel Comics' most popular characters, and he was born on the Lower East Side. Despite being one of the most influential comic book artists ever it's often said that Kirby didn't always get the credit he deserved in his lifetime. Pop culture historian and critic Roy Schwartz, one of the people pushing to rename part of the Lower East Side's Essex Street after Kirby, recently discussed the artist and his legacy with "All Things Considered" host Sean Carlson. This is a lightly edited transcript of their conversation. So he really did immortalize that neighborhood in the early to…...

8+ mon, 2+ week ago (476+ words) Published Mar 10, 2025 at 3:46 p.m. ET Prominent New York City immigration activist Ravi Ragbir felt a sense of deja vu after learning of the detention on Saturday of a Palestinian student activist at Columbia University. Ragbir remained in a sort of immigration limbo until President Joe Biden pardoned him in his final days in office. "It was the same tactic they used, which is to instill fear," said Ragbir. "Everything they're doing is to instill fear in our community so that we are intimidated and silenced." There was one big difference between the two cases, according to Ragbir. The Trump administration is being more aggressive in its second term. He noted that the facility where records show Khalil is being held, the LaSalle Detention Facility in Louisiana, is often a final stop for immigrant detainees before deportation. Ragbir feared the government is…...

3+ mon, 1+ week ago (651+ words) Published Aug 18, 2025 at 7:29 p.m. ET Two days after a mass shooting at a hookah lounge in her Crown Heights neighborhood, Chenille Blue said she's still too scared to go outside. She had been at the Taste of the City Lounge just two hours before the shooting early Sunday morning, picking up chicken wings for a friend. By 3:30 a.m., when the gunfire began, she was sitting on her stoop. "I see people running" my heart's still beating," said Blue, who said she's lived in the neighborhood for 20 years. "I'm saying thank God the person didn't come out shooting because God forbid I could have got hit." Across the neighborhood, residents on Monday said they felt shaken by the shooting that killed three people and injured 11 others. Residents, violence prevention workers and city and state leaders gathered in a show of community strength. "I…...

1+ mon, 3+ day ago (467+ words) Published Oct 27, 2025 at 3:01 p.m. ET New York City officials are reminding drivers, pedestrians and cyclists to be on high alert navigating streets as clocks fall back this weekend and daylight fades earlier. The Department of Transportation and other city agencies announced the return of their annual "Dusk and Darkness" campaign, reminding New Yorkers that the weeks following the end of Daylight Saving Time are among the most dangerous on local roads because of reduced visibility. The period ends early Sunday morning, sending clocks back an hour. Officials said despite a near-record low number of traffic deaths this year, they will continue to ramp up enforcement against erratic, distracted and dangerous driving to keep people safe as the sun begins to set before the evening rush hour. "To every driver we say this: Slow down, pay attention," NYPD Chief of Transportation Olufunmilola…...

2+ week, 2+ day ago (427+ words) Published Nov 14, 2025 at 4:03 p.m. ET A Bronx family is moving to file a lawsuit after they say police left their teenage daughter alone in a cell with a sweater even after she told them she was suicidal, and did not intervene when she hanged herself. The family filed legal papers Friday asking for a court order to compel the NYPD to preserve and turn over all records related to the case. In a petition filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, attorneys for Saniyah Cheatham's family wrote that the NYPD's failure to address the 18-year-old's mental health conditions or monitor her while in custody "directly resulted in her untimely death." City medical examiners in July officially ruled Cheatham's death a suicide. Attorneys said Cheatham was experiencing acute mental distress when she was arrested on assault charges. After police took her to the 41st Precinct…...

8+ mon, 4+ day ago (450+ words) In February, 55-year-old Terrence Moore died in city Department of Correction custody while awaiting an appearance in Manhattan Supreme Court. A city Board of Correction report on Moore's death found ... Published Mar 26, 2025 at 2:39 p.m. ET A 43-year-old man died in NYPD custody at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse on Wednesday, according to police " the third time this year someone has died at a city courthouse. NYPD officials said the man was discovered unresponsive around 8 a.m. while awaiting a court appearance. First responders transported him to NewYork-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased, police said. Officials did not immediately release the man's name as they worked to notify his family, but said he was arrested Tuesday evening near Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street in Midtown on charges of criminal possession of a controlled substance and another minor offense they did not specify. The…...