Elana Levin
Welcome to DMI’s Middle Class NYC Conference ONLINE
Photo of Former Governor Mario Cuomo preparing to deliver his speech.
UPDATE:
blog post from the New York Time's blog Empire Zone here.
* * *
Welcome to DMI's conference co-sponsored with Baruch College, "The American Dream in the Big Apple: Is New York City still a middle-class town?"
If you can't join us in the flesh don't panic! Some folks are liveblogging the event (will give the URLS shortly). Plus,
the very same presentations being delivered between the panels are available for you to download and watch online.
DMI's report is here: "Saving Our Middle Class: A Survey of New York's Leaders By the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy"
Click here (PDF) for John Mollenkopf, Executive Director of Center for Urban Research at the City University of New York presenting on "Who is the Middle Class in New York City?"
Click here (PDF) for Adam Friedman, Executive Director of the New York Industrial Retention Network presenting on "Manufacturing Jobs, Wealth and the Middle Class"
Click here for Andrea Batista Schlesinger, Executive Director of DMI revealing the results of "American Dream in the Big Apple: A Survey of New York Leaders On How to Save New York City's Middle Class."
Let's keep the discussion going here on the DMIBlog. Comment away!
Elana Levin: Author Bio | Other Posts
Posted at 8:07 AM, Apr 02, 2007 in
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Comments
Hi
I have just returned from the conference on the dissapearing middle class at Baruch and was really quite suprised and dissapointed with it.
Mario Cuoma of course is a pro and vastly entertaining... Sara Horowitz presented some interesting points of view.... The others, for example Anthony Weiner and Wm. Thompson were dead in the water..
The rich are welcome to New York. All the 'mom and pops' are gone.. The funky jazz clubs. The gay bars. The antique shops.. All the dance clubs for the young poeple have been closed down. Everything is artificial and disigned to appeal to the tourists.
The whole political system, together with the main stream media, are on sabatical. They come up for air once in a while like dieing fish.
Too bad there wasn't more audience participation. The public are more aware of what's going on than they are given credit for.
Andrea is superb and so sharp!
Best Wishes- DMI is a great organization!!
Posted by: julie | April 2, 2007 03:22 PM
As an audience member who didn't participate, my perception is that, were conferences like this one more open to discussion, they would never end. Those of us who attended will need to continue the discussion on line and in life. Overall, I was surprised at the very low level of criticism of Mayor Bloomberg's administration. While I never expected Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs or Finance Commissioner Martha Stark to utter a word critical of NYC policy (and they didn't), I was surprised at the kid-gloves with which the Mayor's policies were handled. If, for example, affordable housing is a key issue for New Yorkers who are or aspire to middle class life, then Mayor Bloomberg's position on 421(a) tax abatement is a dagger in the heart of the hopes of ordinary people. Comptroller William Thompson's daughter, now living at home, will never find an affordable apartment if 421(a) tax abatements in the outer boroughs are given out to luxury housing developers. Yet Mr. Thompson was silent on the issue.
Posted by: Daniel Millstone | April 3, 2007 06:50 AM